Backgammon

Backgammon is more than just a game, it’s an age-old phenomenon played around the world, from one country, and culture, to another. The game is played on a square board consisting of two dice, 30 chips or checkers (15 per player) and two players.

The object is for one player to move all of his chips from the 12 triangles on his own side of the board, and into the bear-off section of the opponent’s side of the board. Both players are attempting to accomplish the same goal, knocking their opponent’s checkers off the board when able in order to advance their own game, while regressing the opponent’s. The first player to bear off all of their own checkers wins.

The process of learning to play backgammon doesn’t take very long, on average. To become a skilled player, gaining the knowledge of various backgammon tips and strategies that help a novice player become an expert, will inevitably take a lot longer.

Backgammon has often been compared to the game of Checkers, but on a more complex scale. Where Checkers is considered by most to be a child’s game, though thousands of adults enjoy Checkers on a daily basis. The opposite is true of Backgammon, considered a game of wisdom and technique – less intricate than Chess, but along the same lines as Chess – but straightforward enough for young players to learn and compete.

Brief History of Backgammon

With a very rich history, backgammon is actually one of the oldest board/table games ever played that is still in existence. The origins of backgammon, in one variation or another, can be traced as far back as 5,000 years ago.

The game has evolved throughout the centuries, hitting its peak of popularity in the mid 1970’s. Though backgammon declined in player appreciation in the 1980’s, though who thoroughly enjoyed the game continued to teach it to their children and grandchildren. Thus today’s generation is still teeming with backgammon fans and aficionados.

Online backgammon has a very brief history, as does the online gaming industry in general. The first multi-player online gaming sites were introduced in the early to mid 1990’s. Around this time, online backgammon was presented, and became a haven for players. Unfortunately, the software technology and typical Internet connection speed made it difficult to truly enjoy the game as it was traditionally intended.

Now days, technology is much more advanced, and Internet connections are phenomenally faster. Thus online backgammon has become incredibly popular once again. Players from around the world can gather at the various online backgammon communities and challenge one another to bragging-right competitions, or wager real money on their backgammon skills.