Narrows is played on a Kōnane board, a rectangular grid of points that hold one stone each. The board can be any size with at least one even side. It starts filled with a checkerboard pattern of black and white stones.
The two players, Black and White, take turns moving a stone of their own color, one stone per turn, starting with Black. Passing is not allowed.
Every move is a capture. A stone captures an enemy stone in any orthogonal (horizontal or vertical) direction and takes its place. The enemy stone must either be next to the capturing stone or separated from it by empty points only.
The goal is to have all of your groups linked together by empty regions. A group is a set of your stones connected orthogonally, and an empty region is a set of empty points connected orthogonally. In other words, every one of your stones must be linked to every other via paths of empty points and friendly stones. Think of your islands being interconnected by open water. “Narrows” are the restricted passages of water that connect larger bodies of water.
You can win on your turn or on your opponent’s turn. If your move links all of your groups and at the same time links all of your opponent’s groups, you win.
After Black’s first move, White may switch colors and take over Black, claiming that first move as White’s own. The former Black player then plays White and moves next. The pie rule can be turned off in the menu.
Tap one of your stones and the stones it can capture light up with green dots. Tap one of them to capture it. With Confirm moves on, the capture is shown faintly with a dashed gold outline until you tap Confirm or tap the target again. A tap on another of your stones chooses that stone instead, and a tap anywhere else cancels. The stone moved last carries a yellow dot. At the end of the game the regions that link the winner’s groups are marked with blue dots.
On the menu, each color can be a human or a computer level, so you can play either color, play another person, or set both colors to the computer and watch the game play out. Undo takes back your last move together with the computer’s reply. It is not available before your first move. New game asks before it discards an unfinished game. The letters and numbers around the board name the points, as in the messages about the computer’s moves.
Mark Steere designed Narrows in May 2026. It was inspired by the ancient Hawaiian game of Kōnane. True to the spirit of Kōnane, Narrows begins with a checkerboard pattern of stones and is extremely simple. His other games can be found at marksteeregames.com.
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