Each player gets a cup with five poker dice and eight dollars. Each turn, a player will put together a poker hand and depending on the roll, take control of various key places in Dice Town that will allow him to perform the corresponding action of the location.
In a turn, all players shake their cup and take out all but one die, which is kept apart from the others. They repeat the process with the remaining dice until all five dice are on the table. Players may want to keep more than one die; they pay one dollar for each additional die.
Now the locations are checked...
Nines: In the gold mine, the player with the most 9's may take one nugget from the mine for each nine he has thrown.
Tens: In the bank, the player with the most 10's may rob the bank and take all bills there - each two bills represent one victory point at game end.
Jacks: The player who has the most J's goes to the general store and draws as many cards as he had thrown J's, keeping one. These cards may give from one to eight points, or entitle a player to perform the saloon or general store action twice in a row, place a die with a result of a player's choice under the cup without rolling, or steal 4 dollars from another player. There are many more cards of this kind that spice up the game.
Queens: The player with the most Q's in his roll wins the favor of the girls, and takes advantage of their charm to steal from an opponent. He may take as many cards from his opponent as he has thrown Q's, keeping one and giving back the others.
Kings: The player with the most K's becomes the new sheriff; he decides who wins in any ties, but the sheriff can be influenced with nuggets, cards, or money.
Aces/Poker hand: In the town hall, the player with the best poker hand gets a property claim worth from one to five victory points. Having aces in the best poker hand permits taking additional cards.
Finally, if a player did not win anything during a turn, he might visit Doc Badluck where he can choose any one of the following:
- equip oneself with barbed wire - the player has two property claims that cannot be stolen;
- draw the first card from the general store pile;
- all other players must give the player two dollars;
- an ace will bring a nugget from every other player.
The game ends when there are no more gold nuggets in the mine or when all property claims have been issued. Players count their points: 1 for each nugget, 1 for every two dollars, 5 for whomever is currently sheriff, and each general store and property card for its value.
- fun, quick, approachable
- strong art and theme
- dice-driven poker/hand-building with a Western flavor
- Old West town
- light, casual
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Dice rolling — dice-based engine to form poker hands and trigger powers.
- dice rolling / poker hand-building — dice-based engine to form poker hands and trigger powers.
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- They are what I would call omniamers.
- El Grande seems to be the forgotten game because to me that is still the most perfect board game ever made.
- I absolutely love all of the work that Tom does.
- Cosmic Encounter is just so so much fun.
- The complete lack of El Grande.
- The minis are way too big. Just ridiculous.
References (from this video)
- Clear teaching through thematic framing and tangible concepts
- Highly interactive and dynamic player interaction
- Engaging closed-economy decisions that affect all players
- Humor and theme enhance play and accessibility, reducing AP
- Thematic depth may be light for some players seeking a heavier theme
- Tile market concepts could confuse very first-timers without guidance
- territory control with a humorous, lighthearted animal-themed world
- Tropical, urban region where orangutans and other primates vie for control and banana-based economy
- humorous, accessible teaching aid with tangible concepts
- Tigress and Euphrates
- Babylonia
- Samurai
- Desert
- Rebirth
- Stevenson's Rocket
- Yakuza
- Rango
- Zebo
- Genesis
- Cosmo Lancer
- Ong Guard
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Area Control — Score is determined by control of different regions/sectors, with dynamics influenced by tile placement.
- area control / sector scoring — Score is determined by control of different regions/sectors, with dynamics influenced by tile placement.
- closed economy — Money accrues and is spent to acquire better options, linking spending to earnings from passed spaces.
- closed economy currency — Money accrues and is spent to acquire better options, linking spending to earnings from passed spaces.
- interactive placement — Each tile placement affects other players' scoring opportunities and the board's overall economy.
- slow tile reveal / planning horizon — Tiles are revealed gradually, delaying immediate scoring and encouraging forward planning.
- tile drafting — Players see a market-like river of tiles and choose from what is available to influence future turns and scoring.
- tile placement — Each tile placement affects other players' scoring opportunities and the board's overall economy.
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- this wildly exceeded my expectations and is the exact sort of surprise I like to be taken by when it comes to games.
- Ape Town may be the Kitia tile layer for you.
- I give Ape Town a 9 out of 10.
References (from this video)
- dynamic, quick rounds with a strong sense of chaos
- fun storytelling around the dice outcomes
- can feel swingy
- thematic components can be whimsical
- dice-driven resource competition and western heists
- wild west town
- fast, chaotic, and humorous
- Dogs of War
- Coliseum
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- area/resource control — contend for spots on the board to gain money or gold nuggets
- dice drafting — roll dice and choose how to use them each round
- Resource management — contend for spots on the board to gain money or gold nuggets
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- five is perfect because you've got that bluffing negotiation.
- This is a sandbox game. One of my favorite games.
- The clacking of dice on the table. It's pretty neat.
References (from this video)
- excellent game
- taught enthusiastically multiple times
- best game ever according to Dallas
- Western
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- chef's kiss if you're wondering how many times I said and that's dallas
- you want to know what dice town is it's the freaking best game ever
- the fabulousness that is Dice Town
- if you like camel up uh but want like a more quick condensed version uh check out Full Throttle it's so so good
- and surfacea orus Max MH have immediately skyrocketed up my trick-taking list
- man any convention where you can sit and play Kuba twice
- any convention where you can sit down and play dominant species and Kuba Libre and you can just like get after it
- it is Criminal how ugly that game is but my God it good it's good
- I love little weird card games man
- the Ubers were kind of expensive uh but the hotel does have everything that you need
- 10 out of 10 10 out of 10 10 out of 10 trip
- we're obsessive over BGG cons now
- coming back from that convention just so reenergized re-energized
- amazing amazing amazing people in this hobby
- there's like a million different places to play games there were like all over the hotel
References (from this video)
- Fast-moving gameplay
- No downtime waiting for other players
- Energetic and engaging
- Maintains tension throughout
- All players active simultaneously
- Competing for control
- Wild West town
- Western theme
- King of Tokyo
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Simultaneous Yahtzee-style dice rolling — All players roll their own poker dice simultaneously, then compare results; eliminates downtime of waiting for individual players to roll
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- that sense of destruction sheer destruction of the playing space and you don't get that much in board games
- i think that's a really nice level of interaction in games because it's not mean spirited it's not vindictive but it still means you've got to constantly keep thinking
- i've got my own deck that alone is exciting and different to the vast majority of games that i had played in the past
- the deck is created as we play we're buying cards from a central pool
- everybody's got a bit of the same information a bit of different information and it makes the game really really intriguing
- everybody's running around a table shouting over each other trying to find the people with the same card
- i've played it with my german family and my english family who can't speak to each other because i don't speak the same language but they could all play happy salmon together
- everyone's got their own set of poker dice and they're rolling them all at the same time you're not having to wait for somebody else
- these are just the most fantastic little components that i've i've found in games i absolutely love them
- it takes six minutes to play which is three rounds of drawing one minutes each and three rounds of guessing one minute each
- it's so frustrating it just gets in the way it's not fun
References (from this video)
- popular, weighty yet approachable
- timed guessing adds tension
- data in transcript was rough to pin down
- Role Player
- Seaside
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Dice rolling — dice-based engine-building and area control
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- this here's the wildest game in the wilderness if you're wearing hats and sunglasses best remove them
- Isle of cats is 5.1
- actual weight of cosmic frog is 4.2 lb
- the physical weight of war of the ring is 6.3
- Prodal Club amazing game amazing game
References (from this video)
- fits a family-friendly, quick-play feel
- simplified rules great for new players
- similar to other dice-rolling, light filler games
- not highly innovative
- dice-driven resource generation and contracts
- western town with dice as currency
- light, thematic, but abstracted
- Machi-Koro
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Dice drafting/placement — select dice outcomes to perform actions and fulfill contracts
- set collection — collect specific items/resources to score
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- we're going to retire on our board game collection
- we bought Canvas for some reason
- it's a social deduction version of Blue? I've never played Clue but they kept saying that
- I don't like deduction games but I really like this one
- it's so easy for new players
- shame on you buy more games
References (from this video)
- Loud, energetic, great with four players
- Easy to teach and fast to play
- Can be chaotic; noise can overwhelm some players
- dice push-your-luck with Western vibes
- Wild West dice game night in a town
- lively, chaotic, social
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Dice rolling — players roll dice to claim payouts and build combos
- dice rolling/push-your-luck — players roll dice to claim payouts and build combos
- set collection — collecting dice results aligns with scoring opportunities
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- Spicy. So you might be like, Here, Sam. And maybe I'm giving him back some of his bloodline that he gave me back.
- Root's just always going to be here. I play it every day.
- Dice Town. Since we first played Dice Town and every time afterwards, I have had so much fun.
- I love Dune Imperium. I think it's a perfect of a game as you can get.
- Obsession is such a fantastic game and I will pump this game up as much as I can.
- Mountain Goats is incredible. It's a great, quick dice game.
- Red Dust Rebellion is no joke amazing.
- Three Chapters is the newest game from Amigo. And I think it's going to blow up.
- Crafting the Cosmos is so good. The UX is amazing.
References (from this video)
- high interaction, chaotic fun
- great table presence and atmosphere
- can be chaotic for newcomers
- dice tricks and negotiation
- old-west saloon vibe with gambling and dice
- punchy, high-energy
- Yahtzee-style games
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- simultaneous dice rolling — players roll and reroll dice in a fast, interactive loop
- take-that / bribery — cards allow interactions like stealing or swaying ties
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- this is top 100 games for adam in wales
- it's entirely subjective right
- there are going to be some games on this list that are objectively poor games but i've had a fantastic time with them in the past
- the emotional connection is what drives the list
- happy salmon was a huge hit
- it's chaotic but it's really really fun
- I was hooked because I loved ice games
- this is a roll and write game
- it's a memory element
- it's the only collectible card game that i've ever played
- the sheriff's badge
References (from this video)
- Fun dice-driven loot mechanic
- Accessible and family-friendly
- Can drift towards luck unless mitigated by rules
- Cowboy loot via dice and market decisions
- Old West town with dice-driven cash flow
- Loose, lighthearted frontier flavor
- Liar's Dice (dice-rolling social mechanic kinship)
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- dice drafting — Roll dice to claim payouts and advance in town
- Dice drafting/roll-and-wrote feel — Roll dice to claim payouts and advance in town
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- you can't stop
- the more people are into it, the better it is
- it's a Dice Tower essential
- a masquerade of classic and modern designs
References (from this video)
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- it's an experience
- it's incredibly mean in Cutthroat
- I would never stop playing it on BGA
- this is the best game one of the best games ever in my opinion
- it's crazy chaos I love this game
- it's not overly light racing game
- I love this game I wish so badly was on BGA
- it's an engine builder
References (from this video)
- Accessible and quick to play
- fun interaction with others
- Can feel luck-driven for some players
- dice-rolling, push-your-luck, and dice-poker mechanics
- Wild West town
- light, fast, family-friendly
- Yahtzee
- Bang!
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- dice drafting — players roll dice and choose results to match locations
- set collection — collect resources to claim benefits and victory points
- set collection / resource management — collect resources to claim benefits and victory points
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- it's a fantastic alternative to Scrabble
- it's not heavy on the awards
- a real simple introductory card drafting game
- this is a fantastic alternative to Scrabble
- the garden is home to an antagonistic Gardener and Panda
References (from this video)
- wordplay/language humor
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- dice-based action — Dice-driven play with thematic language elements; relies on player turns and pronoun use
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- There are really two groups of designers
- the attempt to make all games playable by all people is a lofty ideal
- colorblind accessibility was at the forefront of our minds as we designed
- stand up for your views it's important that you collectively produce a product which you as designer can be proud of
- publishers need inventors just as much as we need them