📦 Shut the Box
🎲 Board · 10 playsShut the Box
The old pub dice game. Roll, add, flip — and chase the perfect zero.
About Shut the Box
The dice game that has settled pub arguments for centuries. Nine tiles, two dice: roll, then shut open tiles that add up exactly to your roll — a 9 can be the 9 itself, or 6+3, or 5+3+1. Once every open tile is 6 or lower you may roll a single die instead. The moment no combination fits, the round is over and whatever is still open is your score, so lower is better — and flipping all nine is the famous “shut the box”, a perfect 0. Play five solo rounds for the lowest total, or go head-to-head against Marge, first to three round wins. She’s been playing since 1962.
How to Play
Roll two dice, then tap open tiles that add up exactly to the roll and press Shut. Once every open tile is 6 or lower, you may roll just one die. No combination fits? Round over — the open tiles are your score. Lower is better. Shut all nine tiles for a perfect 0. Solo: five rounds, lowest total wins. Vs Marge: first to 3 round wins.
💡 Tips & Strategy
Spend the big tiles first. Your score is the sum of whatever stays open, and 7, 8 and 9 are the hardest to shut late — a roll of 9 should flip the 9 itself, not nibble away 4+3+2. The low tiles combine into almost any total, so they're easy to clear at the end.
When a roll fits several ways, prefer the combination that clears the most points and leaves a flexible spread of small tiles. And use the one-die rule: once everything open is 6 or lower, a single die is usually the better roll — two dice average seven and love to overshoot a nearly-empty board, while one die can hit those last small tiles exactly.
Solo is a five-round marathon, so consistency beats hero rolls: a string of 4s and 5s wins games that one blown round loses. Against Marge every round starts fresh and only round wins count — first to three — so there's no scoreboard to protect. Just play each board on the percentages and let her be the one who leaves the 9 standing.