Block Fit feels like a calm game that never hurries you. Even so, a game can end surprisingly fast. A few badly placed shapes, and the grid is left with scattered holes that nothing fits into. Here is how to avoid that and how to score more points from the same shapes. The rules and scoring are explained in Block Fit rules and scoring in detail.
Which shapes come most often
Shapes do not all come equally often. The game gives each group of shapes a fixed weight, and from that you can work out how often each group appears:
| Group of shapes | About |
|---|---|
| lines of three cells | 12% |
| small corners of three cells | 12% |
| L and J shapes | 12% |
| lines of two cells | 10% |
| 2 by 2 squares | 10% |
| lines of four cells | 8% |
| T shapes | 8% |
| dot, five-cell lines, large corners, S and Z | 6% each |
| 3 by 3 square, 2 by 3 and 3 by 2 rectangles | 4% each |
These figures are for a random draw. In free play they shift a little, because the game prefers sets of three that can be placed in full. For strategy, the lesson is simple: small shapes come often and large ones rarely, but when a large one comes, it needs a lot of room.
Keep room for a big shape
The hardest shape to place is the 3 by 3 square. It needs nine free cells in a square. A five-cell line needs five free cells in a row. If there is no such space on the grid, your game may end with the first set of three that contains one.
So with every move, check that the grid still has at least one free 3 by 3 area and at least one row or column with five free cells in a row. If a move would destroy those spaces, look for another.
Watch out for single-cell holes
A lone empty cell surrounded by filled ones can only be filled with a dot. The dot comes in about six cases out of a hundred. Every such hole therefore blocks its whole row and column for a long time, because neither can clear without it.
The same applies, a little less severely, to holes in shapes that no piece in the set can fill. Two empty cells touching only at a corner are an example. Only two dots fit there.
A good habit is to place shapes snugly against each other and against the edges of the grid. Edges and corners are where shapes rest comfortably and where needless gaps do not form.
Think about all three shapes
Before placing the first shape, look at all three. Ask yourself whether the other two will still fit once it is down. Sometimes the only difference is the order. If, for example, you have a four-cell line that completes a row, place it first. The row clears and there is room for the other two shapes.
If a shape in the offer is grey, it does not fit anywhere at the moment. That is not necessarily the end. Place the other shapes first so that they clear a row or a column. The grey shape may fit afterwards.
Several lines at once pay off
Points for lines grow faster than the number of lines. One line is worth 10 points, two at once 30, three at once 60 and four at once 100. If you clear two lines at once, you get 10 points more than if you cleared them separately. With three lines, the difference is 30 points.
The best way to do it is to prepare several lines that are missing the same cells. For example, two neighbouring rows have empty cells only in the same two columns. A 2 by 2 square then completes both rows at once.
Do not overdo it, though. Waiting for a big combination keeps the grid full, and a single awkward set of three can end the game. In free play, where games run long, safety matters more than combinations. Points for cells are small, but they come with every move for as long as the game lasts.
Rows and columns
Beginners often focus on rows, because they naturally place shapes from left to right. Columns disappear in exactly the same way, and points for lines are added together. A shape that completes a row and a column earns points for two lines at once. Vertical lines are as good for filling columns as horizontal ones are for rows.
You can learn the daily challenge
The daily challenge has 30 shapes, and their order on a given day is the same for every player and for every one of your attempts. You can try as often as you like, and your best score of the day counts.
That is a big advantage. On your second attempt you already know what is coming. If your first attempt ended on a 3 by 3 square in the seventh set, you can keep room for it in time on the second. You can even plan combinations ahead, because you know which lines will come.
If you want to get the most out of the day, treat your first attempt as reconnaissance. Note the order of the large shapes and play accordingly in later attempts.
When the grid is full
Once more than half of the cells are filled, the priorities change. It is no longer about points, it is about survival. This order of questions helps:
- Can any shape clear a line? If so, do it.
- Will there still be room for at least one of the other shapes after this move?
- Will the move leave a lone hole?
A cleared line frees eight cells at once, and it is the only way to empty the grid.
How to practise
There is no time limit, so you can take as long as you need before each move. If you want to understand better how shapes fit together, play free games slowly and, with every move, try to picture what the grid will look like after the next two shapes. After a few games you will start doing it without thinking.