Dominoes are an exciting and fun game that’s a great way to teach your children the value of teamwork and the importance of good sportsmanship. It also helps develop a variety of skills, including spatial awareness, colour recognition and fine motor abilities.
There are many different types of domino games, most of which fall into one or more of three categories – blocking and drawing games, scoring games and trick-taking games.
Origin
The earliest known reference to dominoes dates back to the Yuan Dynasty in China in the 1200s AD. It is unclear how Chinese dominoes developed into the modern game, though it is believed Italian missionaries brought the game to Europe during the 18th century.
European dominoes, which are similar to Chinese dominoes, differ from their Chinese counterparts by incorporating seven extra dominoes–six representing the results of throwing a single die with the other half left blank and one for each of the throws of a two-sided dice (with blank suit). This resulted in sets that included twenty-eight tiles in a standard double-six set. The sets were later extended to include double 9, double 12 and double 15 sets.
Rules
Domino is a family of tile-based games, whose rectangular tiles have square ends and are marked with a number of spots. The object of the game is to place your tiles in sequence and win.
The players take turns drawing dominoes and then placing them on the board so that a matching tile appears adjacent to them. The player with the highest score wins.
Scoring is similar to Muggins, but the number of pips on a single domino is counted only once. In addition, each end of a double may be played on only once.
Once a double has been played on, the chain of dominoes can be built along any line, with each end of the double playing perpendicular to the previous domino. This creates a wide variety of possible patterns, and also allows the chains to develop into snake-lines or other shapes.
Variations
The game of domino is a great way to relax and have fun. While dominoes are normally seen as a game for four or more people, there are many variations that offer a fun and challenging experience for two players as well.
Mexican Train Dominoes is a great game for those who like to play fast and furious. In this variation, each player starts their personal train clockwise from the highest double in their hand.
This variation speed up play by allowing players to extend their trains as long as they have playable tiles to cover it. It also makes it easier for players to string together their dominoes on a personal train and leaves more value for the doubles.
Materials
The domino game is a popular family activity that has many health and mental benefits. It also helps kids develop spatial learning skills, including patterns and strategy.
The material used to make domino tiles is important for the playing experience and can affect the overall feel of the game. For example, plastic dominoes are more durable and less likely to break than wooden ones.
In addition, wood is a natural substance that can vary slightly from one piece to another. It is therefore a good idea to choose the type of dominoes you want to play with carefully.
Wood is the traditional material for dominoes, although some modern sets are made of urea and acrylic. These are inexpensive and easy to find in most stores.
Scoring
The scoring system in domino is generally based on the sum of open-end pips on the layout. If a player can play a tile that makes the sum of the open ends a multiple of five, he scores that number.
In muggins, also called all-fives, each player takes five pieces and the leader tries to play one of those pieces that makes the sum of all open ends on the layout a multiple of 5. For example, if the leader plays 5-5, he scores the number of pips that are on that piece.
Doubles are played cross-ways across the end of the chain. Each time a double is played, the numbers on that domino are “cut off” and no more points can be counted for that end of the chain. The double can then be played again, but this time it must be played on the opposite side.