Designed by: Heinz Wüppen
Würfel Bingo (also published as Knister and High Score) is a very simple roll-and-write game: players roll dice, and write the numbers down on their player sheets.
Each sheet has a 5×5 grid of boxes that players will write the numbers in. Everyone shares the roll, but you can scribble it in wherever you like. What you’re trying to do is score for poker-style sets along rows, columns, or the two diagonal lines from corner to corner. So a pair will get you a point, whereas two-pair, a full house or a run will score you more. Five of a kind will score biggest, and any score on the diagonal lines is worth double.
When all boxes are full players total up their points, and a new round begins. After three rounds, the highest score wins.
None
None, as long as no-one takes an age to make a decision.
Exceedingly light. As the round closes out, you'll be desperate for certain numbers to be rolled, but if they're not there's nothing you can do about it.
It's luck (the dice) and luck-pushing (how ambitious you are with what you're going for in each column, row, and diagonal). Beyond that, very one-note, but light enough not to alienate even an ardent non-gamer.
1-8
Players
8+
Years
15-30
Mins
Sam says
I do rather like these games where there's a shared resource (dice, in this instance) and each player chooses their own path. Although they're not roll-and-write games (-there's no writing) my favourites in this regard are Take It Easy and NMBR9, where there is agony and ecstasy as the game reaches its conclusion and the thing you really, really needed, does or doesn't come up. While it's pleasant enough, I don't think Würfel Bingo is as much fun.