Review: Roll For It!
Roll For It! By Calliope Games
I am a big fan of board games as an alternative to video games for kids, especially in the post-Catan tabletop era. And while my boys will never choose board games over electronics, they do appreciate the Catans, Tickets to Ride, Clanks! and Forbidden Islands of the world.
(Sadly, however, not Carcassone, but that’s another story.)
While these games are fun, it still can take 5-10 minutes to set or reset a round, which can be frustrating if all a kid wants to do is sit down and play. That’s why I can appreciate a game like Sushi Go!, even if it can get a little clunky if new or rusty players are involved.
Then I came across an old Sushi Go!/Roll For It! episode of Tabletop, and found our family’s new favorite pick-up-and-play favorite in Calliope Game’s Roll For It!.
Each player gets a set of six dice. The top three cards are turned face up and spaced out on the table. Cards will have any combination of two, three, four or six dice combinations, and a point value beneath the combination.
Players can roll for one or multiple cards. If you can get enough dice to match the pattern on the card, you take the card and get the points
Players take turns rolling their set of dice once, and then use their resulting roll to try and match one or two (or even three) of the cards on the table. Let’s say the following cards are on the table:
1, 5 (2 points)
2, 2, 6 (5 points)
2, 2, 3, 3 (10 points)
The player rolls a 2, 3, 3, 4, 5, 6. The player now has these options:
Take the 5 and put it next to the 1,5 card.
Take a 2 and the 6 and put it next to the 2,2,6 card.
Take both 2’s and the 3 and put it next to the 2,2,3,3 card.
One of the Deluxe Edition on the left, a larger standard die on the right.
In this example, the player goes for the 2,2,3,3 card, because it offers the most points. On the next turn, the player rolls his or her two remaining dice and gets a 3,4. The 3 completes the set, and the player gets the card, and gets 10 points. All six dice can be rolled in the next turn. First player to 40 wins.
Multiple players can go for the same card, which can make the 6-dice, 15-point cards especially fun.
Give or take a rule or nuance, that covers the majority of the gameplay. Simple. Fast. Fun. In fact, my only complaint is that the dice provided are simply too small, especially for younger players who haven’t quite mastered rolling dice and will send these small die flying. But I found a set of 100 d6 in 10 colors that did the trick.