Back off the board (Backgammon)

Member Name: kiwiii85

Product:	Backgammon
Date:	03/01/09 (71 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Value, Easy, Everyone can play

Disadvantages: None

Backgammon is one of those fantastic games that you can master quickly and show off your skill. I've been playing it since i was a little girl and it came as a surprise to me that not only had my partner never played it, he'd never heard of it! This makes me want to bring backgammon back into the spotlight for others to play and enjoy.

Backgammon is a simple game with a simple concept - move your pieces off of the board before your opponent moves all of theirs off. It sounds easy doesn't it? Well, depending on who you play, it isn't!

The board is quite simple and contains 24 points (spaces to anyone that doesn't speak backgammon), 12 by you, 12 by your opponent. There are two colours to play with, black or white. The pieces are placed on certain points on the board and you then have to get your pieces to your opponents side in order to take them off the board.

To move your pieces you throw two dice. You can move one or two pieces to the total value of the dice. ie If you throw a 2 and a 4 you can move 1 piece 6 spaces, or two pieces 2 and 4. If you're lucky enough to throw a double (of any value) then you can move your pieces 4 times. ie a double 4 means you can move 4 pieces 4 squares, 2 pieces 8 squares and so on.

You can occupy a point so that your opponent can't use that square by placing two or more of your pieces on it. Be warned though, if you only have one piece on a point, then your opponent can land there and knock you off, causing you to go back to the beginning with that piece.

That is a simple version of how to play but i'd rather talk about why i love to play backgammon and what's good about it.

Firstly, it's a game of skill and strategy and you can really annoy someone by blocking all of their moves. I'm quite a mean person when it comes to games so this is ideal for me! It's really easy to do, you simply occupy six points in a row and their dice throws will all be meaningless if they need past you, after all, you can't get more than a 6 on the dice! I've played with this my dad hundreds of times and it's a game i always seem to win. Once you have a strategy, so long as you stick with it, then usually you win and you're laughing.

Secondly, it's a game of luck to some extent. Your strategy may well win you the game, but if the dice give you 1s and 2s throughout the game and your opponent double 6s, you won't be laughing! My sister has the habit of throwing a lot of doubles (i swear she uses different dice to me!) and no matter how well i play and how well i plan, she always wins.

Thirdly, you can change the game to meet your own requirements. There are specified squares where you should start your pieces, but who says you need to stick to this? We've played using several variations including having to roll the dice to put the pieces on the board, starting with the all on the first square and so on. The amount of rules you can change is endless and so long as you all agree how to play, there is loads of fun to be had. We've also played it as a 4 player game where everyone had one dice each, it eliminated doubles but we used the rule if both players on the team rolled the same number, you moved an extra 2 pieces as if you'd had the double.

The way i'm enjoying the most at the moment? Online! I'm not really one for sitting playing board games online, but i do enjoy playing backgammon with my sister over msn. This means we can sit and have our usual conversations along with playing the games. You can't cheat, you have to stick by their rules and the element of luck is greater, but nevertheless, it's a fantastic game and it's there to play for free without the setup time.

A few little bits you probably want to know:

Setup time: 2-5 minutes depending on which version you play
Price: Anywhere from £5 to £50 depending on the age of the board
Game length: Usually around 20 minutes to 30 minutes, but it depends how good you and your opponent are.

Summary: Give it a go. It's easy to pick up and easy to play.