Domino is a family of flat tile-based games, also called dominoes, played with domino tiles. Each domino is simply a long rectangular tile with an open line splitting its face in half. All the squares are marked with a number of empty spots or are blank. The objective of domino is to make all the squares lines up by picking up and dropping any of the domino tiles it comes in contact with. Once a square is dropped it is replaced by the next available square.
Domino sets contain a variety of dominoes. Most sets have the familiar fruitcake tile which is very popular with children but there are many other domino sets which have different varieties and are suitable for adults too. For example, there are domino sets that contain chocolate dominoes and others which contain grapes. There are even domino sets that contain popular movie characters such as Han Solo and Indiana Jones.
Dominoes are made from ceramic and the tiles are supplied in several different colors. The main colors are red, pink, orange, lemon yellow, maroon, purple and blue. The pieces are usually manufactured from plastic but sometimes wood or other synthetic materials are used. There are some domino sets that are double-sided with the double-sided tiles having slightly different shapes than the original tiles. The pieces fit together in a way that they form a square when they are all laid out flat. Some of the sets have a variety of dominoes with the same pattern on each of them but some are different which adds interest.
There are a few rules associated with dominoes that help the game to remain fair. When a domino tile hits another it will shift to the side opposite it. If it hits the tile of an opponent it will push it back. This makes it more exciting for the children because each time one is hit the domino will shift positions.
As the game moves along, there are certain domino pieces that are in more prominent positions than others. This is where strategies can be used. For example, a child that has a pink tile could try placing their pips on the board next to orange and violet tiles. They could also place their pips on the board between green and brown tiles if they are a girl.
Dominoes are a great educational toy that can be used by two to four players. It is great for young children to learn how to count, plan and solve problems. The rules of dominoes are the same as those of chess. The big difference is the domino pieces are much smaller than those of chess and so the strategy comes into play. Dominoes are a great board game that almost anyone can learn to play.