Rollover Games

TWO PLAYER ROLLOVER: Put the dice on the starting tile with 1 on top. One player has the even numbered tiles and the other player the odds. Players create the path by taking turns to lay down tiles edge to edge in any direction. Once the path is complete, players have to visualise the dice being  rolled along the path until it reaches the last tile. Players have to say which number will be on top of the dice when it reaches the last position.

When learning the game you can make the path straight, or shorter, to make the game easier.

For a game of chance each player immediately guesses which number will be on top of the dice when it reaches the last position. For a game of skill players have 1 minute (or some other agreed time) to work out which face will be on top. Then roll the dice along the path and see if your answer was correct. Create a new path in the same way for each subsequent round.

MANY PLAYERS ROLLOVER Play in pairs and check each other’s answers. The leader lays out the tile pathway so that everyone can see it, then tells the players to decide on the number on top of the dice when it reaches the last tile at the end of the path. Individually the players work it out and each player tells their partner what their answer is. The leader then rolls the dice along the path. Players who had the right answer for the number on top of the dice at the end of the path win a point.

AN EASIER GAME: Make the paths straight or play with fewer tiles and shorter paths. Here is a different path.

1. Which number is on top when the dice is on tile 8?
2. An easier question: If the dice on tile 8 rolls back along the path where will the top face (shaded grey) be when the dice is at the start?
3. Does the answer to question B help you to answer question A?

TETRA ROLLOVER: Play this game with the same rules using a tetrahedral dice and triangular tiles. Note that the top vertices of the tetrahedral dice give the numbers thrown.

ROLLADISC Draw straight lines of different lengths for each round. Place a half red half yellow disc at one end. Players guess which colour will be on top when the disc is rolled (with no sliding) along the line until it reaches the endpoint and they score a point if their guess is correct. You can work this out if you do some measurements.

HILLY ROLLADISC Draw different wavy lines for each round. Place a half red half yellow disc at one end. Players guess which colour will be on top when the disc is rolled along the line until it reaches the endpoint and they score a point if their guess is correct. This is a game of chance.

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