I've never played backgammon before. How do I start?

Well, to get started with backgammon there are some things we recommend:

First, and most important: go to our backgammon rules section and get familiar with the rules of the game.

Second, start practicing the game by playing at our play money tables. When you feel comfortable you can try our real money tables, but be careful not to reach too high too soon.

Third, read some articles and books to further sharpen your abilities. There is a lot of good material on the Internet and there are some very good books that can help you become a better backgammon player. Watch out for books by Paul Magriel, Bill Robertie, Kit Woolsey and many others unmentioned.

How do I start a backgammon game?

Go to the backgammon lobby. There you can see various tab bars to switch between the different game types, e.g. “Match”, “Single Game”, “Jackpot” and “Tournaments”. Click on the tab of your choice. Choose your desired stake. You now have the choice of joining an opponent who is waiting at one of the tables or to sit down at an empty table and wait for an opponent yourself. A double-click takes you to the table. You can also register for a jackpot or tournament in case the registration has already opened.

Is it possible to save the games that I played?

Yes, actually that is the default. Unless you disable it, all games are automatically saved to the “Saved Games” folder of your XcitingGames installation. If you would like to disable this feature, do the following: in the client lobby go to “Tools” > “Options” > “Backgammon”. Here you can change your saving settings.

What if I lose my connection during a game?

Single games and matches: When you lose your connection, you will be allowed 5 minutes to come back to the game. If you don't get back on time, Snowie will settle the position. If you want to know how these settlements are done, go here.

Jackpots and tournaments: There are no Snowie settlements for tournament and jackpot matches. Your game clock continues to tick while you are disconnected. As soon as it is out of time, you forfeit the match.

Can the dice be trusted?

XcitingGames is proud to use the best random number generator in the gaming industry. It is based on a hardware diode and therefore generates truly random dice for our customers - even precision dice cannot even come close to this. Also see our security pages for further information.

I have received a message “Maximum number of watch sessions reached”. What does that mean?

Sorry, but at XcitingGames you are not allowed to watch more than one backgammon session at the same time.

I would like to save my session chat, is that possible?

Yes, just right-click in the chat box and you'll be prompted to save the chat.

I see all those tournaments and would like to join. How can I do that?

Registration for our tournaments usually opens half an hour before the tournament starts, for big events it can be an hour. The actual time is displayed in the “registration” column. To register, just double-click on the tournament, agree to the rules and you're ready to play!

I don't seem to have access to the doubling cube, why's that?

It can have different reasons:

1. You have activated the “automatic roll” feature.
2. You are playing a so-called Crawford game in a match (doubling is not allowed in that game).
3. The cube is already at a level when turning it again makes no difference to the outcome of a match (including the special case of 1-point matches).

How many games can I play simultaneously?

You may only play at one backgammon table, but there are exceptions to the rule. Of course, you are allowed to play the tournaments you have registered in - regardless whether you are already playing at another table.

What do you charge for playing at the real money tables?

For providing you with XcitingGames, we charge a service fee, called the “rake”. The exact amount of the rake depends on the stake you are playing and on the rating difference between you and your opponent. See our Rake Tables for details.

Can I play backgammon and poker at the same time?

Yes, you can and you are invited to do so. For the maximum number of tables of four, it doesn't matter whether these are backgammon or poker tables. When you are waiting for your next opponent in a backgammon tournament, why not play a few hands of Texas Holdem?

Can I play just for fun at XcitingGames?

Of course, we invite you to play at our play money tables. We even have one of our private hosts on duty at the play money table for you. There are some restrictions to play money games though. You cannot choose from the whole variety of our hosts that are on shift, and, most important, there is no real money to be won on our play money tables.