How to Play Snake

To play Snake, guide the head toward food, grow longer with every pickup, and avoid hitting the snake’s body or solid obstacles. Use arrow keys or WASD on desktop; swipe or tap the arrows on mobile.

The objective

The objective of Snake is to collect as much food as possible without crashing. Every fruit increases the score and makes the snake longer, so the same board becomes harder to navigate over time.

A new run begins with a short snake near the center of the board. The snake moves one grid step at a time and continues automatically after the first direction is chosen. You do not hold a key to keep moving. Instead, you change the direction of the next step. The game rejects a direct 180-degree reversal because the head cannot move backward through the first body segment.

The basic loop is deliberately simple: look at the fruit, choose a safe route, make the turn, and reassess the board. Early in a run, the shortest route is often safe. Later, the shortest route can trap the head inside a loop of body segments. Good play balances immediate scoring with future space.

Step-by-step rules

1. Choose a mode. Endless continues until a collision. Levels use different maps and ask you to collect a set number of fruit.
2. Start moving. Press an arrow key or WASD key on desktop. On a phone or tablet, swipe in the desired direction or tap an on-screen arrow.
3. Collect fruit. Move the head onto the fruit. The score increases and a new body segment is added.
4. Avoid the body. A turn into any occupied body cell ends the run. Watch the head, but also remember where the tail will move.
5. Respect the map. Some levels include walls and other solid cells. Portals are safe and transport the head instead of causing a collision.
6. Pause when needed. Press Escape or P on desktop. The pause menu lets you resume, restart, change settings, or return to the main menu.

How scoring works

Fruit is the main source of points. Consecutive pickups within the combo window increase the multiplier, rewarding direct and confident routes. If too much time passes before the next fruit, the multiplier returns toward its base value. The current score, best score, and combo are shown in the top-left HUD.

Speed rises during a long Endless run. A higher speed reduces the time available to correct a poor route, but the grid rules stay consistent. The personal best is stored locally in the browser. It is not sent to a server and is not part of a public leaderboard.

How portals work

Portals connect two points on the board. Entering one portal moves the snake’s head to the paired exit while keeping the direction of travel. The body continues to follow the recorded path. A portal can create a fast route to fruit, but the exit may be close to a wall, an obstacle, or the snake’s own body.

Before entering, inspect the exit and decide where the next safe turn will be. Avoid entering a portal only because it is nearby. The useful question is whether the exit improves the route and leaves enough room for the next two or three moves.

Endless mode and Levels

Endless mode

Endless is the best mode for practicing the classic survival loop. There is no fruit target and no final map objective. The challenge is to keep control as the snake grows and the speed increases. After a failed run, sharing the score on X can unlock one second-life attempt. The restored snake keeps its length and speed but restarts safely near the center.

Levels mode

Levels mode contains ten maps. Each level changes some combination of board layout, obstacle placement, portal location, fruit target, and starting speed. The first maps leave generous turning space. Later maps force narrower routes and make it more important to anticipate where the body will be several steps ahead.

Beginner strategy

Start with wide rectangles around the outside of the board. Large loops keep the body ordered and make the tail’s movement predictable. Turn toward the center only when the route back out is visible. Avoid filling small pockets from the outside inward because the head may enter an area that the body blocks a moment later.

Do not press several random keys after a mistake. Snake 3D queues a small number of valid turns to reduce input lag, which is useful for planned corners but cannot rescue an impossible sequence. Look one or two grid steps ahead at low speed and farther ahead as the run accelerates.

For the next topic, learn the exact Snake controls, then use the route-planning methods in the strategy guide. Mobile players can also read the dedicated mobile Snake guide.