Game: Dancing Dice

Thread: Re: Still Dancing..

Toasty — 2008-11-15T10:53:08+00:00

Neil Thomson wrote:
I'm hoping it will be as big of a hit as Pickomino and Catan Dice for her.

I don't think you'll be disappointed, have fun!

Thread: Re: Still Dancing..

joelbear — 2008-11-14T20:52:18+00:00

I love this game. There is tension, decision making and fabulosity. Its a filler for sure. I think we sometimes punish fillers for being fillers rather than appreciating that they accomplish just what the designer wanted them to accomplish. A really fun filler will get a 10 from me.

Thread: Re: Still Dancing..

Pinhead — 2008-11-14T20:09:48+00:00

Neil Thomson wrote:
Cheers Toasty for the review.

After several other recommendations I decided to get this one from the States and paid a hefty $60 for the privilege.

Sounds steep? Probably is but these games are great to play with my Mum, who just likes that 'roll more, think less' kind of game.

I'm hoping it will be as big of a hit as Pickomino and Catan Dice for her.

Ooops! That's quite an inversion.

Well, I bought it from Tanga last year into a bunch with Mister Bill, Moby Pick and 1 Mystery Game for $26.98 (s&h included) and then the trip to Uruguay added $20 more, so I didn't get it so much cheaper.

Thread: Re: Still Dancing..

Neil Thomson — 2008-11-14T19:49:46+00:00

Cheers Toasty for the review.

After several other recommendations I decided to get this one from the States and paid a hefty $60 for the privilege.

Sounds steep? Probably is but these games are great to play with my Mum, who just likes that 'roll more, think less' kind of game.

I'm hoping it will be as big of a hit as Pickomino and Catan Dice for her.

Thread: Re: Still Dancing..

Pinhead — 2008-11-14T15:03:37+00:00

Yep, one of the most silly and fun games I have. Obvioulsy it depends on the people you play with, but with the right group it's always a hit.
Ideal to play at the end of an exhausting game night.

Thread: Still Dancing..

Toasty — 2008-11-14T12:11:13+00:00

OK, I've rated this a 5, so this probably tells you all you need to know about my thoughts on this quirky dice rolling game. However, look at my games played stats and it's comfortably in my top 5 most played games and still gets regular table time, what's up with that? Well, this review will try and answer that question.

First up, why is it rated a 5?

Luck

No doubt about it, Dancing dice is completely luck driven. The aim is to complete 2 dances from 6 dice. You first roll all your dice, completely random. You then select any number of dice to re-roll, yes, there is a decision here for increasing your chances of good dances, but your 2nd roll is basically luck too. OK, you may love the high chance element, I personally think it's too much in this game.

Player elimination

I'm not a big fan of player elimination games, however, this game doesn't last long enough to be that big a problem. But, if you are on a bad luck roll, you soon find yourself at the bottom of the pile and a short game becomes a lot shorter. Given your views on the game, that might not always be a bad thing ;-)

Scoring

It's not particularly intuitive and for a simple game, the scoring is the hardest part to explain. The top dances are , and , Whereas is way down the list. There are bonuses for 6 of a kind and three pairs, however, there's nothing for a , missed a trick there I think. Aside these quirks, it's easy to pick up after a few turns.

That said, when using the score board at the results stage, things get a little hectic. Cubes represent each persons dance and when many players are still left in, it can get a little confusing who's who and who scored what. A master scorer is definitely needed here. Fortunately, with 20+ plays under the belt, scoring has become second nature to some degree.

Cheating

OK, this should never really be an issue amongst experienced gamers, but you do roll in secret and the odd eyebrow may get raised when the top dances are rolled consistently by one player, or the extremely difficult Gala (6 of a kind) is rolled more than once. To be fair, this hasn't been an issue in our games and when it's mentioned I always say, "who'd want to cheat at a game called Dancing Dice?"

Colours

The dice are fantastic, the matching wooden counters and cubes are drab and hard to distinguish in certain cases, adding to the scoring chaos.

OK, so why does it still hit the table?

Appeals to all

As a party game, everyone fancies a crack at it. Tout it as something familiar, like yahtzee, and no one is scared of the rules and despite personal preferences, everybody likes a dice rolling fest now and again.

Fun

It is fun, once you get going everyone's cheering or groaning as dice rolls hit and miss.

Tension

While there is only two decisions to be made in the game, the dance order decision does lead to some tense moments, especially when there are only a couple of dancers left in. Do you put you best dance first or second? Suddenly its a game of bluff as much as luck!

Dice

The dice are great, dancing shoes replace pips and the colours are done superbly. Rolling them behind your secrecy screens adds to the fun too

Time

You won't mind too much being dragged into this light filler, its only 15 minutes with 6 players and you will have fun while it lasts.

My games played total should probably push my rating a little higher, but then I remember, it's not a game I often suggest to be played and sometimes even groan at the mention of it's name. The current 5.77 BGG rating is about right and it's a game I do enjoy when it hits the table. To quote a fellow gamer, "It's a silly game"

Thread: Re: Microbadges to Dance for...

ilsilvano — 2008-09-09T22:46:37+00:00

Whoa, that's great, thank you!
Now, if only I can afford to buy both... I really need to gain some GeekGold fast!

Thread: Microbadges to Dance for...

Grimwold — 2008-09-09T10:36:45+00:00

New Dancing Dice microbadges are available so you can show your love for this awesome game....

[INLINEIMG]http://files.boardgamegeek.com/images/microbadges/mb_Dancing...[/INLINEIMG] [INLINEIMG]http://files.boardgamegeek.com/images/microbadges/mb_Dancing...[/INLINEIMG]

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Grimwold — 2007-12-19T10:43:42+00:00

Scan of the Score Board

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rseater — 2007-12-04T15:40:57+00:00

scoring summary on the inside of each player screen

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rseater — 2007-12-04T15:40:24+00:00

playing screens for different players

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rseater — 2007-12-04T15:39:47+00:00

dice!

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Jormi_Boced — 2007-04-18T03:19:23+00:00

My dad got so tired dancing it looks like he fell asleep.

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Jormi_Boced — 2007-03-16T01:19:18+00:00

Green is ready!

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Jormi_Boced — 2007-03-16T01:06:12+00:00

Close to the end of the dance off!

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Von Cougar — 2007-03-14T12:06:54+00:00

Replacement pieces (because there are no yellow dice)

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Von Cougar — 2007-03-14T12:06:15+00:00

Upon opening the box...

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itiswon — 2007-01-19T19:07:04+00:00

lots of footsteps

Thread: Re: Dancing Dice: A Hit with Non-Gamers

ilsilvano — 2006-09-02T10:39:33+00:00

We are thinking about some new variants that may be interesting!
Cannot reveal more right now, keep your fingers crossed.

Thread: Re: Dancing Dice: A Hit with Non-Gamers

lmnop — 2006-08-22T15:05:31+00:00

ilsilvano wrote:
Maybe one day there will be a little surprise for Dancing Dice lovers...

Very interesting comment. Would you like to elaborate? I, for one, would like to hear more...

Thread: Re: Dancing Dice: A Hit with Non-Gamers

ilsilvano — 2006-08-22T12:56:48+00:00

>>This is why I had to write this review.

...and this is why I had to thank your for this review!
Maybe one day there will be a little surprise for Dancing Dice lovers...

Thread: Re: Dancing Dice: A Hit with Non-Gamers

daveroswell — 2006-07-26T20:57:48+00:00

I recently got Dancing Dice in a closeout deal at Funagain (they are sold out BTW.) I have to try this game soon...

Thread: Dancing Dice: A Hit with Non-Gamers

lmnop — 2006-07-26T19:30:31+00:00

I have played Dancing Dice more than 50 times and all of those games were with non-gamers. Without exception, every non-gamer enjoyed the game thoroughly. Based on this experience, I wholeheartedly recommend Dancing Dice if you're looking for a game to play with your non-gamer friends and family.

Quick Overview
Dancing Dice is a quick dice game that pits players against one another in a dancing contest. Each player secretly rolls six six-sided dice. Each die is numbered one through six. The goal is to create the best two three-dice combinations. After the first secret roll, players can reroll to improve their combinations. Each player announces how many of the six dice he or she will re-roll and then does so. Once players have made their re-roll, they must arrange their dice into two three-dice combinations. Then the fun begins.

Players choose one of the two combinations to reveal first. The players reveal their first combination simultaneously. This introduces an element of trying to outguess your opponent, especially when you have one strong combination and a second weak one. After revealing the first combination, the player(s) with the lowest combination(s) lose one point. In keeping with the theme, losing points represents your dancers getting tired. Players then simultaneously reveal their second combination and players lose points accordingly. The last player standing (i.e., the last player with points remaining) is the winner.

The Combinations
Most of the combinations that can be played are merely the sum of the three dice, ranging from four to eighteen. Why does the range begin at four, you might ask? Well, the most powerful combination is three "1"s - the coveted "Boogie." In descending order from the Boogie is three "2"s (the Tap Dance), three "3"s (the Cha Cha Cha) and finally the Tango, which is a random set of three numbers that changes from round to round.

This makes for difficult choices when deciding what dice to re-roll and what combinations to go for. I cannot tell you how many times I have had two "1s" and re-rolled for just one more "1", only to find that I have a dreaded combination like this: 1-1-3. There is a risk-reward calculation that has to be done when deciding to go for the top three dances. You have to ask yourself, "If I don't get it, where does that leave me and can I afford to have that happen?"

There are two other special combinations that bear mentioning: the "Rock" and the "Gala." These combinations prevent a player from losing any points in the round and, in the case of the Gala, to gain points. It should be mentioned that the Gala is the only way to gain points in the game. In all other cases, players lose points.

The Appeal to Non-Gamers
My wife was the first non-gamer to play this game. In general, she hates boardgames. More particularly, she cannot stand rules explanations (really, this comes down to hating complicated rules) and games that involve any sort of downtime. Games that she actually likes are Settlers of Catan (by the grace of God she was able to sit through the rules explanation), Ticket to Ride (easy rules and little downtime), and Carcasonne (except for the farmer rules).

My wife loves Dancing Dice. She loves the theme and loves the challenge of trying to get that killer combination of dice. The push-your-luck and risk-reward elements also appeal to her.

This game was then introduced to my in-laws. This had me a bit worried. My father-in-law was an offensive lineman in college and, like his daughter, also hates boardgames (Scrabble and Boggle excepted). Surprisingly, my father-in-law really liked this game. You might think that the theme would scare off a guy like that. To the contrary. He was into it. He cursed the dice when they didn't roll his way, and performed a few cocky "in-your-face" celebrations when he would reveal a particularly devastating combination. I had no idea that a guy like that would react that way to a little dice game!

Next up, my sister-in-law and her boyfriend. My sister-in-law likes boardgames (more mainstream, crappy ones like Monopoly), but I was nervous about how Dancing Dice would be received by her boyfriend. Her boyfriend is a cop and a die-hard Cubs and Packers fan. There's no way he'll like a game of dueling Cha Cha Chas and Tap Dances. Right!? WRONG. He had the same reaction that my father-in-law did. Curses under his breath during some rolls, and not-so-under-his-breath taunting during others. He was actually trash talking!

This is why I had to write this review. I would never have thought that these non-gamers would get such a big kick out of Dancing Dice. But it has proven itself to be a game that people of all ages and backgrounds can enjoy. It's fast, simple and most importantly, FUN!

Thread: Re: 2-Player Dance-a-Thon

lmnop — 2006-06-06T13:43:01+00:00

Thanks for the link. My wife and I will try out this variant. My wife absolutely loves this game, and as a general rule, she does not like boardgames. She loves it so much that she requests playing it at least three times a week.

I really admire the design of this game, especially the high risk/reward when going for the Boogie, Tap Dance or Cha Cha Cha. If you get it, you're in great shape, but if you don't you're in big trouble. That risk/reward calculation makes for some agonizing decisions. The Rock and the Gala also add a great element to the game.

Thread: Re: 2-Player Dance-a-Thon

ilsilvano — 2006-05-26T10:37:03+00:00

Hi,
I am glad you liked my little dancing game...
Please note that in the daVinci website you can find a variant for a different two players game called "the Masked Dancers":
http://www.davincigames.com/page_eng.cfm?sez=01&gioco=dancin...

I hope you will like it!

Thread: 2-Player Dance-a-Thon

lmnop — 2006-05-17T15:39:19+00:00

It was a rainy, Sunday afternoon and my wife and I sat down for a mano-a-mano session of Dancing Dice. With neither of us having played before, we quickly went through the rules and began the dice-fest.

We played at least 10 games in a row. The first game we got used to the rules and each of us presented our best dance first, followed by our second-best dance. By the second game, we began trying to outsmart each other by choosing the order in which we presented our dances. This led to the use of the phrase, "I played that perfectly!" when one of us got the other to waste a boogie on a weak 8-point dance.

Most of the games came down to the end and two games had each of us at "1" for several turns as we went back and forth with Tangos, Boogies and Tap-Dances. Only one game was really a blow-out. But the game doesn't last that long so who cares?

My wife and I really enjoyed this game and will definitely play it again. A lot of luck, but there is just enough choice to make it fun and interesting. Deciding what dances to go for in your second roll can be a difficult choice and trying to outsmart your opponent by the ordering of your dances is also a nice touch.

Thread: Re: Tango Roll

ilsilvano — 2005-10-31T11:10:20+00:00

>>>I know this would be a rare event, but what happens when the Tango roll consists of three 1's, three 2's, or three 3's (thus being the same as the higher-scoring Boogie, Tap Dance, or Cha Cha Cha)?

Hi! You can find the answer in the game FAQs here:
http://www.davincigames.com/page_eng.cfm?sez=01&gioco=dancin...
the dice are re-rolled until you get another combination.

In my original idea the answer was B: "The Tango roll stays as is, but would obviously not be used, as everyone would go for the higher-scoring dances.", but after some playtests we decided to change this (but, unfortunately, we forgot to put this in the rules!).

Thread: Tango Roll

themightyhump — 2005-09-02T14:17:39+00:00

I know this would be a rare event, but what happens when the Tango roll consists of three 1's, three 2's, or three 3's (thus being the same as the higher-scoring Boogie, Tap Dance, or Cha Cha Cha)? I didn't see where the rules covered this event, and statistics would tell you that it would be bound to happen at some point. I can think of three possibilities for resolving this:

1) The higher-scoring dance is not possible, and any dance of three 1's, 2's or 3's would have to use the Tango. Once somebody uses the Tango it would be re-rolled as usual.
2) The Tango roll stays as is, but would obviously not be used, as everyone would go for the higher-scoring dances.
3) Re-roll the Tango so that it is not the same as the Boogie, Tap Dance, or Cha Cha Cha.

I would lean towards option 3 so that you always have the possibility of scoring in one of the top four dances. But is there an official ruling out there? Has it happened to you? How would you resolve it?

Thanks for any input.

-tmh-

Thread: 6 players

Spielguy — 2005-08-13T04:56:13+00:00

Six players got together to dance the night away.

The other five players had never played so I explained the rules and we got going.

Shirley started to lose quickly, dropping four of the first six dances.
Nathan wasn't doing that well either. He went down three, everyone went down one.

We stayed together as a group and was eventually split with 2 players each on two, three and four. The next set of dances both James and I had Rocks which allowed us to stay were we were. Tyler and Shirley were getting very close to the end. Nathan and Sheryl were hanging in.

There were quite a few tangos, a few rocks, and the standard boogies and cha-chas.
Eventually there were two each on 1, 2 and 3.
The next round brought two people out of the game. Shirley and Tyler were the tiredest and sat the rest of the game out.

It didn't last long though. Nathan, James and Myself all lost the next few dances. Sheryl won even though she was just on the 1.

Winner: Sheryl

Thread: User Review

SusanRoz — 2005-03-17T04:09:04+00:00

Dancing Dice is a simple, push-your luck dice game with an unusual theme of ballroom dancers competing in a dancing marathon. Low on strategy, but high on fun, this game is likely to be a hit with the right crowd, in particular casual gamers, in a mixed-gender party setting, and those looking for short, light filler on game nights. Easy enough for an older child, it makes an excellent choice for families as well.

Components:

- 36 dice in 6 sets of different colors. A set of dice contains three dice of the same color with white pips, and white dice with matching colored pips. Each pip on the dice is represented by a footprint.

- Three special Tango dice

- A Black cloth bag to store the dice

- A small game board that depicts a dance scoring track and an endurance track

- Six screens in six different colors

- Six scoring markers in six different colors

- Six endurance markers in six different colors

- Rules in English, Italian, German, and French

By far, the niftiest components in the box are the numerous colorful dice. They are of heavy, high quality and the thematic pips are a great touch. The screens are rather flimsy, but adequate and contain helpful scoring information on the back. One minor quibble – the pink set of dice does not have a matching pink, but rather a purple, screen. The rules are a little wordy, but clear with good examples

Game play

Each player gets a set of dice, markers and a screen in matching colors. The board is placed in the center of the table and each player places his endurance marker at the top of the track on “10.”

Players will be rolling their six dice and arranging them into combinations that will hopefully score them the most points. Players with low scoring combinations will lose endurance points. Once a player loses all his endurance points, he is out of the game. The last dance team (player) left is the winner.

One of the nice things about this game is that the play is simultaneous, so you are never waiting for your turn. Players each take their set of dice and roll them behind their individual screens. They then divide them into two rows of three dice that represent the two dances that they are performing that round. They can re-roll any number of their dice one more time to try to improve their combinations, but they must choose the dice and roll them all at once, not one at a time. The two rows of dice are placed one in front of the other, with one being the first dance performed and the other the second.

Now players remove their screens and each dance is judged. The board has a track that shows the score and dance name for each combination. Most of the dances are scored by adding up the pips on the three die. However, there are numerous special combinations. The top three dances on the track are combinations of all three dice being “ones,” “twos,’ or “threes,” respectively. The fourth highest dance is the Tango. Each round, the set of three Tango dice is rolled and the resulting combination is the requirement for a Tango in this particular round. After that, the next highest dances are all based on the sum of the pips, from eighteen, the Mambo, down to four, the Macarena. Players place their marker on the appropriate spot for their dance combination. The player(s) with the lowest scores must move their endurance markers down one space. The player(s) with the highest score do not move their endurance marker. Tied scores may be broken in favor of “pure” performances, which are combinations that consist of all three dice being either white or all three the solid color. After players have adjusted their endurance markers, the second dance is scored the same way.

There is another special type of dance known as a Rock. This is when a player’s two rows are an identical set of numbers to each other. In this case, the player will put his marker on the scoring track as normal for both dances to determine the top scoring dances, but will not have to move his endurance marker down should he score low. This is a very safe combination to put forward, but if it is a low scoring dance, it might allow another player's dance to be in the top scoring group.

The final special type of dance is the Gala. This is when all six of a player’s dice show the same number. Again, the player’s marker is placed on the scoring track for both dances, but not only does he not have to move his endurance marker down, he gets to move it up two spaces. This is the only way to increase your endurance. In at least ten games, I’ve never seen this happen!

Discussion

This light game combines a "push your luck" element with a touch of outguessing your fellow dancers. The fact that the highest scoring dances are an identical set of the lowest numbers makes it risky to re-roll to try and get those combinations. If you fail, you might end up with really low scoring dances. Then you have to try and guess what your opponents are doing and try to put your best dance forward at the right time. These decisions are not all that tricky or tense, really. What pushes the game up out of mediocrity for me is its theme.

I haven't seen very many decent dice games with convincing themes. Two of my very favorite dice games, Exxtra and Can't Stop, don't even try. This game, however, has a theme that is not only unusual; it actually feels like it fits. Not only that, the dancing theme and the simple, non-confrontational game play make it an especially appealing choice for families with girls and spouses who don't normally like playing games. It's short enough that it does not become tedious and the simultaneous game play keeps everyone engaged. The game does have one potential problem. Since all the rolling is done behind a screen, it is easy to cheat. Younger players seem to be more susceptible to the temptation.

I've played Dancing Dice about ten times now, with various numbers of from three to six players. The game worked well with all of these numbers of players and though I haven't tried it with two, it would likely work with that number as well. However, given that much of my enjoyment playing the game was due to its social nature, I would definitely recommend it with more, rather than fewer, players. The youngest person I've played the game with is eight years old, and he handled it easily and enjoyed it a lot.

I must admit, after my first game of Dancing Dice, I was not impressed at all. It seemed way too simple and random. The other players, mostly fans of heavier, deeper games, felt the same way. I almost didn't give Dancing Dice a second chance after an unsatisfactory first playing, but fortunately I did, playing with a different group of players. This time the game was much better, with us all laughing and groaning at our bad dancing performances. More playings proved it to be a lot of fun when taken for what it is - a short, light, social game. It is now frequently requested by its fans in my game group when we need a short filler or closer for the evening. This experience reinforces my opinion that a reviewer needs to play a game several times, preferably with different players, before being able to give it a fair review. I could have easily panned this game after one playing, and missed out on a game that is fun with the right group.

Thread: Session Report

SusanRoz — 2005-02-17T23:38:15+00:00

We needed a quick game to play while waiting for the other table to finish up. Dancing Dice is rapidly becoming a game of choice for this situation despite its early ho-hum reception in our group. I’m finding this game seems to fill the same niche as Trendy in our group. There doesn’t seem to be much “game” there, but with the right group it can be quite fun with lots of laughs. It has the potential to be tedious and repetitive, but it isn’t because it plays so quickly.

As usual, there was a lot of moaning and groaning over hideous dice rolls. Mark, with his two left feet, was the first to go out, followed by me. Doug proved to have the most stamina. If I’d only switched my two dances in the last round, I would have been victorious instead.

Thread: Re:Purple vs. Yellow pieces?

Lunga — 2005-02-04T02:36:48+00:00

budblan (#76453),
I believe it was because the original game had balck/yellow dice, so the yellow matched up to them. With the version being sold in the US (elsewhere too I'd imagine), there are no yellow/black dice. There is instead the pink/white ones, so the purple is used for them vs the yellow.

Thread: Purple vs. Yellow pieces?

budblan — 2005-01-11T03:33:37+00:00

Does anyone know why there is a note recommending that you use purple pieces instead of yellow pieces? Just wondering.

Thread: Session Report

gschloesser — 2004-12-30T14:49:34+00:00

The infuriating suburban traffic caused several folks to arrive late, so we occupied the time with the fairly mindless Dancing Dice. For those interested in the detailed mechanics, I will refer you to the 11/17/04 session report, wherein I described the game in great detail.

Jerry, Jim, Mike and I displayed our best … and worst … dance moves, attempting to survive the grueling competition. Sadly, my “chicken dance” routine didn’t prove very popular, and the judges quickly expelled me from the competition. Mike was equally as dismal with his “electric slide” steps, while Jerry hung-on a bit longer. Jim captivated everyone with his magnificent moves, capturing the victory.

Dancing Dice is not a personal favorite, but I must admit that it did prove quite popular at our church Christmas party. I think the game truly finds its home in the family gaming environment.

Ratings: Mike 7, Greg 5.5, Jim 5.5

Thread: Session Report

gschloesser — 2004-12-08T18:26:01+00:00

A game about dancing. This doesn’t exactly set my heart aflutter, dreaming of the rich possibilities the game has to offer. Still, the game is a dice game, so it isn’t meant to compete with such titles as Puerto Rico, El Grande or Tikal. Rather, it is clearly intended to mingle with other dice games such as Can’t Stop, Fill or Bust and Exxtra.

Dancing Dice by Silvano Sorrentino is another offering from the Italian folks at daVinci Games, and is brought to the English speaking world by Mayfair Games. I’m not quite sure how successful this marriage has been for the two companies, but I must admit that, with a few exceptions, I haven’t been terribly impressed by the daVinci titles. They haven’t been terrible, mind you, but neither has the track record hasn’t been stellar. I don’t think Dancing Dice is going to raise their batting average.

The theme is that of performing various dances in a dance competition. Each turn, players roll six dice, and attempt to form the best dance step they can, from the challenging ‘boogie’ to the less inspiring ‘Macarena’. Only the best performers will be rewarded, while those less impressive will lose endurance. The prized trophy goes to the last couple (player) standing.

As is par for the course with a dice game, there is an abundance of dice here: 39 to be exact. Instead of normal pips, however, these dice have little dancing shoes, and are color specific to each player. In each set of six, three of the dice are white with colored pips, while the colors on the other three are reversed. This is important when forming dance steps. Players each receive a set of six dice and a player screen.

To begin the game, a set of three “tango” dice are rolled and placed on the center of the board. Each player then rolls their six dice behind their respective screens and forms two sets of dances, each comprising three dice. Before making the final formation, however, a player can re-roll as many of the dice he desires in hopes of improving his dances. The player MUST accept the dice he has rolled on this second attempt.

Players will then reveal their first set of three dice and the results will be determined. Each player places their three dice on the correct “dance” spot on the board. Most dances are determined simply by adding the number of pips together. For instance, dice totaling 15 will result in a “Samba”, while dice totaling “7” will yield a rather unimpressive “Bossa Nova”. However, there are some special combinations:

Three 1’s: The “Boogie”, the best dance that can be performed.
Three 2’s: The “Tap Dance”.
Three 3’s: The “Cha Cha”.

In addition, if the player matches the three “Tango” dice on the board, the player will score the fourth highest dance possible.

Once the first set of dice for all of the players are placed on the board, the judging begins. Only one-half of the performances will be judged satisfactory. Any player whose dance is not considered satisfactory loses a point of endurance. Endurance is charted on a special track on the board, which depicts silhouettes of increasingly exhausted dancers. When a player’s marker reaches zero, he is out of the competition.

Once the first dance is judged, players remove those dice and reveal their second set of dice. These are then placed onto the board and then judged as described above. This procedure continues until there is only one remaining player, who is named the “Disco King”.

There are two other special dances that are worth mentioning:

The Rock: Whenever a player has two sets of dice with the same sequence of numbers (example: 2, 5, 6), that player will NOT lose endurance points if one or more of his dances is judged unsatisfactory.

The Gala: If all of a player’s six dice depict the same number, not only will the player not lose any endurance points that round, but he will actually GAIN two endurance points. This is a difficult maneuver to achieve, but it could well be worth shooting for if you find your stamina failing.

The main decision to be made during the course of the game is whether or not to re-roll your dice, and, if so, how many dice to re-roll. This will certainly depend upon how close you are to achieving a high-value dance … and how desperate you are to not lose further endurance points. In this respect, the game has a similar feel as “Fill or Bust”, a popular dice rolling game that my group enjoys. However, this game lacks that “do or die” feel that is ever-present in Fill or Bust.

Another decision the players face is which set of dice to reveal first, and which to reveal second. Since one-half of the performances are judged worthy, your real objective is to be in that top half of performances in each competition. Unfortunately, this is just guesswork, as there is no way to know what your opponents have rolled and which set they will reveal first. So, although this is a choice, there is no information on which to base your choice.

This is not to say the game doesn’t generate some fun. It does. However, it just isn’t as fun as many other dice rolling games. Admittedly, my one playing so far has been with a group of gamers, so I do need to try the game again in a family environment. Folks who haven’t been exposed to those other dice-rolling games may well find this one entertaining. I’ll certainly report back once I have had the opportunity to play the game in this “family” environment.

Michael, John, Jerry and I danced … er, rolled … our way through numerous competitions. I managed to roll a Gala and regain two lost endurance points, and this gave me that extra boost to outlast my opponents.

Ratings: Michael 6.5, John 5, Greg 5

Interestingly, Michael is the gamer in our group who most enjoys “lighter” games, so this does bode well for the game in the family environment.

Thread: Preview and Impressions

gschloesser — 2004-12-08T02:00:15+00:00

Thread: User Review

TomVasel — 2004-11-16T17:30:09+00:00

I’ve often been tempted to write a review of an older game, as if it’s a new release. I imagine that some games would be taken differently, if they were introduced today. For example, what would people say about Yahtzee if it had been invented by Reiner Knizia? (Actually, I’ve seen some humorous threads on the internet on just such a subject.) Games in this genre are released today, and one of the newest is Dancing Dice (DaVinci Games and Mayfair Games, 2004 - Silvano Sorrentino).

Dancing Dice is best described as an interactive form of Yahtzee. It’s a lot simpler than Yahtzee, but the basic gist is the same where players try to roll different combinations with their dice. There is a small bluffing aspect, but the game is at its heart a simple die-rolling game. It’s extremely short, lots of fun and a nice, easy filler that will work exceptionally well for people who want a game that’s as light as possible. The game was greeted with great success when I played it - both with kids and adults - and although I think the game might become tiresome after a while, at fifteen minutes, it’s quite fun.

The game’s theme is that of a dance marathon, where you try to have your dancers dance the hardest dances, winning the accolades of the judges. The winners become the champion dancers! Each player is given six dice of one color: three white dice with pips of their color and three colored dice with white pips. The pips on the dice are little foot icons, incidentally. A small board is placed in the middle of the table with a score track (endurance) and with a token of each player’s color being placed at “10” - the highest number. The board also includes a list of dances, in the order of their value...
- Boogie: three “1”s
- Tap Dance: three “2”s
- Cha Cha Cha: three “3”s
- Tango: Three multi-colored dice are thrown at the beginning of the game, whatever the numbers rolled become this dance.
- Mambo: Three dice with the sum of “18”
- Twist: Three dice with the sum of “17”
- and so on, and so on, until...
- Macarena: Three dice with the sum of “4”
Each player takes a screen and places their dice behind it, preparing for the first round.

In a round, all players roll their dice simultaneously and secretly. Each player may then reroll any number of their dice, as long as they announce the amount to the other players. After all players have finished rolling, the players separate their dice into two dances, each composed of three dice. Players all reveal their first dance at the same time, placing a wooden cube of their color on the space on the board that corresponds with the value of their dance. The “judges” then pick the top half of the dances (rounded down) that win that round. The rest of the players must move their markers on the endurance track down one as a penalty. If there is a tie, a “pure” dance (all dice are either colored, or all are white) wins over a “mixed” dance. If there is still a tie, then both players are judged “adequate” by the judges. Players then score their second dance the same way, starting a new round immediately following.

If any player scores the Tango, the special dice are re-rolled at the end of the round to form a new combination for the next round. If a player has two dances that are exactly the same (same three numbers), then they are “Rockin’” and cannot lose endurance, regardless of whether their dance is in the upper half or not. If a player miraculously rolls the same number on all six dice, they dance a “Gala”. The player actually gains two endurance points (to a maximum of ten), instead of losing points.

If a player’s endurance reaches zero, they are out of the game; and the remaining players continue until there is only one player left. That player is then the winner - the dance champion!

Some comments on the game...

1.) Components: I love specialty dice and hang on to them, even if I dislike the game. The dice in Dancing Dice are really nifty - with the little footprints instead of just round dots for the pips. At first glance this is a bit disorienting, since they are arranged in different patterns; but after a couple rolls, it’s easy to remember. The dice are in six different bright colors with matching wooden pieces and shields. The shields are a little flimsy but do contain all necessary scoring information in a language-independent format. A cloth bag with drawstring is included; so if you’re in the need of one of these, you could easily exchange it with a plastic bag - as its only function is to store the dice. The board is a nice way to keep track of the scoring of the dances, and the artwork on the box, board, and shields is goofy and colorful. The game is very attractive and certainly tries to tie its slim theme to the game play.

2.) Rules: The rulebook is printed in four languages (English, German, French, and Italian) - four pages each. These are fairly easily laid out with numerous references to each rules, so that we had no questions when playing for the first time. People tend to pick up on the game fairly easily, especially if they’ve played Yahtzee before.

3.) Cheating: There have been comments on the web that it is fairly easy to cheat in the game, because a player can simply change the faces of their die without others knowing. There’s really no easy answer to this problem - except to avoid playing with known cheaters. Really, the game is so simple and light that I can’t imagine many people cheating, unless the players are foolish enough to be wagering money on the outcome of the game.

4.) Yahtzee: I compared this game to Yahtzee, and the similarities are there; but as one player I taught the game to phrased it: “It’s like Yahtzee, except you can affect one another.” And that’s probably the pitfall of Yahtzee - the fact that it’s basically a solitaire game. Dancing Dice is different; one has to figure out how to put their dice together and what order to put the dice in. Should you put your best dice in the first or second dance? You want to put your weaker dance in with the other’s weak dances, but what if the others outguess you? And should you form one strong dance and a weak dance, or two medium dances? There is some strategy to the game, although rolling six “1”s is some pretty good luck!

5.) Luck, Time, and Fun Factor: When there’s dice rolling in a game, you can count on the fact that there’s a good bit of luck. As long as the time playing the game is short, this isn’t a problem. That’s why I didn’t really like Lucky Loop; the game stretched out too long and was too “strategic”, covering up all the luck with a layer of false tactics. Dancing Dice makes no such pretenses, becoming a game of quick rolling, quick choosing, and quick scoring. A game can end in about fifteen minutes, which is an excellent time for such a lucky game. I like games where one rolls dice, trying to get that high score; and what a thrill it is when you roll a Gala, or a Boogie and a Tap Dance! As long as the time I do such activities is kept short, I can enjoy it; and Dancing Dice delivers.

DaVinci Games is starting to produce some of the best fillers on the market. Just a year ago, I saw someone state on the internet that “Italy” wasn’t known for its board gaming. I think DaVinci games, amongst others, is changing the face of that, and their partnership with Mayfair is bringing these games into the mainstream of America. This game is right up there with King Me!, another DaVinci Game - a short, filler game that is fun for the miniscule amount of time that it takes up, yet involving up to six players. With a funny theme, nice components, and a fun game that takes less than twenty minutes, Dancing Dice is a must-have for all those who like to roll dice.

Tom Vasel
“Real men play board games.”