Bang! The Dice Game

Bang! The Dice Game is a 3-8 player western style shout out between the good guys (the Sheriff and his Deputies) and the bad guys (the Outlaws and the Renegades). Throw in Indian attackers, variable players powers, dice and group of people wanting to have fun and you have Bang! The Dice Game. This game is such a fun, quick, light-hearted filler experience.

Bang! The Dice Game Gameplay

Set-Up

Bang! The Dice Game, by DV Giochi, keeps the some of the core elements of Bang! Each player starts off being dealt a hidden role, with the Sheriff revealing themselves at the start of the game. Players will either be the Sheriff, a Deputy, an Outlaw or a Renegade. The aim of the game is for the Sheriff and the Deputies to kill the Outlaws. The Outlaws win by killing the Sheriff and the Renegade must be the last man standing.

Players will also be dealt a character card that grants the player special abilities to be used in the game.

Round Overview

On a player’s turn they will roll the five dice up to three times locking in any die that they choose to keep. The dice show six different symbols which have different effects as follows;

• Indian arrows – If you roll an Indian arrow the player must immediately take an arrow from the pile. If the last arrow is taken, the Indians attack and all players lose one hit point for each arrow they hold. After the attack the arrows are returned.
• Dynamite – This die cannot be re-rolled. If a player rolls three dynamite on their turn they blow themselves up and lose one hit point.
• “1” Bulls Eye – The player to the immediate left or right is shot and loses one hit point.
• “2” Bulls Eye – The player exactly two places to the left or right is shot and loses one hit point.
• Beer – A beer gives either yourself or another player one hit point.
• Gatling – If a player rolls three Gatling symbols in a turn then the Gatling gun is activated and all other players lose one hit point.

After a player has resolved the dice in the order above then the dice are passed to the next player. Play continues this way until one of the win conditions is met. If a player loses all of their hit points they are eliminated from the game.

Win Conditions

The game ends immediately if the Sheriff is eliminated or all the Outlaws and Renegades are eliminated. If the Sheriff is eliminated and the Renegade is the only one alive, the Renegade wins. Otherwise, the Outlaws win. If all the Outlaws and Renegades are eliminated the Sheriff and the Deputies win.

Thoughts from the Wild West

Bang! The Dice Game is fantastic at what it sets out to do. I have played this game at the end of a heavy game night, introduced it to family and played it during my lunch break with non-gamers. It is a fun, enjoyable and great game. The rules are simple and straightforward, so it is easy to teach. The players powers add some additional rules which are easily picked up by most people.

It is a quick game, typically lasting around 15 minutes, so although there is player elimination people don’t end up sitting around waiting too long for the game to end. After one game has finished, shuffle up the role cards and character cards and go again. Simple, clean, fun and with a small price tag. Highly recommend Bang! The Dice Game if you are after a game in this genre.