Memo Dice
Memo Dice Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Components
- 10 cups (three each of red, blue and black, plus one golden cup)
- 4 playing pieces, in white, purple, orange, and green
- 9 symbol dice, showing a total of 54 different symbols
- 1 game board
Players: 2 to 4 • Ages: 8 and up • Duration: about 20 minutes
The Goal of the Game
Players take turns rolling one of the symbol dice and covering it with a cup of the matching color. Remember the symbols and the order they were rolled to score, and try to be the first player to collect 20 points.
Setting Up the Game
Put the cups, game board, and dice on the table within everyone's reach. Each player picks a game piece and puts it on the square marked "1" on the board. Use the board to keep track of your points during the game.
Playing the Game
Choose a player to go first in round one. The other players will follow in clockwise order.
The game is played over a series of rounds. Each round begins with a "covering the dice" phase, followed by an "uncovering the dice" phase.
Covering the Dice
On your turn, take any one of the symbol dice and roll it. Place the die in the middle of the table, so all players can see which symbol came up on the roll.
Once all players have had a chance to memorize the symbol, cover the die with a cup that's the same color as the symbol that was rolled.
Example: Linda has rolled the red umbrella. After all players had some time to memorize the symbol, she covers the die with a red cup.
Now it's the next player's turn: They pick a die, roll it, place it next to the cup covering the first die to give players time to memorize it, then cover it with a cup of the matching color. The dice (and cups) should be placed next to each other in one continuous row.
Example: Nora has rolled the blue elephant. She places the die next to the red cup from Linda's turn for a few moments then covers it with a blue cup.
The game continues in this way until either of the following happens:
- A player rolls a color for which there is no cup left. That player takes the golden cup and uses it to cover the die; or
- If the last remaining die is rolled, it is always covered with the golden cup.
As soon as the golden cup has been used for either of the reasons above, the "covering the dice" phase is over.
Example: Linda has rolled the red turtle, but all three red cups have already been used earlier in the round. Linda uses the golden cup to cover the red turtle and thereby ends the "covering the dice" phase.
Uncovering the Dice
The player who used the golden cup to cover a die now tries to remember as many of the covered symbols as possible, in the order they were covered, before uncovering the dice again.
First, call out the symbol that you think is hidden underneath the first cup. After naming the symbol, check if you remembered it correctly by lifting the cup.
If you are right, take the cup as a reward and continue with the next cup.
Example: Linda used the golden cup, so she gets to start uncovering the dice – now her memory will be put to the test! She points at the first cup and calls out: "Umbrella!" She lifts the cup to check, and because she is right, she takes that cup and continues guessing.
However, if the player misremembered the symbol or cannot remember it at all, the player to their left gets the cup. Now it's that player's turn to try to remember the symbols covered by the remaining cups.
Example: Linda remembered the first symbol correctly, so she continues. She points at the second cup and calls out: "Cooling fan". Lifting the cup, she realizes she was wrong. She hands the cup to Ronya, her neighbor to the left, who now needs to remember the symbol under the black cup. Linda might get another turn later, if the other players can't remember all the symbols either.
Scoring Points
As soon as all of the dice have been uncovered again, and you have divided the cups among the players, your cups earn you points:
- Each red, blue, or black cup is worth 1 point.
- The golden cup is worth 2 points.
Move your game piece ahead on the board as many squares as the points you have earned. If no player has reached 20 or more points, return the dice and cups to the middle and start a new round. The player who had the golden cup begins the next round.
The End of the Game
The game ends as soon as one player reaches 20 or more points: If one or more players reach or pass the "20" square in any round, the player with the most points wins! If scores are tied, there is more than one winner.