A game that I got to play first at Gen Con, this is one that has now hit my table some more. Long Shot The Dice Game from Perplext is going to be a horse racing and betting game. And it is also a roll and write game. A lot of racing games give you some feel of racing or they are about betting, how does this one feel? Does it feel like a racing game or a betting game?

How To Play Long Shot The Dice Game

In Long Shot The Dice Game you are trying to complete the game while having the most money. So yes, this is a bidding game, not as much a racing game. On a turn the person who is first player rolls the dice. This determines which horses move and and the other die determines how far.

Then every player uses that horse die, the color eight sided die, to fill in something on their board. There are four different areas you are able to fill in. Firstly, the concessions where you are trying to complete rows and columns. When you complete one you get a special bonus. Or you can fill in a jockey helmet or jockey shirt. Getting a pair gives you points at the end of the game. But they also allow you to either bet late on a horse, or add movement to one of the horses cards. Finally you can bet on a horse up to $3 per round.

The person who rolled followed by other players can then choose if they want to buy the horse who’s number was rolled or not. If they do, deduct the money and you get a special power. There is another way to get a horse with concessions as well.

At the end of the race you tally up your money from what you have left over, pairs of jockey helmets and shirts, bets, and any winnings you get if the horse you own placed. The player, like I said, with the most money wins.

What Doesn’t Work

This is not the most intuitive roll and write game. Nothing about a jockey helmet says you can bet late. Nothing about a jockey shirt says make a horse move more often. Even the concessions filling in rows and columns isn’t thematic. This is not a knock on the game play, though, this is a knock on how you have to teach it. If you’re not careful, you’ll miss something or a rule will get explained multiple times because it isn’t obvious. So for a light, fast, roll and write game, there is strategy but still not that much going on, it takes a bit to teach.

What Works

Firstly, I do think that the racing part of the game works. You want your horses to do well. As a group you kind of build up a horse or two to move faster. Try and buy them and get them across the finish line. So there are points where you are just getting excited for a horse, for a roll, to see what happens. Will a horse move this turn past the betting line or not?

I also think that the betting is fun, and I like that it’s not an even distribution. Betting on 7 or 8 is a long shot. But if they win, the payout is great. I do like that you don’t bet everything at once. It isn’t like I can spend all $12 of my starting dollars in one turn. You need to slowly bet it out in smaller increments. Which means you might spread out your bets a little bit more between horses.

And I think the highlight for me is the jockey shirts. Yes, other parts are fun, I like getting a column or row in the concessions. But crossing off a horse on another card/number is great. Having a 4 rolled and then 1, 2, and now because I marked it off 7 move as well is a lot of fun. Plus, if multiple people get behind a horse, now it just starts consistently moving up the track and can catch up, even if it’s number isn’t rolled.

Who Is It For?

I think that this is a roll and write game for most people. The tricky part is that it’s not the easiest to learn or teach. But a lot of the concepts are pretty easy to follow along with once you get them. And it has more than your normal roll and write. There is an element of this that makes it more of a party game. Which I think that racing, watching the horses move, takes it up a notch in terms of who it can be for.

But Long Shot The Dice Game is generally a concept that works well. And one that I think will get people into the game as you play. And for that, it is one that you can probably play with most gamers, and even people who are game interested.

Final Thoughts on Long Shot The Dice Game

I enjoy this game a lot. I like racing games, though I find that most of them are really betting games. But that works well, it is in some ways nicer than just pushing luck down a race track and rolling dice. I do want to play Formula D for that reason though, because it is. But that luck might frustrate some people, so betting games, also with luck, can work better with racing.

I wish the things made a bit more thematic sense. Though, to get the game to work, I’m sure it needed to be the way it is. And coming up with more thematic things is tricky. The oddest part to me is the pair of jockey helmet and shirt being $5 at the end of the game. The other actions at least affect the race a little more. But I do think it can help offset not buying a horse, so there is that.

Long Shot The Dice Game is one that I’d definitely recommend. I think that the game play is fun, and, it reminds me of Downforce another betting/racing game that I really enjoy. This one, though, I think offers more variety out of the box than Downforce does.

My Grade: B+
Gamer Grade: B
Casual Grade: C+

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