Reneo 2023

Reneo is a drawless connection game for two players: Black and White. It is played on the intersections (points) of an initially empty square grid (board). The top and bottom edges of the board are colored black; the left and right edges are colored white.

A crosscut is a 2×2 area containing two diagonally adjacent black stones and two diagonally adjacent white stones.

Black plays first, then turns alternate. On your turn, place a stone of your color on an empty point. If this stone is part of a crosscut, swap it with an enemy stone that is part of the same crosscut. As a result, the swapped friendly stone must not be part of a crosscut any more. If the swapped enemy stone is still part of a crosscut, remove that stone.

Passing is not allowed, but, if you have no legal moves available, your turn is skipped.

You win if, after a full move by either player, there is a chain of orthogonally connected stones of your color touching the two opposite board edges of your color.

To make the game fair, White will have the option, on their first turn only, to swap sides with Black instead of making a regular move.

Reneo bears a significant resemblance to Alek Erickson's Resolve.

—description from the designer