Anasazi Tasholiiwe

Tasholiiwe is a shareware computer conversion of a board game played by many tribes of Native Americans. The name is Zuni, Indian for "wooden dice" and is also their name for their version of the game, but it was also played -- with small differences -- by Zuni, Hopi, Navajo, Apache and others, probably dating back to the Anasazi.

The game is a simple "race and bump" game for four players (controlled by human players or the computer), where you have to complete a circuit on the board, a circle made of 40 stones (the "squares"), before the other players. The board is divided into four sets of 10 stones by four "gates" or "rivers". Each player has a counter (a stick, or "horse"), which is moved by throwing three casting sticks, each with a red and a black side, and the number of black or red sides determines the count. The first player to complete the circuits wins. When you move your horse onto an opponent, he will be bumped back to the beginning, while when you land on a river, it's you who has to start all over.

Peculiar to the game is the fact that the moving direction is not predetermined; instead, you can choose your direction at the beginning, clockwise or counterclockwise. Another interesting detail are the "Anasazi Facts" displayed from time to time, giving bits of information about Native Americans.

Tasholiiwe offers a variety of options, allowing you to play some of the variations used by specific tribes. The registered version enables betting on the outcome, as well as a "Contest" mode for multiple games.