A game of dominoes is a family of tile-based games. Often referred to as gaming pieces, dominoes are rectangular tiles with square ends and a number of spots on each end. Each side of a domino is worth a certain amount of points, or spots. To win, you must remove all the pieces in your opponent’s hand before the remaining tiles fall. There are a few different ways to win at domino.
Xuan He Pai Pu
The first mention of the Xuan He Pai Pu domino game is in an ancient Chinese manual, which dates back to 1112 CE. Qu You, a poet of the Tang Dynasty, supposedly invented the game. The game consists of laying two tiles of the same kind in a row. Doubles are placed crossways across the chain, and at random, the chain forms a snake-line shape.
Five-Up domino
Similarly to Block Domino, the Five-Up domino game is a fun way to spend time with friends and family. To win a round, players must match up the ends of their dominoes. If they can, the player with the highest score wins the round. Once the first player has completed his or her round, the next player must return all five dominoes to the table. This process repeats until one player matches up all of their ends.
Draw game
The Draw game in domino is one of the simplest games in the family of domino games. It is the base for many descendant games. Players take turns placing dominoes in chains. Each chain end must match the value of the piece placed before it. If a piece falls off the end of a chain, it is “drawn.”
Block game
The origin of the block game in domino is unknown. However, it is believed that it originated in Italy in the early eighteenth century. After being introduced to Italy by French prisoners of war, the game soon spread throughout Europe and the Americas. Although the European version of the game is not the same as the Chinese one, it shares many of its features. Despite this, the game remains a popular choice among many people in the West.
Traditional Chinese domino games
Various variants of Traditional Chinese domino games are played today. The basic game, for two players, requires a set of double-six tiles. Then each player draws seven tiles, extending the line of play alternately. In the game, the winner is the player whose score equals the sum of the pip counts remaining on all tiles in their hand. It is commonly called “catch” or “flipping,” since each player must take a turn to play.