Pétanque

What is Pétanque?

Pétanque is the boules game of southern France: from a small circle drawn on the ground, with both feet together, you throw hollow steel boules as close as you can to a little wooden jack, the cochonnet. You can roll a boule in, lob it high so it stops where it lands, or knock away the boule that beats yours.

Here you play one against one, three boules each, against the computer on a sunlit gravel terrain. The first to 13 points wins (7 on Easy). There are three levels of opponent, and every day brings a Daily game, the same for everyone.

How to play Pétanque

A game is a run of rounds, called mènes. Each one goes the same way.

• The jack. The side that won the last round throws the jack 6 to 10 metres from the circle, into the lit band. A jack that stops outside the band is set at the nearest spot inside it.
• The first boule. The side that threw the jack throws first.
• Who throws next. The side that does not hold the point, whose best boule is not the nearest the jack, keeps throwing until it takes the point or has no boules left. Then the other side throws its remaining boules.
• Aiming. Press anywhere on the terrain and pull back like a sling. The dotted rings move the other way: the small one is where the ball comes down, the large one where it would stop on empty gravel. Each pull adjusts the last one, then press Throw.
• Roll or lob. A rolled boule lands early and rolls a long way. A lob lands late and stops soon, and one that comes down on a boule knocks it away.
• Scoring. When all six boules are out, the side with the nearest boule scores a point for each of its boules nearer than the other side's best.
• A jack knocked out. If the jack leaves the terrain, the round ends. A side that still has boules when the other has none scores a point for each of them; otherwise nobody scores.

Tips and strategy

1. Read the rings. Their width is how far your throw can stray at this level, so a target smaller than the ring is a gamble.
2. Short is better than long. A boule just in front of the jack blocks the way to it, and one behind it is easy to beat.
3. Lob over a crowd. When boules stand between you and the jack, a lob flies over them and stops where it lands.
4. Shoot what counts. When the computer holds two or three points, knocking its best boule away is often worth more than another careful roll.
5. Measure before you choose. The Measure button rings the nearest boule and shows every distance, so you know exactly what you are playing for.

Frequently asked questions

Is Pétanque free?

Yes. Like every game on Play, it runs free in your browser, with no download and no account.

What is a carreau?

The finest shot in pétanque: your boule lands right on the other side's boule, knocks it away and stays in its place. Here it is a lob that comes down on one of the computer's boules and stops within a few centimetres of where that boule lay.

Why does my throw not go exactly where the rings point?

Nobody's hand is perfect. Every throw strays a little, less on Easy and more on Hard, and the rings show how much. The stray comes from the game's seed, so a replay of your game goes the same way.

What happens when the jack goes out?

The round ends at once. If one side still has boules in hand and the other has none, it scores one point for each; if both still have boules, nobody scores.

What is the Daily game?

Every day everyone plays the same computer opponent on the same terms, at Medium, so the scores compare directly on the leaderboard.