Yahtzee Hands Down Card Game by Hasbro
Yahtzee Hands Down Card Game: An Overview of Gameplay
Yahtzee Hands Down is a refreshing take on the old classic dice game, Yahtzee. Instead of rolling dice to try to make the traditional scoring combinations, players begin with five cards and draw and discard to try and complete small sets, small and large straights, full houses or a Yahtzee.
Play moves around the board and while each player strives to match one of six “Combo” card at the center of the board. Each “Combo” card simply lists one of the six point-giving dice combinations (straight, runs, etc.), along with a point value. Players decide secretly what combination they will attempt to collect, and draw and discard (reroll) until they make a match.
Once a player makes a match, they yell, “Hands Down” and place there hand face down on the table. Play continues for the other players until one additional person yells “Hands Down.” The players then reveal their hands, and the player who had the highest point value dice combination wins the round and takes the points. There’s a catch, though, if players went for the same combo card, the highest ranking dice win. So if you and I were to both go for four of a kind, your four twos would win out against my four ones. Play continues in this manner until all six of the combo cards in the center off the board have been claimed.
What to Expect
Expect to spend about 15 minutes reading through the rules your first time you bring this game to the table. There are four different card types, and a number of rules that are somewhat confusing on the first read through, so you’ll want to read the rules carefully.
Plan on another three or four minutes for set up, and allow for at least 15 minutes of play time. Yahtzee Hands Down seems like a good, solid port of the classic dice game to a card game. The game is structured to force ups and downs and allow for some interesting situations between players who are unwittingly striving for the same “Combo Cards.”
Like the rest of the games in Hasbro’s Card Game roster, Yahtzee Hands Down is allows adults and children to play together. These types of games are great to fill time at family functions or while traveling or on a picnic. If you like Yahtzee Hands Down, check out Scrabble Slam, or Milles Bornes, two other Hasbro Card Game properties.
Yahtzee Hands Down: Contents and Price
I picked my copy of Yahtzee Hands Down for $4.29 after using a “$1.00 off Any Hasbro Card Game Coupon,” that I had received in a copy of Scrabble Slam I purchased. Without a Hasbro coupon, expect to pay $4.99 to $6.99.
A complete Yahtzee Hands Down game consists of:
12 X Combo cards
12 X Chance cards
84 X Dice cards
1 X Starter card
1 X Combo sheet
1 X Reminder Card
If you are lucky, and you find a specially marked box, your Yahtzee Card Game might also contain a Hasbro coupon, good or up to $5.00 off of your next Hasbro purchase.
Resources and References
All scans of the Yahtzee Hands Down box and cards by Michael Elkins.
References to the rules have been interperetted rom the Yahtzee Hands Down rules by Michael Elkins.