What is the difference between Yahtzee and Yatzy?

Yahtzee is the American game, Yatzy the Scandinavian one. Both use five dice and three rolls, but the score sheets differ: Yatzy has rows for one pair and two pairs, while Yahtzee has a fixed 35 point bonus and joker rules for extra Yahtzees.

How many dice do you need?

Five ordinary dice for most games in the family, plus a score sheet and a pen. Maxi Yatzy uses six dice, and Crag only three. You can always draw the score sheet yourself on a piece of paper.

Can you play these games solo?

Yes. Yatzy and Yahtzee both work well alone, where you play against your own best score. It is also a good way to learn the score sheet before playing with others.

Yahtzee family

Five dice, three rolls and a score sheet: that simple recipe has produced a whole family of games. Yahtzee is the famous American version, Yatzy the Scandinavian standard, and both descend from Yacht, the game that started it all.

Yahtzee-style dice games with a score sheet

One family, many dialects

Every region grew its own variant: Generala in South America rewards hands rolled in one throw, Yamb in the Balkans adds a grid of columns, and Balut in Southeast Asia stretches the idea to 28 rounds. Maxi Yatzy adds a sixth die, and Crag compresses everything into three.

Why they endure

The balance between luck and choice is just right. The dice decide what you have to work with, but you decide what to keep and where the points go. Learn one game and you can play them all within minutes.