Playing Ludo against the computer is the easiest way to get a full four-colour game when nobody else is around, and Courtyard Ludo on Mayavoo lets you do it free in a browser. You sit in one seat, the Tiger, the Peacock, the Monkey and the Elephant take the others, and the game handles every rule for you.
This piece looks at what solo Ludo against bots is good for, where it falls short, and how the settings in Courtyard Ludo change the feel of a game.
Why play Ludo against the computer
Ludo is mostly a dice game with a few real decisions: which token to bring out, when to chase a capture, when to sit on a safe square. A computer opponent gives you those decisions on demand. It suits a few situations well:
- Learning the rules. The game enforces them, so you pick up the 6-to-start rule, safe squares and exact finishes by playing.
- Short breaks. No waiting for friends to join or reply.
- Testing a habit. Try always spreading tokens out, or always taking captures, and see how often it pays.
The limit is plain: a bot is not a person across the table. There is no banter, and you cannot use it to play with distant friends. Courtyard Ludo has no online play, so for remote matches a Ludo app with online rooms is the better choice.
How the computer players behave
According to the game page, the computer opponents only make legal moves and wait a moment before each one. That pause matters more than it sounds: you can follow a capture or a lucky 6 instead of watching tokens jump around.
| Setting | Effect | When to use it |
|---|---|---|
| Default computer turns | Each bot move has a short pause | Learning, or watching what the bots do |
| Fast computer turns (pause menu) | Bot moves go quicker | Once you know the rules |
| Quick game | 2 tokens each instead of 4 | When you have about ten minutes |
| Mixed seats | Any seat can be human or computer | One friend joins, bots fill the rest |
Mixed seats are the useful middle ground. A parent and child can take two colours on one device, with two bots making up the board.
The rules the bots play by
Every player, human or computer, follows the same set:
- A 6 is needed to move a token onto the board.
- Ending a move on a rival's token sends it back to base.
- Star squares and start squares protect whoever stands on them.
- A 6, a capture or a token getting home grants another roll.
- Three 6s in a row forfeit the turn.
- Getting into home takes an exact roll.
Because these are fixed, a game against the computer is a fair way to settle what the "real" rules are in your house, at least for this version.
Controls and devices
Courtyard Ludo runs on desktop, mobile and tablet in any orientation. Touch players tap the die and then a glowing token. Keyboard players roll with Space or Enter, choose a token with Tab or the arrow keys, and confirm with Enter. Esc or P pauses and M mutes.
Where to play
The game is hosted on Mayavoo, a free home for browser games by independent creators. You can start a game against the bots as a guest; signing in with Google or GitHub only adds likes and comments. Mayavoo's team plays and checks games before publishing them, and each one runs in a sandboxed frame. A short Google ad may show before the game and on exit, never while you play.