Although the exact origins of the Dudo Dice Game are not known, what is known is that the game originated in the South American region that is known today as Peru. It was played by the Incas, and when the Europeans explored the area, they brought the game back with them to Europe. From there, it has continued to spread throughout the world. Dudo means “I doubt” in Spanish. It is a member of the dice games known as Liar’s Dice. The Dudo Dice game is known by many names including Cachito, Peruvian Dice, Pirates Dice, Perudo, and Cacho. Although each game can vary, each game involves bidding, bluffing and luck. We have sharing one of the simplest versions of the game.

Materials Needed to Play the Dudo Dice Game

• 2 – 6 players
• 5 dice per each player
• 1 cup per player
• drawstring bag or sock

Goal

To be the last person with dice.

Rules of the Dudo Dice Game

Determine who plays first by rolling dice. Highest die goes first. Play will proceed in a clockwise manner around the table.

All players place their dice in their cups and shake them. Everyone turns their dice over in front of themselves keeping the cup over the dice so other players cannot see them. Each player takes a peek at their own dice.

First Player: The first player declares a bid. This bid is based on how many dice of a particular number the player thinks have been rolled collectively by all players. This guess is based on ALL the dice on the table, not just his own dice. When making this bid, the player should consider how many dice are in play. This gets more confusing as players start losing dice.

Example: 4 people are playing, so there are 20 dice on the table. The first person declares, “There are 4 fives on the table.”

Second Player: The next player has two options. First, they may chose to accept the call made, then make their own bid, which must be a higher call then the previous player. Second, they my say “Dudo” and challenge the previous person’s bid.

To make a higher bid a player can:

• use the same number of dice, but the dice must have a higher value. Example: A call of “4 sixes is higher than 4 fives”, or
• use the same value of the last call, but increase the number of dice. Example: A call of 5 fives is higher than 4 fives.”

Call “Dudo”

A player can call “Dudo” if they doubt the previous player’s bid. At this point the round ends. All players uncover their dice. If the previous player’s bid was correct, in our example, if there are at least 4 fives on the table, the second player that called “Dudo” loses a die and it is put into the bag or sock in the middle of the table. If the previous player’s bid was wrong, if there were less than 4 fives on the table, he loses a die and it is put in the bag.

The player that lost begins the next round. When a player loses their last die, they are out of the game. The game continues until just one person has any dice left.

Variations

There are many variations to this game. These are the simplest rules. If your family enjoys the game, you may wish to research harder variations.