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Games Similar to Backgammon

If you have read our backgammon history section, you probably already know that backgammon is the most ancient board game in the world, and the oldest known recorded game. backgammon is believed to have originated in ancient Mesopotamia. Throughout the centuries, backgammon continued to be popular all over the world. And in each country and era, many more variations on backgammon were invented, by the admirers of the game. To this day, there are players who enjoy playing games that are related to backgammon, and to invent new variations on this ancient and unique game.

We have gathered for you here an extensive list of games you can play with the same board, checkers and dice that you use for playing classic Western backgammon.

Backgammon Ancestors

These are some of the most ancient forms of backgammon:

# Tabula
Mostly played in: ancient Rome
Special feature: involves three dice
Name: means 'table' or 'board'

# Chasing the Girls
Mostly played in: ancient Rome

# Irish
Mostly played during: the sixteenth century

# Fayles
Mostly played during: up until the seventeenth century
Mostly played in: Spain and England

# TricTrac
Mostly played during: the eighteenth century
Special feature: the goal in this game is to get points for certain positions and moves.

# Tourne-Case
Special feature: In this game each player only has three checkers.

# Jaquet Mostly played in: France

# Doublets Mostly played in: Iceland
Mostly played during: up until the early twentieth century
Special feature: involves only an element of luck

Backgammon Variants Today

Even today more games which are based on backgammon are still being invented! Here are some of them:

# Propositions
Special feature: the rules are different for each of the two players.

# Misere
Special feature: The target of this game is to bears off the checkers only after the opponent does.

# Roll-Over
Special feature: each player has a single opportunity during each game to ask for the dice to be re-rolled.

# Hyper backgammon
Special feature: each player has only three checkers.

# NackGammon
Invented by: Nack Ballard
Special feature: each player receives two additional back checkers.

# LongGammon Special feature: a player starts with all his/her checkers on the opponent's first point.

Games Similar to backgammon which Originate in the Middle East, and are Still Widespread
Since backgammon was created in the Middle East, it is obvious that many of the variants, too have been invented and are still well-liked played in this area.

# SheshBesh
Special feature: played without a doubling cube.

# Gul Bara
Special Feature: When a player rolls doubles, he/she plays the roll in the normal way, and afterward one plays every succeeding doubles roll up to and including six-six.
Name: Gul Bara is also known as "Crazy Narde".

# Portes
Played in: Greece
Special Feature: the winner of the opening roll re-rolls for his/her first turn; the winner scores one point for a normal win and two points for a gammon; there is no backgammon, and no doubling cube.

# Plakato
Played in: Greece
Special Feature: Usually played Portes and Fevga. The three games together are called Tavli.

# Plakoto Express
Played in: Greece
Special Feature: the opponent's checkers are pinned rather than hit; if a player roll doubles he/she will play that roll and every succeeding doubles roll up to six-six.

# Fevga
Played in: Greece
Special Feature: no hitting, both players move in the same direction.

# Moultezim
Played in: Turkey
Special feature: no hitting, both players move in the same direction.

# The Never Finishing Game
Invented by: Nicholas Frantzis
Special feature: checkers can be both hit and trapped.

# Tawula
Played in: Asia Minor and Egypt
Name: also called Turkish backgammon.
Special feature: players start at diagonally opposite corners, they then move in the same direction around the board.

# Gioul
Played in: Turkey and throughout the Middle East.
Special feature: a single checker on a point forms a block.

# Takhteh
Name: Takhteh is the Persian name for backgammon.

Backgammon Variants for Kids

Children want to play backgammon too, but it could be too difficult for the younger ones. Therefore, similar but easier games were invented.

# Blocking backgammon
Special Feature: The strategy involved is simpler than in other variants.
Played in: the Middle East

# Blast Off
Special Feature: no hitting

# Eureika
Special Feature: based on pure luck.
Played in: the Middle East

Quackgammon - new backgammon variant for kids

Backgammon Around the World

# Tapa
Played in: Bulgaria
Special feature: an opponent's checkers are pinned rather than hit.

# Narde
Played in: Russia
Special Feature: both players move in the same direction; hitting is forbidden.

# Russian backgammon
Played in: Russia
Special feature: players advance their checkers in the same direction.

# Old English backgammon
Played in: England
Special feature: both players start with their checkers off the board; doubles are played on either side of the dice.

# Dutch backgammon
Played in: the Netherlands
Special feature: both players start with their checkers off the board

# French backgammon
Played in: France
Special Feature: starts with all checkers off the board; the winner of the opening roll has the option of re-rolling for his first turn. If a player rolls doubles, he/she also gets to play the complement of the roll and then roll again.

# Swedish Tables
Played in: Sweden
Special Feature: players advance their checkers in the same direction; there are more ways to win the game than usual.

# The Pin Game
Special Feature: checkers are trapped, not hit.

# Poof
Special Feature: you always have to play the lower number that the faces of the dice show first.