📖 Strategy Principle
The snake pattern is an advanced application of the corner strategy. The core concept is: arrange all tiles in descending order, forming a winding snake-like path.
Why is it called "snake"? Because the arrangement path curves back and forth like a snake:
- First row (bottom row): Descending from left to right
- Second row: Descending from right to left (opposite direction!)
- Third row: Descending from left to right
- And so on...
💡 Core Concept
The snake pattern ensures that each tile is adjacent to a tile of similar value, so when you get new small tiles, they can merge along this "chain" all the way up.
📊 Visual Example
Perfect Snake Pattern Demonstration
Observe the path of this arrangement:
- Bottom row (left to right): 1024 → 512 → 256 → 128
- Second row (right to left): 512 ← 256 ← 128 ← 64
- Third row (left to right): 32 → 16 → ...
This forms a perfect "S-shaped" or "Z-shaped" path!
❌ Common Mistakes
- Leaving gaps in the chain: For example, 256-64 (missing 128 in between) makes merging difficult
- Forgetting to reverse direction: Each row should go the opposite direction; if all go the same way, it's not a snake
- Being too obsessed with perfect arrangement: Sometimes you need to temporarily break the pattern to handle crises
- Ignoring newly generated tiles: New 2s or 4s should be integrated into the snake chain as soon as possible
✅ Practical Tips
- Start from the corner: First stabilize the largest tile in the corner, then gradually extend the snake pattern outward
- Maintain continuity: Try to keep adjacent tiles in a 2x relationship (like 64-128-256)
- Prioritize small tiles: Small 2s and 4s should be merged quickly to avoid taking up space
- Reserve merging space: Keep some empty spaces at the tail of the snake (smaller value area)
- Visualize the path: Imagine a route from largest to smallest in your mind
⚠️ Advanced Tip
A perfect snake is hard to maintain until the end of the game. True experts know when to "break the rules" to handle difficult situations, then rebuild the snake pattern.