How to play Shut the Box

Shut the Box is an old pub and parlor game for one or more players. The box holds nine wooden tiles numbered 1 to 9, all standing up when your turn begins. You roll two dice and flip down tiles that add up to what you rolled. Keep going until a roll leaves you stuck. Flip all nine and you have shut the box.

A turn

• Tap Roll. Add the two dice: a 4 and a 5 make 9.
• Flip down any open tiles that add up to the total. For 9 that could be the 9 alone, 8 and 1, 5 and 4, or 6, 2 and 1. Tap the tiles one by one; the ones that still fit glow, and the box flips them as soon as the total is right.
• Roll again and repeat. Tiles that are down stay down.
• When no open tiles can make the total, your turn is over.

One die

Once the 7, 8 and 9 are all down, you may roll a single die instead of two. With only small tiles left this is usually the better roll: two dice can never make 1, and they make 2 or 3 only rarely. Switch Dice to One above the box, then roll.

Scoring

Your score is the total of the tiles still standing when your turn ends, so lower is better. Left with the 1, 2 and 4, you score 7. Shut all nine and you score 0. With more than one player, everybody takes one turn with the box and the lowest score wins. Ties share the win.

Tips

1. Big tiles first. The 7, 8 and 9 can only be made a few ways. The 1, 2 and 3 are easy to pick off later, or with one die.
2. Keep your options open. When two choices both work, prefer the one that leaves more different totals possible on the next roll.
3. Switch to one die at the right time. When everything left adds up to 6 or less, one die is almost always right.
4. Know the odds. Even with perfect play, a full box is shut only about one time in ten. A score under 10 is a good turn.

Today's box

The Daily Box gives everyone the same rolls in the same order. The choices are yours, so two people can end the day with very different scores. Your first try counts; share your result without giving the rolls away.

Questions

Is it all luck? The dice are luck, but which tiles you flip matters. The Sharp computer player always picks the choice that leaves the smallest score on average, and it beats a careless player by several points a game.

Can I take a move back? Yes, outside the Daily Box. Undo lifts the tiles you just flipped; the roll stays the same.

Can friends play on one phone? Yes. Choose "Pass the phone" for two to four players. Each person plays a full turn with the box, then hands it on.

Where does the name come from? From the goal: flip every tile and the lid of numbers is shut. It has been played in pubs and on porches for generations, under several names.

Do I need an account? No. Your game is saved in this browser, so you can close the page and come back.