IC7 Game · 2026-10-21

IC7 Game: The Full Board Still Needed Eight Checks

Verify a completed three-in-a-row board by inspecting all rows, columns and diagonals. A full board alone does not establish a draw.

The last O goes down and somebody announces a draw. Their board reads XOX across the top, XXO across the middle, and OXO across the bottom. There are no empty squares. That tells the friends no further placement is available, but the winning lines still need inspection.

Read the rows first

The three rows are XOX, XXO and OXO. None contains three identical marks. They draw a small tick beside each row after checking it. This is a record of the inspection, not an extra mark inside the playing board.

Now change direction

The columns read XXO, OXX and XOO. The diagonals read XXO and XXO. Again, neither player has three identical marks in any line. Three rows, three columns and two diagonals account for all eight winning lines on this board.

The count also fits an ordinary completed game in which X started: five X marks and four O marks. With no winning line and no space remaining, this position is a draw under the stated three-in-a-row rules. Counting the marks is a useful consistency check, but it does not replace the line inspection.

For another example, the friends deliberately complete a winning row on a full board. They use it to challenge the shortcut “full means draw”. Their review now keeps two questions separate: can another move be made, and has a winning condition already been met? Both need answering before the result is named.

IC7 Game: The Full Board Still Needed Eight Checks

Read the rows first

Now change direction

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