What is Snakes and Ladders?
Snakes and Ladders is one of the oldest and most popular board games in the world. It originated in ancient India as a game called Moksha Patam, used to teach children about karma and destiny. The modern version arrived in England in the 1890s and has been enjoyed by families ever since.
The game is entirely based on luck, making it perfect for all ages. Players race from square 1 to square 100, helped by ladders that boost them forward and hindered by snakes that send them sliding back. The first player to reach square 100 wins.
🎯 Objective
The board is a 10x10 grid numbered 1 to 100. Players start off the board and enter at square 1 on their first roll. The journey to 100 is full of lucky ladders that shoot you up and sneaky snakes that drag you back down.
📖 How to Play
Setting Up
Choose how many players (2 to 4) and whether any players should be controlled by the computer AI. Each player gets a token of their chosen colour. Decide the turn order and you are ready to go.
Taking a Turn
On your turn, click Roll Dice. Your token moves forward by the number shown. After moving, check if you have landed on a special square. If not, play passes to the next player.
🐍 Snakes
If you land on a snake's head, you slide all the way down to its tail. The longer the snake, the further you fall. Snakes are the main threat standing between you and victory.
🪜 Ladders
If you land at the bottom of a ladder, you climb all the way up to the top. Ladders give you a huge advantage by jumping you many squares ahead in one move.
Winning the Game
The first player to land on square 100 wins. You can choose between two winning rules at the start of the game. In standard mode, reaching or passing 100 counts as a win and your token moves to 100 automatically. In exact roll mode, you must land on square 100 with the exact number needed. Rolling too high means you stay put and wait for another turn.
🐍 About the Snakes
This version of Snakes and Ladders features detailed, realistic snake illustrations drawn on the canvas. Each snake has a unique colour scheme inspired by real species, a multi-loop body that winds across the board, chevron scale patterns along the body, a belly colour on the underside, an elliptical head with yellow eyes and vertical slit pupils, a forked red tongue, and a tapered tail tip.
No two snakes look the same. The drawing is generated dynamically so every snake's body realistically follows its path from head square to tail square across the board.
🤖 Playing Against the Computer
Select one or more computer players on the setup screen and the AI will roll and move automatically after a short delay. Since Snakes and Ladders is entirely luck-based, the computer plays exactly as a human would, rolling the dice and reacting to whatever square it lands on. It is a great way to play solo or to fill empty player slots in a multiplayer game.
🌟 Features
📜 History of Snakes and Ladders
The game originated in ancient India under the name Moksha Patam, or Gyan Chaupar, and was played as early as the 2nd century BC. The snakes represented vices such as greed, lust, and anger, while the ladders represented virtues like humility, generosity, and faith. The game was a moral teaching tool used to show children that good deeds lead to progress and bad deeds lead to setbacks.
British colonists brought the game to England in the 1890s, where it was adapted and renamed Snakes and Ladders. The moral themes were softened and it became a mainstream family game. Milton Bradley introduced it to America in 1943 under the name Chutes and Ladders, replacing snakes with slides. Today it remains one of the best-selling and most widely played board games in the world.
Ready to Play?
Jump straight in, no account or download needed. Works on any device in your browser.
🐍 Play Snakes and Ladders Now