How to Play the Hilarious Kerfuffle Dice Game

The Laugh Out Loud Strategy Game for the Whole Family 2 to 4 players  Ages 8 and up

We are big on dice games in our family so when I saw Kerfuffle on sale I knew we had to try it on our family game night (or afternoon).

Kerfuffle is different than our other favorite dice games like Ohio, Mafia and Golf as it has a board and cards and is more about having fun than competition. And in that spirit, we created Christmas Kerfuffle games where all the cards have a holiday theme that will have you laughing and in the Christmas spirit. You can grab yours here.

The Object of Kerfuffle

The Object of Kerfuffle is to be the first player to place all of your dice on the board by placing them in either pairs (or more of a kind) or in straights while following instructions on cards.

Kerfuffle Set Up

Each player chooses a dice color (either blue, white, green or red). There are 25 of each color. The board goes in the middle of the play area and the deck of cards is shuffled and placed where all players can reach it.

How to Play Kerfuffle

To begin each turn, a player must draw a Kerfuffle card and follow the instructions. These can be anything from “This time you can go twice,” to “you must place your dice beside a green dice” to “Sing the ABC song while placing your dice.” Some are quite silly while others make it so that you skip your turn.

Next, you roll the “Big Die.” (I can only assume that in previous versions this die was indeed bigger than the rest but in our case the big die is the only yellow die.) The number on this die decides how many of your coloured dice you will roll.

Third, roll. Now you can place these dice on the board (as long as they fit and your card allows it).  After, return any unplaced dice into your pile and return your Kerfuffle card to the bottom of the pile. Play then moves to the next player.

Dice Placement

There are five white Kerfuffle squares ont eh board. These are the only squares that you can start a pair or run on. Dice can be placed in pairs (or more) or in straights of three or more. Once a pair or straight is on the board, any player may add to it in any direction—with one rule. A die must follow all pairs and straights that it touches in all directions. Straights do not need to start with the number one. You can start or add to as many places on the board as you can on your turn. Also, you can place your dice beside any other colored dice on the board.

Winning Kerfuffle

To win you need to be the first player to place all your dice on the board.

Two Player Kerfuffle

When playing with only two players, each player plays with two colors of dice. Play is the same, To win, a player needs to place all of the dice of both colors.

Three Player Kerfuffle

With three players, every player gets one color. The fourth color of dice is not used. Play is the same as the four player game.

Kerfuffle Alternatives

Kerfuffle can be played with the cards and without the cards. We have played both ways, just the adults. When we played without the cards, it did seem to be missing something.

What We Like

We love how many dice this game comes with. There is just something about a handful of dice. The wackiness of the card is fun, I mean who can resist laughing at a player who has their tongue sticking out for their whole turn?

What We Don’t Like

First, the board is cardboard; that is okay but a bit of a surprise especially since the picture showed a plastic try for the dice to sit in. Next, the squares on the cardboard are smaller than the dice. This is a problem when you get the board full and are trying to line up the dice in two directions. The next thing is the box. First, box has a huge unnecessary cut out. Not only does this make for lost pieces, it also compromises the structure of the box. The last thing that we weren’t so crazy about is that some of the cards are a little too out there. “Play this turn with one eye closed.” This is harder than it sounds. And “Do laps around the table equal to the big roll.” This one is hard as our table is up against the wall. It could just be that we are a little on the old side for this game.

Is Kerfuffle Worth Adding to Your Family Game Shelf?

If you’re looking for a wacky move-around family fun with younger kids then Kerfuffle is for you. Although it was a few draw backs, Kerfuffle is fun and easy to play. The suggested age is 8 and up. This one is tricky. On one hand, younger kids would love the silliness of this game. But on the other, the rules about dice placement (making sure they fit both vertically and horizontally) would be hard for the younger ones. I would have to say that kids as young as 5 could play and that kids in the teen range would not enjoy this game. If you have silly younger kids I would consider adding Kerfuffle to your Family Game Shelf.

For a wacky silly family game night get your copy of Kerfuffle here. And if you want to add a holiday twist to your game, make sure that you get your Christmas Kerfuffle cards here.
To see what other games would make your family game night, read our game reviews here.
And don’t forget to check out our card games and dice games too.

For even more family fun, dowload our FREE Quick Play Refernce book for dice games in our reference library!

Pros: easy, silly, lots of dice
Cons: box, dice placement on board,
Mom: dealing with disappointment, observation,

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