Backgammon NJ 1.2.1 (iPhone OS 3.0 Test - iPhone - iPod Touch - 328168559 Category: Games Author: Jimmy Hu Vote(s): 125 Price: $4.99 Released: September 01, 2009 Version: 1.2.1 (iPhone OS 3.0 Test Download Backgammon NJ Get Backgammon NJ for $4.99
Backgammon NJ - Jimmy Hu
NEW: Game Center enabled! Play matches online & chat. Invite a friend or be auto-matched with a random player.
FAQ: http://gamecenter.njsoftware.com
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." -Richard Munitz, Giant of Backgammon, #21 world ranking in 2009
"Backgammon NJ is without question the best backgammon program for the iPhone. It plays at a very high level and is such a good program that I often use it myself to practice." -Phil Simborg, Professional Backgammon Teacher and Player, www.thebackgammonlearningcenter.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."
"As someone who has played a lot online (FIBS, Gamesgrid, and others) and live, playing this app (on its hardest setting) is like playing a master player or like playing GNU."
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 are willing to use the in-depth, technical features included in the game to prove that it is honest (http://www.njsoftware.com/note.html)
- Who have the technical knowledge required to understand the use of the above features
- Who are willing to play lower skill levels if those levels are more suited for their playing skill
- Who will not insist on only playing the higher skill levels & expect to win consistently against those levels
If you fit all of the above, then this game is what you're looking for!
If the above doesn't describe you, then this game isn't right for you, and you won’t be happy playing it. You’ll be much happier if you choose a different game with an easier AI.
IMPORTANT
Read our detailed responses to false reviews: http://response.njsoftware.com
ABOUT
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.
LITE VERSION
To see the strength of the AI before you buy, download Backgammon NJ Lite for free.
FEATURES
• Neural network-based AI
• 2 game types: Standard or Nackgammon
• 4 skill levels: Easy, Medium, Hard, Expert
• Customizable board design & checker colors
• High-res graphics for the Retina display
• Mersenne Twister algorithm for random number generation
• Doubling cube
• Single games or match play to 1, 3, 5, 7, or 15 pts
• Crawford rule for match play
• 1-player mode vs. computer (no internet req'd)
• 2-player mode on one device (no internet req'd)
• Game Center: Play online with friends & other players (requires internet & iOS 4.1 or later)
• Chat with your online opponent
• Online ELO leaderboard
• 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
• Email .mat match files
• Options to reverse board direction, resign, use one-tap moves, auto bearoff, auto finish, & much more 2009 NJ
Backgammon NJ reviewed by Users
A quality app without a doubt! This is a quality app in all regards. Stable, superb AI, rich in features, smooth animation, responsive developer. It's amazing that there are so many ignorant, misleading reviews for this great game. How can anyone question the honesty of the AI when all they have to do is enter manual dice rolls to see that the game still crushes them? I've played all the skill levels and have no problem winning on easy, so I play medium most of the time. From the stats, the AI plays at around 70% skill level on easy. If someone is losing on easy, they're making terrible moves over one-third of the time. How anyone could expect to win at that playing skill is beyond me...just goes to show how many people grossly overestimate their own playing skill. Look past the fake reviews and read the real ones that show true understanding of the game.
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Version 1.1
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Sep 25, 2009
- Backgammon NJ review by
Geo Doc
Great app. Beatable. Just play well. I am a Giant of Backgammon and 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. As an evaluation I played 20 7- point matches on Hard totaling over 100 games. I won 11 matches and lost 9. I won the majority of games and points. So the app can be beat in the long run - if you play very well.
Stop complaining about the dice and learn and improve and like magic, you'll start getting "lucky" too.
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Version 1.1
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Sep 27, 2009
- Backgammon NJ review by
Spideymom
Professional strength The fact so many people cry dice cheating on here is absurd! This is the first legit backgammon software on iphone that I have been waiting for, and people with no understanding of the game have to give their worthless 2 cents.
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Version 1.0
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Sep 16, 2009
- Backgammon NJ review by
Chubbyp
Very well done app! This game is really fun. I never got in to backgammon before this.. The UI is smooth and easy to use.
It's really silly to see so many people complain of cheating. The developers have written a clear and detailed response on their website. The program very clearly does not cheat. This new update provides proof if anyone was still in doubt. You can enter you own dice rolls, and you'll see you still lose on hard.
I like playing on Medium and sometimes on Hard. Even though I lose often, the tutor mode and hints are improving my game. Great app!
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Version 1.1
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Sep 25, 2009
- Backgammon NJ review by
ValR2
Best Backgammon Game for iPhone Regardless of the dice issue various persons complained about in version 1.0, this was STILL the best backgammon game in the App store.
And now that the new version addresses the dice issue, this is DEFINITELY the best backgammon game available.
I'm quite happy with the purchase, and based on what the developer has done so far, I expect the application to improve even further with time.
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Version 1.1
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Sep 24, 2009
- Backgammon NJ review by
ianluke
Great Backgammon Game I can't believe so many people are complaining that the AI cheats. The developer has given a simple and easy way to prove to yourself that it doesn't cheat with the manual dice entry. How could the AI possibly be cheating if it has no control over te dice roll, there's no other way to cheat! Sure, I get spanked on the hard setting, but with tutor mode on and using the hint button, I have been able to learn how to put up a much better fight. Overall, this is a great game and it's a shame that so many people are giving bad reviews just because they're getting beat.
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Version 1.1
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Sep 25, 2009
- Backgammon NJ review by
Stuy486
I was sure it cheated. I was wrong. I'm not a friend of the developer or anything, and I fancy myself a good backgammon player. Lots of champions (and 1 world champ) on my family...Anywho, I got this game 2 days ago and have been playing for hours on the hard setting. I was frustrated and sure the game was cheating, getting some amazing rolls all the time, while screwing me on my rolls. I went online to write to the developer asking for my money back, when I saw the tools he provides to prove the software doesnt cheat. I tried them out, and it's for real. The game does not cheat. Wow. I guess playing against a competitor software who was much weaker screwed my game a bit.Besides not cheating and having a strong AI, the presentation is nice, the game looks just perfect, and I like all the stats it provides. And it doesn't crash.One suggestion: I'll like the option to turn off the "who's winning" bar. Thanks.
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Version 1.1
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Oct 2, 2009
- Backgammon NJ review by
ajamous
Competition Level backgammon arrives on the iphone This is so far ahead of all other backgammon programs, it is hard to believe that it is version 1.0. I can't wait for the updates. The programer actually knows the value of a prime and knows that the doubling cube is 90% of the game. Well done. Jimmy, are you available for head to head competition?
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Version 1.0
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Sep 7, 2009
- Backgammon NJ review by
Boda44
Finally! A decent backgammon game First, Backgammon NJ is absolutely stable. I bought a backgammon game from Mobiga which crashed 9 out of 10 times before you even got to midgame. App was pulled from the store and Apple said tough luck. I'll take stability and good AI over sound and shaking the IPhone to roll the dice which the Mobiga game had. Dice rolls do seem kind of suspect, computer seems to get lots of doubles and perfectas, but that can be hard to know for sure without doing a long rollout. Which leads to what I'd like to see in the next version. The option to input your own dice rolls manually would be good. Being able to roll your own real dice and input the rolls would definitively prove no dice fixing and prove how strong the AI is. The second thing I'd like to see is being able to set up propositions (board positions) and being able to play them out to see the outcome. Lastly if Mr. Hu is feeling really ambitious, I'd like to be able to see a rollout (perhaps 36 games). Oh and something I've yet to see in any computer backgammon game, being able to "beaver" a doubling cube.Still, even without these things this is the best backgammon game I've seen on the IPhone.
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Version 1.0
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Sep 6, 2009
- Backgammon NJ review by
trekkieruss
Awesome program OK, so my initial score is 10 to 48. Cheating may be suspected...but remember Backgammon has been called "the cruelest game". The absence of sound is such a Zen experience. And that PROBABILITY bar is worth the price of admission. Kudos to Hu.
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Version 1.0
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Sep 7, 2009
- Backgammon NJ review by
Zanzas
This is the real thing. This is a VERY good implementation of the game. It plays like the venerable GNU Backgammon, which means it plays a proper game. Kudos to the developer(s) of this program. Highly recommended!
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Version 1.1
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Sep 26, 2009
- Backgammon NJ review by
kpsimm
It's almost as if you listened to me personally , Jimmy This is my second review.. . I loved the UI and AI. But I got sarcastic with ya, and said for $4.99 it could use some sound.4 Stars. And now it has audio. I asked for nothing more than the simple sound of the dice and the peices moving. You delivered..and FAST!! Five Stars!. I rest my case. Thanks.
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Version 1.1
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Oct 5, 2009
- Backgammon NJ review by
ryckstr
Awesome backgammon app This is easily the best backgammon app on the iPhone currently. The AI is programmed well and a worthy opponent. I feel some of the frustrations people have is they don't understand how and when to use the doubling cube, so they will accept the double in games they are behind, end up getting gammoned or backgamoned, and then accuse the game of cheating....instead, this game will actually make you a better player if you allow it to.
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Version 1.1
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Sep 28, 2009
- Backgammon NJ review by
Howard888
Excellent App The feel is right and the AI is very good. People not used to playing a neural net based AI will think it is cheating but it's not. This type of AI is just very good. Play it for a year and you will feel your play getting better. I am very impressed. Plays like 3dfibs on the pc which I thought cheated until I played it for a year. This is a great app.
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Version 1.1
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Oct 2, 2009
- Backgammon NJ review by
wadepat
Backgammon NJ This update to the original version adds a much-needed option to resign the game when it is irretrievably lost. It retains all the original's good features, most notably a truly extraordinarily high level of play. If you have played against Jellyfish (the first commercially available neural net BG program), you will have a sense of deja vu with Backgammon NJ. It has the same knack of finding unexpected and dubious-looking moves that turn out to be killers. It also has the knack of winning a huge proportion of its games when it is set at its highest level. A lot of clever went into this program: its interface is clean and neat (though it is sometimes hard to see the black pieces on the black spaces, maybe the dark spaces should not be so dark), the options are useful and well thought-out, and it keeps a handy record of statistics as you play along. It also can function as a kind of a primitive tutor, by giving, on request, sugestions for your best move. As for the oft-raised question of whether this (or any) program gets its wins by farkling with the dice, it seemed to me that maybe it did fudge a bit now and then (e.g., it almost always hits me when I slot the 5-point), but I have had lots of statistical training and ran a few tests and could find no indication of farklery. (Hey, some people think FIBS tinkers with the dice, too.) The programmers have also included two excellent features that allow users to demonstrate that cheating is not going on. All in all, this is a wonderful ap, and considering that its price is about 2% of what Jellyfish used to cost (I have not priced it recently), it is IMHO well worth adding to a backgamon player's cyber arsenal. What next? Maybe the programmers will develop a module to let the user enter positions for the software to analyze. One can hope.
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Version 1.2
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Oct 30, 2009
- Backgammon NJ review by
Pi3141592
Finally! I am happy to see a backgammon game hit the app store for the iPhone and this definitely works and does the job! It is not super fancy, but gameplay is good and so far NO crashes or problems so . I am sure there could always be improvements, but was worth the money to someone like me who enjoys backgammon so no complaints. Of course board options, more gameplay options, etc. are always welcomed, but good job at making this available and that is what updates are for, right?
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Version 1.0
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Sep 2, 2009
- Backgammon NJ review by
@tort
Best backgammon game on iTunes I think this is a very solid program, especially for a 1.0 version. The graphics are very clean and attractive, and the play engine seems honest and at the "hard" level plays a good game. With a few minor improvements, I think it would rival the best backgammon programs on the Mac. For example, I would like to have the option to reverse the board setup. Another example is that the program requires the player to tap the dice before each roll, for both players. An option to have the dice roll automatically for the computer might be nice. But in general, I think this is a very good and entertaining version.
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Version 1.0
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Sep 4, 2009
- Backgammon NJ review by
dbxdc
best backgammon game on the iphone, hands down i've played a lot of them, and the ai on this one is the best. looking forward to seeing the gameplay after the new random generator implementation...
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Version 1.1
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Sep 25, 2009
- Backgammon NJ review by
double cubed
Strong play- room for improvement Finally (after trying others) an AI that plays the game well. I strongly believe it does NOT cheat, like other backgammon games (if the AI isn't good, it can only get better by cheating). The one problem I still have (and some other games do better in this area) is selecting the position that I want to move to. I have occasionally tried 10 or more times to select the exact right position on the screen - to no avail. Using one touch move can make this better - but I don't always love the one touch move. Some applications (like the Pente app) zoom in to make it easier to select, or allow you to move your finger around until you "light up" the correct position. Something like this would make this a 5+ star app.
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Version 1.1
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Sep 27, 2009
- Backgammon NJ review by
GMS22
Addicted Super playable, noticed no cheating. Totally worth it, although it won't kick your behind as hard as GNU backgammon :-)
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Version 1.1
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Oct 25, 2009
- Backgammon NJ review by
Poftwaresatent
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Backgammon NJ - iPhone Games Application NEW: Game Center enabled! Play matches online & chat. Invite a friend or be auto-matched with a random player.
FAQ: http://gamecenter.njsoftware.com
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." -Richard... Jimmy Hu - Released: September 01, 2009 - Vote(s): 125
