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Yahtzee History
From Yahtzee’s humble beginnings in the distant past to its evolution into a household favorite, its history is as intriguing as the game itself. The Yahtzee Manifesto is dedicated to studying the rich history of Yahtzee. Join us on a fascinating tour, exploring the game's origins, its rise to popularity, and its enduring appeal.
When did Yahtzee come out? Modern Yahtzee was commercially released in 1956 by the E.S. Lowe Company. But the game's origins go back much further, with roots in ancient dice games that were played thousands of years ago. Since then, manufacturers have continued to release updated and redesigned versions.
But throughout its history, the spirit of Yahtzee remains constant. It's a game that's easy to learn, yet challenging to master. And that's why it's still one of the most popular dice games in the world. Behold the marvel of Yahtzee history through the ages!
in Ancient Times
Dice have been used for millennia as a means of recreation and gambling. They were the world’s first random number generators, paving the way for the introduction of games of chance. Who invented Yahtzee? The answer isn't clear. Examples of ancient dice games show up in the historical record from civilizations all around the world, including Egypt, Iran, and India. The invention of dice games led to a golden age in human advancement, spurring on the development of mathematical concepts like probability and game theory.
The use of dice predates recorded history so their precise origins are difficult to pin down. Archaeological evidence suggests that the six-faced cubes we know today were hand-crafted upgrades to a natural source of proto-dice gamepieces: the knucklebones of sheep or goats. Prehistoric peoples took advantage of the shape of the animals’ astragalus – one of the bones that make up the ankle joint – to generate random numbers for fun and profit. The bones could only land on one of four sides, and these were often marked with numbers just like modern dice.
Throwing knucklebones may have started as a fortune-telling method, as many early societies saw great power in the chance occurrences created by dice. But over time gameplay became their most popular use. Most of these ancient games have been lost to time but a rare few survive and continue to be played in some form still today. For example, the Roman game Tali, which could be played with either knucklebones or true dice, can be considered an early ancestor of Yahtzee.
and its Modern Origins
Yahtzee’s modern day resurrection is thanks to two independent events in the 1940s. The Leister Game Company in Toledo, Ohio saw board gaming's popularity rise during World War Two as fuel shortages and financial belt-tightening prompted families to spend more time at home. As the company noted:
“Now that gas rationing has ushered in a back-to-the-home movement, material for home entertainment and for those informal occasions when neighbors and friends drop in is in great demand.”
Among the many games and novelties that Leister produced during this era was “Yatzie”, released in 1943. While not quite the game that we know today, “Yatzie” was a precursor that was included in a boxed set called “Luck – 15 Grand Dice Games”. It would be familiar to a modern Yahtzee player as there are only a few minor differences in the rules and scoring combinations. Yatzie did not have a Three-of-a-Kind, for instance, and both Straights required five sequential dice.
“Luck”, distributed by Toledo’s National Association Service became a regional success, but the other games in the set did not manage to form a lasting impression on the gaming public. Dice games such as “Floradora Sextette”, “Black Cat”, and “Help Your Neighbor” have been mostly been confined to the dust bin of history.
The second major contribution to modern Yahtzee was due to a wealthy Canadian couple who rediscovered the games ancient origins while on a tour of Tibet in the early twentieth century. They were immediately won over by the game’s complex simplicity and began playing it regularly as they cruised around the world on their private yacht. The couple updated the rules and created a more modern type of scorecard, referring to it as the “Yacht Game” or “The Yacht at Sea Game”, which eventually was corrupted into its current manifestation, “Yahtzee.”
In 1956 the couple approached an experienced board game maker, Edwin S. Lowe, and a deal was struck to mass-produce the game. They sold the rights for the price of the first one thousand games produced, which were purchased mainly by family and friends who had grown to love Yahtzee from their visits to the yacht.
Lowe had experienced success as a budding game maker nearly 25 years earlier with his invention of the classic “Bingo”. Building on his early success, the E.S. Lowe Company moved into the plastic chess and checkers market where it earned even more. By the time he was introduced to Yahtzee in 1956, he was well-placed to serve as the launching point for a new global phenomenon.
The United States Patent and Trademark Office registered the Yahtzee name on March 19, 1957. It failed to gain much traction with the general public and sold poorly in its first few years on the market. Lowe realized that the game needed to be played to be truly understood and began holding Yahtzee parties throughout North America. The game eventually took off, spread mostly by word of mouth – an early example of a viral sensation.
in the 1970s
By the 1970s the game had become firmly planted in the public consciousness. The Milton Bradley Company bought out the E. S. Lowe Company, including the rights to Yahtzee, in 1973. The acquisition helped Yahtzee’s popularity to soar by introducing the game to more and more markets around the world.
Variation games and spin-offs proliferated during this time as a way to capitalize on Yahtzee’s success. The first Travel Yahtzee set appeared in 1970. Triple Yahtzee soon followed in 1972, Challenge Yahtzee in 1974, and Word Yahtzee in 1978. The ample marketing budget under Milton Bradley allowed Yahtzee to be promoted in new ways. The game landed its first celebrity endorsement when Tony Randall and Jack Klugman from the hit television show "The Odd Couple" appeared on the 1974 Challenge Yahtzee box.
in the 1980s
The consolidation of toy companies continued into the 1980s and peaked when Milton Bradley became a subsidiary of Hasbro in 1984. Yahtzee emerged from the merger unscathed and continued to dominate the board game market. With that success came more expansion. Jackpot Yahtzee was launched in 1980 with Casino Yahtzee to follow in 1986. Neither proved to be very successful in the long run but proved that the the game could still evolve in unexpected ways.
in the 1990s
The decade kicked off with another new variation of the classic game - Showdown Yahtzee in 1991. Licensing deals fueled the expansion by allowing for popular fictional characters to be branded with the game, particularly Yahtzee Jr. But a shift was gradually underway during the 1990s, as the expansion of the personal computer and general decline in the price of consumer electronics pushed Yahtzee into new digital formats. These changes led to the appearance of the first handheld electronic Yahtzee games, desktop computer editions, and online Yahtzee games.
in the 21st Century
The 21st century has seen the game’s popularity explode with a new generation. Hundreds of electronic and online Yahtzee games have been released with no end in sight. Yet Yahtzee remained true to its roots by offering up new board game variations like Yahtzee Texas Hold'em in 2005, Yahtzee Turbo in 2006, and Power Yahtzee in 2007. Hasbro has released even more branded versions into the Yahtzee world, such as Donkey Kong, Doctor Who, Spider-Man, and the Hobbit special editions. Yahtzee is still a best-seller with over 50 million sets sold worldwide. It has come a long way from its humble origins and continues to thrive even as board games face unprecedented pressures.
The Origins of Online Yahtzee
The sound of dice careening around a table and celebratory high-fives with friends are the stuff that Yahtzee lovers have always dreamed about. But the game has evolved since its release in 1956. In today’s world, millions of gamers now prefer the digital dice of playing Yahtzee online. Yahtzee was one of the world’s earliest video games, owing to its systemic gameplay and general popularity. We explore its jump from the tabletop to the computer screen, where it continues to electrify gamers of the 21st century.
![Yahtzee, 1990, Dutch Screenshot from a 1990 Yahtzee video game](https://www.yahtzeemanifesto.com/electronic-yahtzee/yahtzee-msdos-1990-icon.webp)
MSDOS, 1990
Yahtzee may conjure up images of huddling around a card table in grandma’s sitting room but the game has reliably changed with the times. Riding the wave of technological advancement since its original release, the popularity of Yahtzee online has surged. The last decade has seen an explosive growth in electronic Yahtzee as more and more games are being played on a computer or smartphone than ever before.
Playing Yahtzee online is becoming the preferred way to play for many gamers. Old-timers and purists may scoff at the idea, but the advantages offered by an electronic game are hard to ignore. A common problem for hardcore Yahtzee addicts is the difficulty in finding suitable playing partners. Playing online eliminates this issue by offering up a virtual smorgasbord of remote opponents that are available day and night. And a player can connect with a distant friend or relative to roll a game in cyberspace instead of over a table. An online Yahtzee game provides a level of sheer convenience that was unimaginable in the past.
The enormous success of Yahtzee online could not have happened without the invention of the smartphone but its origins can be traced back further, to a time even before the internet itself. To uncover the source of the sheer convenience that today’s online Yahtzee supplies requires a look back at the long history of electronic Yahtzee.
Computer Yahtzee
Yahtzee made the leap from the tabletop to the computer screen in the 1970s, with the advent of the personal computer and home video game console. It is possible to imagine earlier versions that were programmed onto a room-sized mainframe computer but the evidence remains sketchy.
Yahtzee was one of the earliest computer games on many systems. Its widespread popularity as a tabletop game made it a natural fit for early video game manufacturers. The inherent slowness of board games would permit them to run on primitive home computer equipment and name recognition would help drive sales.
But electronic Yahtzee is a complicated undertaking if you want to get it right. A die is the perfect tool to select a number at random, at least numbers one through six. Replacing the mechanical act of rolling dice with a computer algorithm has proven to be exceedingly difficult. Dice were the world’s first random number generators (RNG) and the technology still exceeds what a computer can reproduce. But that doesn’t stop our love of electronic, digital, and online Yahtzee.
Computational RNG can create pseudo-random numbers but even the most powerful machines will run out of storage space at some point and the number chain will repeat. A high-quality pseudo system will typically suffice for games and other everyday tasks, but scientists keep pushing the envelope. Full random number generation is the holy grail of cryptography, which would allow for the creation of unbreakable code. The latest system uses a tiny laser to generate random numbers - up to 250 terabytes of random bits per second.
The first home computers and video game consoles didn’t pack enough processing power to produce high quality random numbers. While not a complicated game, the sheer numbers involved in a game of Yahtzee can add up fast. While a single die has only six sides, there are 252 possible outcomes when rolling five dice. Some early video games would simply repeat sets of dice as the games progressed, becoming nearly predictable and warping the standard Yahtzee odds. Others would omit the Yahtzee Bonus and Joker rules, as they proved too difficult to code correctly.
In the early days, when the video game design and programming industry was still in its nascent stages, personal computing featured a high dose of homebrew games. Designed by hobbyists and distributed throughout a network of local computer clubs, these games didn’t reach the mass circulation of blockbusters like Pac-Man or Space Invaders. But their contribution to Yahtzee’s continuing development and the use of random number generation in video games cannot be denied.
But small independent coders would not be enough to secure the future of Yahtzee online. It would take major releases from corporate video game publishers to reach mass-market success. There would be success stories and failures, all paving the way to today’s modern Yahtzee utopia.
![1977 Apple II personal computer 1977 Apple II personal computer](/electronic-yahtzee/apple-ii-1977.webp)
Yahtzee, 1978
Apple II
The Apple II was personal computing’s original pioneer. Created by Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak, the computer opened the door to software that was aimed at the general public. And thirty years later, the same company would revolutionize computing yet again with the release of the first smartphone, lighting the fuse of online Yahtzee.
Development of the Apple II began in 1976 and it hit the market the following year on June 10. The machine featured 4 KiB of RAM, upgradable to 48 KB, and retailed for a maximum of $2,638 (equivalent to $11,266 in 2020). Its claim to fame was its support of full color graphics. Personal Computer World wrote in a 1978 review that “"no-one has colour graphics like this at this sort of price". Apple’s familiar rainbow-colored corporate logo was designed as a way to emphasize this capability.
---> Play the 1978 Apple II version of Yahtzee <---
Yahtzee came out for the Apple II in 1978 and is considered to be the first video game of its kind. The game’s first step in its evolution from the tabletop to online Yahtzee was a halting one. Unfortunately, it didn’t take advantage of Apple’s color capabilities. The game was instead text-based, presented as white text on a black background. Gameplay was a standard replica of the original board game and an option was included to play Yahtzee against a computer opponent. While bells and whistles may have been lacking, robbing the game of a chance to showcase Apple II’s power, the Yahtzee game represents the initial faltering steps into a digital world.
![Texas Instruments TI-99/4 personal computer Texas Instruments TI-99/4 personal computer](/electronic-yahtzee/ti994-computer.webp)
Yahtzee, 1979
Texas Instruments TI-99/4
In November 1979, Texas Instruments released the world’s first 16-bit home computer, the TI-99/4. It’s “blistering fast” 3MHz CPU powered some of the day’s most interesting video games, like Parsec, Tombstone City: 21st Century, and Munch Man. Packing a paltry 16K RAM, the TI-99/4 wasn’t really a speed demon. Its primitive components were further hindered by a duplicated interpretation of its coding, making for an incredibly slow machine.
Seven game cartridges, all consisting of Milton Bradley’s Gamevision line, were available for the Texas Instruments home computer upon its launch. To capitalize on the name-recognition of its existing products, the cartridges were based on popular board games in the company’s portfolio. These types of games were slow-paced, allowing them to run more smoothly on the TI-99/4. The original lineup consisted of Yahtzee, Connect Four, Hangman, Zero Zap, Card Sharp, Stratego, and a Gamevision demonstration cartridge.
The Yahtzee computer game was true to the classic tabletop version, including proper use of the Yahtzee Bonus and Joker rules. While there was not an option to play variants like Triple Yahtzee or Word Yahtzee, the challenge game mode offered a twist. Playing the computer in one-player or against another human in two-player mode, each player will throw the same five dice on the first roll of each turn. Winning the game in Challenge mode will highlight the differences in players’ strategies.
Working for Milton Bradley Electronics, computer software programmer Elaine Henshon programmed several of the early games, including Yahtzee, Connect Four, and Stratego. The Yahtzee game retailed for $24.95. Many of the Gamevision cartridges turned out to be defective and a recall was issued. The following year, Texas Instruments independently re-released Yahtzee with a $29.95 price tag.
Milton Bradley’s initial foray into cartridge-based video games was not the huge success that it had hoped for. The TI-99/4 proved to be an unpopular gaming system, due in large part to the lag in processing speed. New systems were on the horizon and Milton Bradley was keen to try its luck with a next-generation console. All Gamevision titles were pulled from the market in 1980. Milton Bradley would bide its time until a worthy successor to the Texas Instruments TI-99/4 appeared.
![Commodore 64 personal computer Commodore 64 personal computer](/electronic-yahtzee/commodore-64.webp)
Yahtzee, 1983-1991
Commodore 64
Like Texas Instruments, Commodore International manufactured other types of electronics before moving into personal computing. The jump from calculators and typewriters to home computers was made possible by the company’s acquisition of MOS Technology, the group responsible for the 6502 microprocessor that powered popular machines such as Apple II, Atari 2600, and Nintendo Entertainment System. It allowed Texas Instruments to produce their chips in house and pass their savings on to customers.
The Commodore 64, also known as the C64 or the CBM 64, was released in August 1982. It went on to become, by some claims, as the best-selling computer model of all time. During its 12-year production run, Commodore sold over 17 million computers worldwide and software developers produced over 10,000 commercial programs. The C64 retailed for just half the price of an Apple II and led the market of low- to mid-end home computers for most of the late 1980s.
No fewer than four different versions of a Yahtzee game were released for the Commodore 64. These all adhered to standard Yahtzee rules and did not include variations to the game that would come with later systems. One notable feature of the 1986 game produced by Robtek, Ltd. illustrates the types of quality control lapses that came with the whirlwind of early video game development. The game was for the English language market but Robtek also produced games in German and Dutch. The final release of Yahtzee mistakenly included a single Dutch word, confusing English-speaking gamers. The word “waarheen”, or “where to” inexplicably appears on screen when the game asks you to select the category to enter your score.
![1996 Ultimate Yahtzee CD-ROM 1996 Ultimate Yahtzee CD-ROM](/History/yahtzee-cdrom-1996.webp)
Ultimate Yahtzee, 1996
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft’s Windows 95 operating system was released to great fanfare in August 1995. It touted a much-improved graphical interface over its predecessor, Windows 3.1x, and had moved to a 32-bit architecture. What are now considered trademark features of Windows systems, such as the ‘Start’ button and taskbar made their first appearance. With the release, Windows was able to put a chokehold on the personal computing market.
The ubiquity of Windows on the 1990s PC landscape reaped a bountiful harvest of Yahtzee games but the most memorable was 1996’s Ultimate Yahtzee. It introduced multiple game variations beyond the classic version, like Battle Yahtzee where players try to knock each other’s dice to improve their score. The first tabletop Yahtzee variation, 1972’s Triple Yahtzee, makes a memorable appearance in a video game format.
---> Play the 1996 Windows version of Yahtzee <---
Gamers applauded Ultimate Yahtzee’s attention to detail in the ability to simulate shaking the dice in the cup through use of the mouse and cursor. But as it was still early in the internet’s availability to the public, online Yahtzee was not yet brought forth unto the world.
![Playstation 2, 2009 Playstation 2 video game console](/electronic-yahtzee/playstation-2.webp)
Family Game Night, 2009
Playstation 2
Developed and marketed by Sony Computer Entertainment, PlayStation 2 was first released in 2000 as the successor to the original PlayStation. It is the best-selling video game console of all time, having sold over 155 million units worldwide by March 31, 2012 when Hasbro stopped providing sales figures. Over 3,800 titles have been released for the PS2, with over 1.5 billion copies sold. Game software for the PlayStation 2 was typically distributed on DVD-ROM and its ability to play the discs served as a secondary selling point.
PlayStation 2 users were able to play some games over the Internet, using dial-up or a broadband connection. The PlayStation 2 Network Adaptor was required for the original models. Gamers complained that its online services weren’t up to snuff compared to its competitors. Sony didn’t yet have a consolidated online gaming system or store. Those were left up to the individual game developers to sort out and the results proved lackluster.
Hasbro tried to up the ante in 2009 when six classic board games were featured in the officially-licensed Family Game Night for Playstation 2. The game included wireless support for multi-player competition but not a true online game option. Released on March 18th, players could choose from Battleship, Boggle, Connect Four, Sorry!, Sorry! Sliders, and Yahtzee. Scrabble was included in the Xbox 360 version a year later.
With such an abundance of games, there isn’t much room for Yahtzee variations but Family Game Night still had a few tricks up its sleeve. One unique feature is ‘Wild Dice’ game mode where the player can change the die to whichever number she prefers. The vibration-feedback elements in Playstation 2’s controllers are expertly utilized to enhance the simulation of a dice roll. And perhaps best of all, serving as game host and guide for all seven games in the release is none other than Mr. Potato Head himself.
Yahtzee Handheld Game
Electronic handheld Yahtzee games were the precursor to the smartphone era of full online gaming. The similarities between the two systems are obvious - both enable players to play Yahtzee on the go. Gamers could finally play in the park, for example, without the need for dice or scorecards. Hasbro dipped their toe into the waters of mobile electronic Yahtzee in 1995 with the release of the first model, and it proved to be a smash. Enthusiasts had been clamoring for new ways to play their favorite dice game and the Yahtzee handheld game scratched that itch.
![Yahtzee handheld game advertisement](/electronic-yahtzee/handheld-yahtzee-ad.webp)
New designs and concepts for the Yahtzee handheld game continued to emerge over the following decades, including handheld versions for Yahtzee variants like Yahtzee Jr. Electronic handheld games merged the best of computer Yahtzee with the tabletop classic. Players weren’t tethered to their home computers in order to enjoy the game but still reaped the benefits of electronic scorekeeping and high score records. While they proved to be a great way to play solitaire Yahztee, the social aspect was sorely missed. Fortunately, a solution was just over the horizon.
Yahtzee with Buddies
The dream of mobile, multiplayer electronic Yahtzee was finally within reach when the world’s first smartphone arrived in 2007. As the technology matured, developers created thousands of apps to cater to the needs of a new marketplace. The smartphone platform spurred innovation in mobile gaming and it wasn’t long before the full power of online dice was unleashed with the original Yahtzee app.
Dice with Buddies launched in 2012, embracing all that mobile internet gaming had to offer. Players now truly entered the internet age and were able to play Yahtzee online with all of the social connectivity that it provided. In addition to the standard solitaire mode that had long been common in electronic Yahtzee, the app could connect users from around the world with each other in virtual Yahtzee games. An ability to link to a player’s Facebook account and an in-game chat feature let friends roll a game from anywhere.
The app was developed by Scopely, Inc. as a Yahtzee game without the name or blessing of Hasbro. Like a long line of unofficial computer games before it, the company faced few legal risks even though it featured identical gameplay to the original. Copyright law protects games’ names and branding but the actual game mechanics remain in the public domain. Dice with Buddies was able to capitalize on the popularity of Yahtzee and became an immediate hit.
Annual sales have grown steadily since its release, a rarity in the mobile games market. That success caught Hasbro’s attention and the two companies were eventually able to conclude a licensing deal. As a result, Scopely released Yahtzee With Buddies, essentially the same game as their original app but now partnered with gaming giant Hasbro. Scopely was able to scale up quickly, outsourcing some of the development and translation work that was needed for the new international markets that it could now access through the new corporate partnership.
Yahtzee With Buddies was released in April 2015 on iOS, Android, and the Apple Watch. The app saw more than 1 million downloads in its first four days. Digital Yahtzee had rocketed to the stratosphere.
![Yahtzee Adventures, 2008 Yahtzee Adventures game, 2008](/electronic-yahtzee/yahtzee_adventures_2008_1.webp)
mobile game, 2008
The Future of Playing Yahtzee Online
Yahtzee is a dice game that has been around since the 1950s. The first online version of Yahtzee appeared in the late 1990s, with the rise of online gaming. It is unclear who created the first online version of the game, as there were many different developers creating similar games at the time. The online versions of Yahtzee typically feature the same gameplay as the physical version, but with the added convenience of being able to play Yahtzee online. The dice game evolved naturally with the advance of technological innovation into the form of the mobile app.
The Yahtzee app is a digital version of the classic dice game Yahtzee. Players roll five dice and try to achieve certain combinations, such as three-of-a-kind or a full house. A quality Yahtzee app features a user-friendly interface that allows players to easily roll the dice and keep track of their scores. Some Yahtzee apps may also include additional features such as multiplayer support, different game modes, or the ability to customize the appearance of the game. Many Yahtzee apps are available for free to download on mobile app stores such as the App Store and Google Play, while others may require a purchase.
Forty-five years after having made the transition from the tabletop to the computer screen, Yahtzee is thriving as an ever-evolving online game. There were many false starts, like games with half-baked internet capabilities or local multiplayer only. And we're still waiting for a video game adaptation of all variation games like Word Yahtzee or Triple Yahtzee online. But Yahtzee’s emergence as an online game is a testament to the developers and programmers and their ability to simulate a Yahtzee game with real dice.
The world's most popular dice game couldn’t be contained to the tabletop or even handheld Yahztee and it will surely continue to change with the times. It is a rare game that has been proven adept at adapting to new technologies. As long as there is a demand to play Yahtzee online, publishers will continue creating new games and apps. All indications point to Yahtzee growing beyond the computer screen. Virtual reality or holographic Yahtzee may be just around the corner and then the sky is the limit with new forms that we can not even imagine today.
Learn More about Yahtzee History
If you want to dive even deeper into the fascinating history of Yahtzee, then look no further than The Yahtzee Blog. This comprehensive blog is dedicated to exploring the story of Yahtzee from ancient times to the present day, with in-depth articles, interactive timelines, and expert insights. Enhance your Yahtzee knowledge and learn about the evolution of this classic game by subscribing now!
Whether you're a longtime fan of the game or just getting started, The Yahtzee Blog has something for everyone. The blog is filled with fascinating information about the game, including detailed histories of the equipment used to play, the various scoring strategies that players have developed over the years, and the many different versions of the game that have been released.