Planned
Mancala,
one of the oldest games.
Scoop up the stones in a pit. Sow them, one by one, around the board. Land in your store and go again, or capture your opponent's stones. People have played this for centuries, and now you can play it with anyone you love.
This is our plan for Mancala, one of six family games we added to the roadmap in September 2026. We haven't started it yet, and where it falls in the build order is still being decided.
- Price
- Free, optional Pro
- Players
- Two: a friend or the computer
- Devices
- iPhone and iPad
- Ads
- None, ever
- Data collected
- None
Warm wood. Glass stones.
Stones you can count at a glance. And when you want it, a count under every pit.
Illustrations of the planned design. The finished app may look different.
How Mancala plays
Twelve pits. Two stores. Forty-eight stones. That's the whole game.
Sow
Pick up every stone in one of your pits. Drop them one at a time, counterclockwise.
Capture
End in your store and you go again. End in an empty pit of yours, and you capture the stones across from it.
Win
When one side runs out of stones, it's over. Whoever has more in their store wins.
An ancient game, made with modern care
Made for two
Play a friend on their own device. Or just pass one iPad across the table.
An opponent that plays fair
It sees the same board you do. It thinks within a fixed budget. And it never cheats.
Counts you can trust
Every pit shows its count, and every move shows you where the last stone will land.
A free hint every game
“Show a move” suggests a pit, and tells you why.
Unlimited undo
Against the computer, take back any move. As many times as you like.
Works offline
Play anywhere. Nothing ever leaves your device.
Mancala for everyone
Clear stones. Spoken counts. And a pace that belongs to you.
VoiceOver throughout
Every pit and stone count is announced, and every move is spoken. You can play Mancala without ever looking.
Voice and Switch Control
Standard accessibility actions, including a list of the moves you can make.
Sizes that fit
Larger pieces when you want them, with full Dynamic Type everywhere else.
High contrast
Tell the pieces apart by shape and shade as well as color. Never by color alone.
Reduce Motion
Pieces fade into place instead of sliding when Reduce Motion is on.
Moves announced
Hear where your last stone lands, and what it captures.
Free to play. Pro if you'd like more.
Pro is one optional purchase, for people who can't get enough. Nothing to renew. Nothing to remove.
Free
Forever. Not a trial.
- The complete game, against a friend or the computer
- Unlimited undo when playing the computer
- A free hint in every game
- Play with friends, free
- Larger pieces and every accessibility feature
- Works offline, no account needed
Pay once
A single optional purchase.
- More hints in each game
- Themes for the board and pieces
- Saved games, synced through your iCloud
- Detailed stats and streaks
One-time purchase. Yours forever. Shared with your family.
What's in Pro, and its price, will be decided closer to release. The free game will always be the complete game.
Good to know
When will Mancala be released?
Not yet. Mancala is on the roadmap, and we haven't started it. We don't announce dates we can't keep. The day it's ready, this page gets a download link.
Will it cost anything?
Not to play it. Mancala will be free to download, and the whole game free to play. Pro will be an optional one-time purchase. There will never be ads or a subscription.
Can I play with friends?
Yes. That's what it's made for. Invite people you know over FaceTime or Messages with SharePlay, or through Game Center, live or taking turns over days. It's always free, with no accounts and no servers of ours. And no matchmaking with strangers.
Which rules does it use?
The widely played two-row game, with four stones in every pit. Which other versions we include will be decided when we research the game.
Do I need an internet connection or an account?
Neither. Playing alone works offline, with no account and no sign-in. Your games and stats stay on your device.
Will it come to Android?
That's the plan: the whole collection, on Android, after the iPhone and iPad apps.
Data Not Collected
That's the App Store privacy label on every app we make, Mancala included. No accounts. No analytics. No advertising. Nothing you do in the app ever leaves your device.
Something to play now.
Mancala comes after the games already in progress, and its place in line is still being decided. There's no mailing list, because we don't collect email addresses. So check back here. It will be worth the wait.