● GAME CENTER -- Play online, chat, invite friends, auto-match with random players
{ Real-time } Play online in real-time
{ Turn-based } Play online at your own pace
● VERSATILE -- Play offline vs. computer or against another person in 2-player mode
● CUSTOMIZABLE -- More options than any other backgammon app
Play & learn backgammon at skill levels ranging from beginner to world-class!
Backgammon NJ is a full-featured game which uses an advanced, neural network-based, artificial intelligence. Play against a computer AI, another person in 2-player mode on one device, or online against friends & other players. Using Tutor Mode & Hints, Backgammon NJ can show you how to improve your game!
Discriminating players will appreciate how well the AI plays. It uses a neural network trained on millions of positions, a bearoff database, & a match equity table to achieve strong gameplay that will challenge even expert players.
REVIEWS
"[I] know strong bg play when I see it. This app is the strongest iPhone bg app I've played with by far. It does not cheat period. ...Analyzing these matches with eXtreme Gammon confirms a world class level of play with normal luck factors. If you are losing, get over it. So would 99.9% of the other backgammon players in the world. It is just that good. Learn from it." -Richard Munitz, Giant of Backgammon, #21 world ranking in 2009
"Backgammon NJ plays at an extremely high level with an excellent interface, and I often use it to practice on my iPhone when I am traveling. I recommend it highly to my students and friends." -Phil Simborg, Professional Backgammon Teacher and Player, www.mindgamescenter.com
"I've played over 500 games now; I've checked about 5% of these against World Class Desktop programs (GNU, BGBlitz); and I've actually used some of the competition. NJ has the best interface and has more useful functions than any other backgammon apps out there."
"For serious backgammon players, Backgammon NJ is the way to go." -Macworld.com, May 2012
IS THIS GAME RIGHT FOR YOU?
This game is best for people:
• Who recognize the strength of neural network backgammon bots
• Who want to improve their game by playing against a world-class level AI
• Who will use the in-depth, technical features included in the app to prove that it is honest (https://www.njsoftware.com/note.html)
• Who won't expect to win consistently on the higher skill levels
FEATURES
• Neural network-based AI
• 2 game types: Standard Backgammon or Nackgammon
• 4 skill levels: Easy, Medium, Hard, Expert
• Customizable board design & checker colors
• Mersenne Twister algorithm for random number generation
• Doubling cube
• Single games or match play up to 25 points
• Crawford rule for match play
• 1-player mode vs. computer
• 2-player mode on one device
• Game Center: Play real-time or turn-based online matches with friends & other players
• Chat with your online opponent
• Online Elo & Experience leaderboards
• Block list for auto-match
• User-friendly, tap-to-move interface
• Highlighted checker movement options
• Hint & Undo
• Learn with Status Meter & Tutor Mode
• Game & dice stats, including Elo rating & ER
• Match info: GnuBG ID, win chances, equity, top 10 moves, & cube decisions
• Email match files
• Practice mode with unlimited undo (1-player vs. computer)
• Manual match recording mode with unlimited undo & speed mode option
• Options to reverse board direction, resign, use one-tap moves, auto bearoff, auto finish, use Jacoby rule, & much more
• Match analysis (in-app purchase): Analyze past match files, view moves & errors for match, step through match, jump to position, play from position, save match files permanently
IMPORTANT
• If an online match ends for any reason, you'll receive the Elo pts you deserve. FAQ: https://gamecenter.njsoftware.com
• Contact us for help: https://contact.njsoftware.com
The graphics aren’t as snazzy nor are the sound effects as crisp as some other BG games but there is no equal to the uniquely realistic gameplay in BGNJ. The AI is superb, the gameplay is fair. Any reports of “rigging of the dice” is a delusion in the mind of the player. Tutor modes and game analysis allow you to see your errors and really improve your game. Another highlight, the “league” of players is small but highly skilled and devoted. Best of all there is no constant “buy in” for chips or coins. You buy the game once and that’s it. The rest is playing and improving your ER. There is a crashing issue that seems to be a function of Game Center, so says the developer. It’s still the best game out there. One suggestion: open up the microphone. Then players could talk to each other in real time. Would save typing in the chat window and would make the game very social.
Developer Response
Thanks, gupta!
Computer Cheats In Expert Mode EVERY SINGLE TIME
Clear App - Don't Bother
The developer takes great pains to explain how the rolls are not rigged in favor of the computer. There’s an old Shakespeare quote: Thou doth protest too much. All you have to do is play on expert mode and you’ll see what I’m talking about. In every game, every single game, the computer easily covers its home base with perfect rolls, and if you’re unlucky enough to have a man or two back in their home base, the rolls are such that the computer never leaves its own man opened to bump. I have played hundreds of games on expert mode, and the scenario is always the same. Here’s another one that cannot be explained. If the computer bumps you in the one position and is not covered, you will NEVER roll a 1 to then bump the computer....but if you bump the computer in your 1 position, it will always roll a 1 to bump you. Whatever the developer says, or tries to explain, it’s simply not true. Just play the game on any level other than expert mode and you’ll quickly see how it cheats. There are threads on reddit and all over the internet explaining how the game cheats. Paying for this app is a waste of time. Developer again goes to great pains to tell you the rolls are random...random? Technically yes because they’re all spelled out before the game starts...but there is no way the AI doesn’t have access to the “random” numbers because the random numbers are already within the app itself. Random numbers fine, but the AI knows what the rolls are going to be. Try playing on beginner level you’ll see what I mean. Terrible app.
Developer Response
Just because you refuse to go through the proofs showing the app is honest doesn't mean they're not true. The proofs are for those who want to make an honest effort to understand them: https://www.njsoftware.com/note.html
Incredible rolls
Stone Kisses
The game consistently gets incredible rolls. And I consistently don't. There's no way to assess winning rolls based on simple roll stats. The program consistently gets good rolls. And I don't. Update: After thousands of games, I hold the same opinion: the game simply gets consistently good rolls and I don't. I can't even recall the last time I had a run of good luck, winning a few games in a row, being down and getting several good rolls to surge ahead. Update two: It just happens game after game. The developer can say what they want to. This program is "luckier" than any human being. Update three: Just because the developer continues to post replies and ignore the experience of hundreds of experienced backgammon players does not mean the experience of these players is not true. PLEASE STOP REPLYING TO ME Update four: Amazing. Ask a developer to leave you alone and they just keep replying. Do they really think this endears future buyers of their app? Just send me info on how to get my money back and we can end this discussion. I'll delete it and we'll all be happy. UPDATE FIVE: Thanks for the info on refunds. I'll be contacting Apple. They may not give me a refund because I've had the app for so long. You guys can still give me a refund if Apple refuses. Now I mainly want the refund because you're just a jerk. And that's what I'm telling Apple support. UPDATE SIX: One of my favorite things to notice is how often the game gets doubles as soon as it turns into a pure race....UPDATE SEVEN: Count how many times you roll double 6s when trying to get off the bar….
Developer Response
1) You've been posting false reviews for this app for over seven years now. If you want a refund, contact Apple directly (https://support.apple.com/contact). Apple handles all aspects of the app purchase.2) Just because you refuse to go through the proofs showing the app is honest doesn't mean they're not true. The proofs are for those who want to make an honest effort to understand them: http://www.njsoftware.com/note.html3) Players who accuse backgammon programs of cheating are not "experienced". They are people who grossly overestimate their own playing skill. You won't find a known, named, world class player who thinks a backgammon program cheats because they know better. In fact, they use world class backgammon programs to help them train and improve their skill. Many post at the BGonline forums (http://bgonline.org/forums). Go there and ask them.4) All backgammon apps (even ones that are extremely easy to beat) have complaints about dice rolls. The fact is that very few players in the world play at 2000 Elo (BGNJ Expert level). Many don't even play at 1800 Elo (BGNJ Hard level). If you play on Expert, then you should expect to lose.Why not start on Easy or Medium, learn from the Hints and Match Info, and only advance to the next level once you can win at least 50% of the time? Post match positions to the BGonline forum and ask the experts there to explain why a certain move is better than another.
Stacked against you
Brice the Red
While the game play is good, the fact that the developer has to build in a “the game doesn’t cheat” answer into the App should tell you something. When you get to higher levels, the AI nearly always goes first, and is absolutely aware of the upcoming roles. So while the developer says there can’t be any cheating because all of the roles are known and it’s not favoring the AI, that’s just fundamentally false. The AI does know all the upcoming rolls and knows exactly how to play them. So you will see it time and time again playing a perfect game because it knows exactly what it’s die are going to be, and exactly how to win the game. Can you beat this game on hard? Yes. Is everything in favor of the AI?? You’ll be the judge.Update: I read another review that said if you switch to manual rolls, you’ll see just how skewed the game is toward AI. This turned out to be 100% correct. When I started using manual rolls, the whole game shifted again, even at the hardest level. The AI performed much worse, confirming my belief that the game is stacked against you. That’s a bummer because you don’t want to have to manual roll every game. But at least now I know I’m not insane… and started winning games again. Lol.
v7.0:
- Added "Stop Auto Finish When Doubled" option
- Added "Display Statistic/Meter" option
- Added "Match File/Info Export" option (includes Share function)
- Added "Swap Match File Player Position" option
- Added "Analyze Most Recent Match" option to Double Tap & Swipe Left on Status Meter settings (included in Analysis Package in-app purchase)
- Updated for iOS 18
- Minor bug fixes
v7.0.2:
- Fixed issue where some online play buttons were not being grayed out
Version 7.0.2
The developer, Jimmy Hu, indicated that the app’s privacy practices may include handling of data as described below. For more information, see the developer’s privacy policy .
Data Not Collected
The developer does not collect any data from this app.
Privacy practices may vary, for example, based on the features you use or your age. Learn More
Accessibility
The developer has not yet indicated which accessibility features this app supports. Learn More
