Backgammon by Staple Games

Well, Staple Games, you've really outdone yourselves. I downloaded your backgammon app hoping for a few moments of relaxing, fun gameplay. Instead, I got an express ticket to Frustrationville, population: me. Let's talk about the "logic" of pip placement. Or, more accurately, the complete and utter lack thereof. My first game, I swear on all that is holy, I rolled doubles on all but three of my turns. Forget backgammon, I should've immediately bought a lottery ticket with that kind of statistically improbable "luck." Only a five-year-old, perhaps one who enjoys cheating at Candyland, would find that kind of rigged experience enjoyable. But the real kicker? The pip movement. It's like the game actively wants you to make the worst possible move. I had four checkers on the two-point and one on the one-point. I roll a 4-1, and what does this brilliant AI do? It moves a checker from the two-point to the one-point. A move so boneheaded, a kid, who still occasionally tries to eat crayons, wouldn't make it. And of course, there's no undo button, because why would you want to rectify a digital act of self-sabotage? This isn't just a backgammon app; it's a masterclass in how to turn a simple game into a rage-inducing, time-wasting exercise. Your app seems more focused on shoving "sad advertisements" down my throat than providing a remotely playable experience. Do better, Staple Games. Much, much better. Unless your target audience is exclusively masochists, toddlers, or both, this app needs a serious overhaul.

Love playing this backgammon game. I downloaded it because of your commitment to St Jude! Two things that I think would really make the game much better. 1. An undo button that would work for one move would be great. I quite often forget to swap the dice when I want to use the lower number first. It’s not about cheating it’s about being realistic to how the board game is played. I’d never accidentally move 3 when I meant to move 1 on the board. 2. A concede button or give up button would be nice. When it’s clear you are going to lose the round, is there any reason to keep playing? I don’t want this to take away from the enjoyment of the game in this review. Those are just suggestions. Thanks again!

First off, the design of this app is great, probably the best available in that regard. However, it lacks some basic functionality that would make me actually want to use it regularly. The main issues are that there’s no doubling cube (an essential part of the game), and that the computer plays very poorly with no option to change the difficulty, which makes the gameplay boring. There are also minor annoyances like not being able to use both dice to move the same checker with one tap. If they fixed these issues, this app would be fantastic and I would happily pay for it, even.