Last updated on January 15th, 2026 at 02:46 pm
Moonlight Mahjong – Puzzle Game Review
Moonlight Mahjong is a Puzzle/Board game from Michael Howard, first launched in 12th February 2019.
It’s rated 4+ and currently has 6,204+ ratings on the App Store.
What Makes Moonlight Mahjong Stand Out
Moonlight Mahjong is Mahjong Solitaire in virtual reality 3D, designed specifically for the iPhone and iPad. Intuitive touch control allows you to tilt and turn, zoom in and out to match tiles in 3D. Play “arcade style” with progressively difficult levels and high scores, or relax with one of the non-competitive game modes. The gameplay is simple yet addictive.
Moonlight Mahjong features four main types of play:
• Scramble Mode: Match tiles faster than the automated opponent "Tilebot" through increasingly difficult levels. The board is automatically reshuffled when you run out of matches, making this game mode easy to start and fun, yet challenging on the higher levels.
• Challenge Mode: Compete against Tilebot in full puzzle mode, with no automatic reshuffling, only undo. Challenge requires more strategy than Scramble. This is the ‘pure’ form of the game, but it is difficult!
• Puzzle Mode: Solve puzzle boards with no time limit. Choose any layouts you like. This is the original game mode, what people usually think of as Mahjong Solitaire.
• Relaxation Mode: Clear boards with no time limit and automatic reshuffling when out of matches. Perfect for when you're just not in the mood to strategize or rush.
Feel free to download the free Lite version with ads, or purchase the paid version without ads. They are the same game; the paid version has a few additional features.
Moonlight Mahjong is the original 3D Mahjong Solitaire on iOS, having debuted with the launch of the App Store in 2008. It has been played millions of times and was honored as a "Best Board Game" on the App Store.
This Puzzle game offers engaging gameplay and regular updates for mobile players.
Player Feedback
As a newer release, Moonlight Mahjong is building its player community. Early feedback suggests .
Recent Updates & Development
Latest Update: 20th July 2024
Recent improvements include:
Version 4.0.3 fixes a graphics glitch when using the Marble tile art.
Version 4.0.2 fixes a bug where the background would not change in Relaxation or Puzzle modes.
Version 4.0.1 contains some small improvements to version 4.0 based on user feedback:
- If your Scramble high score is above two million, you can now start a new Scramble game on progressively higher levels above 50. This change is to support very high level players.
- On Scramble levels above 100, Tilebot may pause slightly less after reshuffling. This is a correction to the game play balance for very high levels.
- Tilebot’s label now indicates when Tilebot is paused and for how long.
- Small cosmetic improvements.
Version 4.0 is updated to better support the latest versions of iOS and iPadOS, to keep Moonlight Mahjong working well into the future. There are new backgrounds, and Tilebot is now slowed down slightly when the player makes matches, giving the player a chance to catch up or get ahead if they’re “on a roll.”
Download & Availability
Moonlight Mahjong is available through the official App Store for iOS devices.
Get Moonlight Mahjong on App Store
Requirements: Requires iPhone 5s / iPad Air / iPad Air (Cellular) / iPad Mini 2 (Retina) / iPad Mini 2 (Retina, Cellular) / iPhone 6 / iPhone 6 Plus / iPad Air 2 / iPad Air 2 (Cellular) / iPad Mini 3 or later.
Compatible with iPhone and iPad devices.
Player Experience Highlights
Community Insight:
Fast and fascinating with variety.
There are different modes; we prefer the Relaxation mode. But what we love most about Moonlight Mahjong is the 3D aspect. It adds a whole new component to any standard game of mahjong. Thats always a good thing for stimulating your brain but Moonlight Mahjong takes a digital game a step farther, adding the eye-hand coordination needed to manipulate each puzzle in space.
We have been having such a great time playing against the timer bot. We love a good challenge & it keeps our brain stimulated! This is the best Mahjong we have ever found.
This is a great version of mahjong, with beautiful tiles and background. Its more 3D than most in that the player needs to rotate the tile deck in order to see the tiles in layers beneath the top couple of layers. We like to use it in Relaxation mode where theres no race against the clock.
We would like a version that can be purchase so to get rid if ads.
We love Mahjong in general, but Moonlight Mahjong takes the cake. The three dimensionality of it is endlessly fascinating. Once we learned to navigate: easily shrink or enlarge (pinch in or out) rotate the puzzle in space to view it from any angle (hold and drag any tile) or move the puzzle up down or sideways (hold and drag any of the negative space around the puzzle) we were totally hooked. Fabulous.
We play this a few times a day and win or lose, we log off! A session takes 2-3 mins.
Excellent game this is.Hope it never goes away.
This is the best majong game since the Taipei game included in the Windows Entertainment pack from the late 80s. We love it – its got great backgrounds, great tile designs, and best of all you can create your own layouts.
Fun to play. 3-images are great.
If you dont want to spend your life watching cheesy ads for an endless stream of knockoff games, or paying endless subscription fees so you dont have see the ads, then this game is for you. You buy it, and you play it, period. Its a refreshing change from what the rest of the App Store has become. The tile matching play is as good as any other game, and better than some. The 3-D layout is (usually) fun, and adds interest to game play. For those of us who just want to relax, the non-timed, non-competitive gameplay modes are a blessing. For us, this game was worth the price.
Ive had this game for years and it never gets boring.
Fun and frustrating Its addictive and will really test 3D ability.
We love how this game is challenging and that you can move and manipulate it. It never gets old. It keeps your interest.
Love the graphics, the ability to change the viewing angles, all the choices of layouts, etc. It would be great to be able to pick a list of favorites, and to also have a quicker way to start a new game with the same layout.
Ive played this for years! Love it.
Ive played this game for several years now and its still the best, most relaxing mahjong game in the App Store. We like the new backgrounds youve recently added. Have you thought about adding some new tile sets, like birds, flowers or maybe dragons .. Just a thought. Anyway, great job and Im happy youre still doing updates and improvements. Thank You! Rodger.
We are overjoyed at how much fun this 3 dimensional game of matching mahjong tiles is and, how addicted we have become to relaxation mode!!!! Just an incredible challenge to score 100% on each puzzle. LOVE IT!!!! Oh Im a 71 Y/O Widow lady.
Ive been playing this game since the 2nd generation iPod touch and it never fails to keep us distracted. It became difficult for a while and we were stuck around level 70. This week, Ive finished at level 171. It hasnt changed much but thats the best thing about it. It works better than any other Ive tried, and those go back to the early 1990s.
But, noted just tonight that there's a glitch in the touch/move sensor. We can't touch and move while on the board itself, so impossible to play. Hope it's fixed soon. We've loved this game for years.
The game is generally fun, but there are quirks that should be easy to fix, but have lingered for years. First, the game sometimes lags/stutters when you play. Its random. It usually plays fine but sometimes it lags/stutters to the point where its unplayable. We have to just close the app and wait a couple hours, and then it works again. (Immediately reopening the app after closing it does not fix the lag/stutter). The other problem is the scrambles in scramble mode. Once you get to high levels, the scrambles become the determining factor as to whether or not you beat the tile bot. We know when the board is first presented whether or not Im going to beat the tile bot with 90% accuracy. The games is not fun like this. What needs to happen is the game should keep track of your history for scrambles, and it should present you with puzzles that you historically have almost won but lost, or just barely won. This keeps it challenging. Instead what happens is you get an easy puzzle and you win easily. Then you get an impossible puzzle and barely get started before tile bot finishes. And it just becomes a frustrating exercise in waiting for a random string of easier puzzles.
The new drop down welcome banner is really irritating. We prefer relaxation mode, and to have this banner drop in when we're just starting is highly irritating.
Love this game but it would be nice if you could pause it.
We have been playing this game for years. We enjoy it and while we are not overly concerned about winning, the game would be much more enjoyable if it was at least possible to win the games. We dont know how the timing is determined or why the bot goes faster on some games than others, but there are some games that are not possible to win, no matter how fast you are. What is the purpose of that? We have also noticed, as others have said, that the bot can be inconsistent, where all of a sudden the bot finishes although there were 20-30 pieces left. These factors make the game frustrating and certainly less enjoyable for the average player.
Can be fun but play is inconsistent. Robot player arbitrarily speeds up or slows down. The penalty for losing can be excessive with no consideration for the difficulty of the puzzle nor how close to winning you might have been. Also, a large number of puzzles are completely impossible to win no matter how fast you play. There are simply too many tiles or the game must be continuously maneuvered to locate buried tiles. Ive been playing this for years but have become so frustrated by its play, we gave up on it and deleted from our ipad.
Our all time favorite. So many options and ways to play. Never gets old.
We have been playing this game for around ten years. Love this game!! We bought the paid version years ago because then you get the numbers to match up also. Which is even more fun!! Turn the sound off and you can play this game anywhere. Even while others are watching TV.
The bot is so slow now there is no challenge. The game needs another version addedthe bot the same speed as it was and then this new slower bot.
In the past this has been an excellent app with a large assortment of puzzles, from easy to maddening, as well as several game modes to fit the players mood. The latest update has far too many glitches to be anything but frustrating! Everything from showing inaccurate tiles to timer clocks not working properly! And the glitches are not limited to just one puzzle or game mode.
We really like this game. When we first opened it we found the bot up in the corner annoying, but by setting the Game Mode to Puzzle, and turning off Shuffle mode (so we can shuffle or change layouts when we choose) this becomes a really fun, casual game. Solid five stars.
UPDATE March 2023 Still the best game! Offloaded for a while but playing it again. UPDATE November 2015 Still the best game out there! Great big thank you to the developer for offering genuine improvements based on the suggestions of players! (Instead of screwing it up the way so many others do.) Still challenging without being stressful. Addictive & Fun! (Dec 2013) This a great game. Lots of different tile layouts, can be very challenging. Liked the free version well enough to buy it just to have a tiny bit more space on the tiny iPhone screen. Congrats to the designer, this is a real winner.
Helping us with chess to view the whole playing field.
We have been playing Moonlight mahjong for a number of years. As age takes away speed, needed something more relaxing. This app gives those options. No competition, sort it out, no time restraints, no computer generated competition. Relaxing enjoyment.
A great way to work up the skills; sometimes very frustrating but definitely a challenging game.
Why would they want us to upgrade to subpar graphics. This game is perfect.
We have been playing this for years. Tried others but always come back to this one.
Ive been playing this for years and we love it, it improves our memory and is very fun and addicting. We love that its 3-dimensional, so cool and fun.
Ive been playing this game for years, and the simplicity of it mixed with the large number of puzzle options makes this a game one can play over and over. This is an excellent game to help decompress at the end of a long day, or help clear your mind during sleepless nights.
Very challenging game. Makes one really think. We like the way the company respects its players by not insulting our intelligence.
We have been playing since game first came out. Our Touch was purchased in 2008 and no longer could upgrade so bought 5th gen to keep playing. LOVE this game. Thank you.
Love variety of different ways to find open tiles. WISH IT WAS PART OF APPLE ARCADE.
Ive been playing this game for over 5 years and must be addicted as we find it thoroughly enjoying, challenging, and relaxing. Give it a try.
Ive been playing Moonlight Mahjong for years now. Very enjoyable. Note to the Developer Could you add more of the larger puzzles with 1000+ pieces. The very large ones are our favorites but there are only 3 or 4 with more than 500 pieces. Thank you.
Have been playing this for a number of years. Really need new layouts.
Its fun its a good way of learning our kid plays it all the time! She loves it! We sometimes do! Our daughter cant stop playing it.
[2022-12-11] After updating, keeps trying to activate Game Center. Need a way to turn that off until such time as we choose to activate it. Minus one star for no on/off switch for Game Center. Minus one star for continuing to push the login for Game Center when we have clearly chosen to remain signed out. As far as we are concerned it is a privacy and security issue first, and an annoyance second.
On an iPhone at the higher levels constantly mis-hitting the tiles and moving on to the next move only to find out that it didn't match the previous move. Also constantly rotating to find moves. The tilebot never makes a mistake and never has to rotate to find a move! It's impossible for a human to touch a tile on this game without seeing it but not so for the cheating tilebot.
We are unable to connect and play multiplayer anymore. The app just states joining game before crashing.
Im not sure what the creators of this game are thinking, but almost nobody can beat the tile but after about little 19. We realize some levels are more challenging than others and thats part of the fun, but The tile but just solves too fast.
Ive had this game for years. Scramble is the most fun mode but now its so hard so soon in the game, its no fun anymore for those of us that just want to play for fun. The game shouldnt have the hardest layouts in the first few levels and the tilebot is too fast too soon. We used to get up to about level 50 but now can hardly get to 20. The game should have a harder level for those who want it rather than ruining it for everyone else.
User feedback from Apple App Store
App Details
- Version: 4.0.3
- Size: 45.98 MB
- iOS: 14.0 or later
- Languages: EN
- Content Advisory:
- Developer: Michael Howard
Last updated: 20th July 2024 | Genre: Puzzle, Board | Developer: Michael Howard