How to play Shut the Box
Shut the Box is a traditional arithmetic dice game. Roll two six-sided dice, then close one or more open numbered tiles whose values add up exactly to the total. Keep rolling until no legal combination remains.
Dice, numbered tiles, and the objective
A solo game starts with every wooden tile open. The objective is to close as many numbered tiles as possible and leave the lowest open total. Closing every tile is called shutting the box and gives a perfect score of zero.
Controls
- Roll: choose Roll dice to begin or continue the run.
- Select: click or focus open tiles and press Enter or Space.
- Close: confirm once the selected total matches the dice.
- Correct a choice: select a highlighted tile again to remove it.
Scoring
When a roll has no legal move, add the values of every tile still open. That is your final score, and lower is better. Closing every tile shuts the box for a perfect score of zero.
Legal tile combinations
The selected tiles must be distinct, still open, and equal the dice total exactly. For a roll of 7, legal choices include 7, 1 + 6, 2 + 5, 3 + 4, or 1 + 2 + 4. A tile closes only after the complete matching combination is confirmed.
Classic 1–9, Full Board 1–12, and Daily rules
Classic uses tiles 1–9 and switches from two dice to one after tiles 7, 8, and 9 are closed. Full Board uses tiles 1–12 and always rolls two dice. Daily Box uses the Classic board and gives every player the same UTC-date dice sequence.
A useful first strategy
Prioritize high tiles while two dice are in play because totals above six become impossible with one die. When several combinations match, preserve a useful spread of smaller numbers instead of closing all of them immediately.