SNAP Review – Trick Dice: (Skateboard) Fun for Ollie

Its summer time and it’s time to put down the controllers and get some fresh air. How about we hit the street on four wheels – it’s time to skateboard!

This is a SNAP review for Jortner’s Trick Dice, a game that you can play outdoors! 

Trick Dice is a game for budding skateboarders designed by Brian Jortner, a professional skateboard instructor from Seattle. The game can be played in groups or solo. If you’re old enough to skate, you’re old enough to play this game. 

How to Play

The only setup needed for Trick Dice is the dice themselves, a skateboard, and some protective gear. Parents, dig out your helmets too! 

The game consists of three dice with trick names listed on them. 

Roll all three dice, then try the tricks, starting with the hardest (3 points). If you can’t land it, try the medium trick (2 points) instead, and fall back to the green die for the easiest trick for a single point.

The game continues with players taking turns rolling dice and attempting tricks until a player score 10 points and wins the game.

Tricks

By now you’re probably wondering what kind of tricks are on the dice.

The green die has simpler tricks like Board Catch which is performed by using one foot to smack the tail on the ground, causing the nose of the board to shoot up. The skater must successfully catch the nose of the board with one hand. 

Perform a Tail Grab while riding the board in motion and reaching down to grab the tail end of the board. 

The yellow die has medium difficulty tricks like the Flippy Uppy, where you place the board upside-down on top of both feet. Then the skater must simultaneously jump and flip the board, then land on top of it. 

A Primo is performed by standing the board on its side and then standing on top of the two wheels for 5 seconds. 

Finally, the red die has the most difficult tricks, for more advanced skaters. 

An Ollie will have the skater and the board jump into the air simultaneously, all while the skating down the street. 

Impressions

I’ve never played a game that required so much physical dexterity! Jace loved Trick Dice for the fun of rolling the big dice (outside!) and doing the easy (green) tricks.

Truth be told, I haven’t ridden a skateboard in at least 30 years and for the sake of giving this an accurate review I jumped on a Jace’s board to give it a shot.   

Needless to say, I was able to do a couple of the easy tricks, but the only hard trick I could do was the front-side kick turn. I did survive this review without too many bumps and bruises, though.

I think Trick Dice would make a great gift for the aspiring skater. It gamifies practicing.  

Trick Dice is also great for a group of kids to do as an activity together.  Friends can roll the dice and call out tricks for others. 

Even without a group, a kid could play this solo, by having a parent or sibling call out the tricks and help them keep score. 

What’s Included

There are only three dice in Trick Dice, made from heavy wood. They measure in at 1 ¾ inches, with brightly colored paint and easy to read text. I’m convinced they’ll be able to take a beating when rolling on pavement. 

Also included is a reference sheet, describing each trick with a diagram and text explaining how to perform it (see an online version). Even though I personally couldn’t do a bunch of these tricks, I understood how I could. This cheat sheet is a godsend for folks totally new to the skating world. 

Wrap Up

We liked Trick Dice and thought it was a fun way to learn and practice new skate boarding tricks. 

It got us outside in fresh air and moving around, and it was a great way to spend time together. While technically it’s not a traditional board game like we normally review, Trick Dice can be played competitively by kids. 

It essentially gamifies practicing for its target audience (obviously skateboard enthusiasts).  

Trick Dice would make for a great gift for the budding Tony Hawk in your family. We rate it 3 out of 5 Flippy Uppies.

Find it at SkateTrickDice.com.

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The Family Gamers received a copy of Jortner’s Trick Dice for Skateboarders from Brian Jortner for this review.