Mu Torere is a traditional abstract strategy game of the Māori people of Aotearoa New Zealand, associated especially with Ngāti Porou of the East Coast (Tairāwhiti). It is one of the few traditional Māori board games still played today — a game that was drawn in sand, scratched into wood or stone, and passed down over generations.
The board is an eight-pointed star: eight outer points joined to a central hub, the pūtahi, with the arms called kawai. Each player has four counters. There are no captures, no dice, no luck — only position.
Minutes to learn, genuinely deep to master: because the board is small and everything is visible, every slide matters. The game above lets you play against an adjustable AI opponent, free, right in your browser.
Mu Torere is played with respect for its origins. It comes from the wharenui and the kitchen tables of the East Coast, and its survival is a story of whānau passing knowledge on. This version exists so anyone, anywhere, can learn it — but the game belongs to its people and place. If you ever get the chance to play it the traditional way, take it.
The name describes the board itself — a star with radiating arms. You will also see it written as one word, mutorere.
By blocking: leave your opponent with no legal slide. There are no captures in Mu Torere.
No — one rule about sliding, one rule about the center, and you’re playing. Mastering the endgame is another matter.
Yes — the AI opponent above is adjustable, from gentle to ruthless.
Made with respect for the Māori tradition of Mu Torere and Ngāti Porou, from whom the game comes. Free to play, forever.