Yahtzee
The classic dice game of poker-style combinations. Roll five dice up to three times, trying to score in different categories for the best total.
What You'll Need
About This Game
The classic dice game of poker-style combinations. Roll five dice up to three times, trying to score in different categories for the best total.
How to Play
- Roll all five dice
- Set aside keepers, reroll others (up to 2 rerolls per turn)
- Choose a category to score (use each category once)
- Categories include:
- Upper: Ones through Sixes (sum of that number)
- Lower: Three of a kind, Four of a kind, Full House, Straights, Yahtzee, Chance
- Upper section bonus: 35 points if total is 63+
- Yahtzee (five of a kind) = 50 points
- Yahtzee bonus: 100 points for additional Yahtzees
- Must fill in a category each turn (even if zero)
- Game is 13 turns (filling all categories)
- Highest total wins
Where to Buy
History & Background
Yahtzee was invented in 1954 by a Canadian couple who called it "The Yacht Game" because they played it on their yacht with friends. The game was likely inspired by older public domain dice games like Yacht and Generala.
The couple approached game entrepreneur Edwin S. Lowe (who had also popularized Bingo) to make copies as gifts. Lowe saw commercial potential and bought the rights. He trademarked the name "Yahtzee" in 1956.
Lowe initially struggled to sell Yahtzee to retailers, so he hosted "Yahtzee parties" where people learned to play - attendees then became customers. The party strategy worked brilliantly.
Hasbro acquired the game in 1973. Yahtzee has sold over 50 million copies worldwide, making it one of the best-selling games in history. The basic game mechanic - rolling dice to make poker-like combinations - dates back centuries, but Lowe's packaging and marketing made it a household name.