A review copy of Tally Up was kindly provided by Zatu Trade. Thoughts & opinions are my own.

Tally Up may only be a few dice in a small tin with a simple set of rules, yet it delivers hilarity, shouting and a great time for everyone involved.

VERDICT

players 2-10 | playing time 10-430 mins

Tally Up is everything a good party game should be. Loud, fast, cheap, and small. It’s great.

party

push-your-luck

tin

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Tally Up

2-10 Players | Ages 8+

Check price at Zatu Games ➔

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This is going to be a short review, but one that I really want to write. I first heard of Tally Up around the time of this year’s UK Games Expo, but I didn’t get a chance to try it because I was working away like a busy beaver.

The concept is really easy. Choose three of the six dice and roll them. Any numbers you roll are added to the Running Total for the round. Other than numbers, you might see circles (around the numbers) or stars. The important thing to know is that after the first roll in each round, each player chooses in secret whether they are In or Out. Players who go out bank whatever the running total is and add it to their score for the game.

tally up game components — This is all you need for lots of fun.

Staying in is a risk that can pay big dividends, or leave you groaning with your head in your hands.

Zero or one stars is good. It means the numbers get added to the running total. Nice. Three stars is great. If three stars get rolled, the first player to yell “TALLY UP!” gets 200 points instantly, and the others still in all get 100 points. Everyone’s a winner! Two stars, though – two stars are bad news. Two stars and everyone still in busts. The running total goes to zero, and everyone still in gets a little bit sadder.

The circle is where the real fun comes. If a circle is rolled, then the Up die gets rolled. Again, everyone gets a choice to stay in or go out. The Up die is high risk but with the potential of real rewards. One side adds 100 to the running total, while another takes 100 off of it. Another side has a x2 on it, which DOUBLES the running total. The remaining sides mean that you need to roll one, two, or all three remaining dice to add to the total – or roll a bunch of stars and bust.

You might wonder why you’d ever bother staying in for the Up die roll. After all, there’s only a 1-in-3 chance of rolling something definitely good. Let me tell you, when the running total is high and someone’s close to winning, that x2 multiplier starts looking miiiighty tasty.

First to 2,500 points wins. Job’s a goodun.

Final thoughts

You might wonder why I’d even bother reviewing a game like Tally Up. There’s so little to it. The thing is, Tally Up is great! I love those little games that take a minute or two to explain but deliver fun by the bucketload. I know there are some people out there who have issues with gambling of any kind, and for those people Tally Up might not be the best option, but for the rest of us it’s just brilliant.

the tally up tin — Look at how cute and wee the tin is!

If you like pushing your luck in games like Can’t Stop, Stomp The Plank, or most obviously Flip 7, you’ll have a great time with Tally Up. There’s even a free web app to help with the scoring which you can get to by scanning the QR code in the rules sheet, or tapping here.

Tally up is great, and for around £15 it’s really a question of why shouldn’t you buy it?