Bitz Backgammon

Sit down at the board and roll the dice. Backgammon is one of the oldest board games in the world, played for something like five thousand years.

This is a backgammon app built around a single principle: stay faithful to the classic rules. It traces its roots to the backgammon command from bsd-games, a fixture of UNIX systems for decades, rebuilt from scratch with Apple's modern frameworks. No flashy gimmicks, no in-app purchases. Just an accurate board and the satisfying feel of moving your checkers.

FAITHFUL TO THE CLASSIC RULES
Twenty-four points, the bar, and the bear-off tray. Legal moves are determined strictly by the rulebook, including passing when no move is available, playing four moves on doubles, and the requirement to use the higher die when only one can be played. Hitting and re-entering from the bar, bearing off, and scoring gammons and backgammons at double and triple value are all handled correctly. If you are still learning, valid destinations are highlighted automatically, so you can play with confidence.

THREE LEVELS OF COMPUTER OPPONENT
The CPU chooses its moves using Monte Carlo search built on Apple's GameplayKit. Pick from Easy, Normal, or Hard: Easy makes a patient practice partner, while Hard will punish a loose blot. Dice are rolled with a Mersenne Twister random source, so every roll is fair and unbiased.

WATCH THE CPU PLAY ITSELF
Prefer to sit back? Spectator mode lets two computer players face off at the level you choose: Easy, Normal, or Hard. Pause at any moment to study the board, or step forward one turn at a time to follow each decision. Playback speed is adjustable in Settings. A good way to learn how the moves flow.

LOCAL TWO-PLAYER
Pass one device back and forth and play face to face. No setup, no connection required. Just start a game.

THE DOUBLING CUBE
Offer, accept, and decline doubles. The computer reads the position and will double you when it is ahead, or drop when it is beaten. Gammons and backgammons are multiplied by the cube, and the Jacoby rule can be switched on in Settings.

ONLINE PLAY THROUGH GAME CENTER
Asynchronous turn-based matches are supported. You are free to close the app while waiting for your opponent, and you will be notified when they move. Wins and milestones are recorded to leaderboards and achievements, so you can measure yourself against players around the world.

HANDS-FREE WITH SIRI
"Roll the dice." "Enter from the bar." "What's the board look like?" You can drive an entire game by voice. Shortcuts are supported as well, so you can register your own phrases. Spoken feedback means you can keep playing without looking at the screen.

ON EVERY APPLE DEVICE
iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Vision Pro. One purchase covers every platform. The app is tuned for Stage Manager on iPad, for the menu bar and keyboard shortcuts on Mac, and for spatial windows on Apple Vision Pro.

HOW IT FEELS
Checkers arc across the board, and a hit blot is knocked back to the bar. Sound and haptics answer every move, and a win is celebrated in proportion to its size, from a plain single to a backgammon. A fading ring marks the move just played, so you never miss what the computer did. Misdropped a checker? You can take one move back until the next roll. Animation speed has three settings, and everything is skipped if you have Reduce Motion turned on.

DETAILS THAT MATTER
- Live pip counts for both sides
- Sound and haptics, each toggled separately
- Dark Mode support
- Dynamic Type support, applied across the whole interface
- VoiceOver support
- Localized in English and Japanese
- Automatic match history
- Both tap-to-select and drag-and-drop input

No ads. No in-app purchases. No account required.
Just a quiet game, played by the classic rules.