Our Family's New Year's Tradition: Russian Lottery

I've got a family tradition that's been going strong since I was a kid - we always play Russian Lottery on New Year's Eve. It's a tradition that's been passed down through generations, and we love it just as much now as we did back then. Our friends would come over with their kids, and we'd all gather around the table, filling in the lottery boards with chips. We didn't play for money, but the excitement was just as real. We'd spend hours laughing, joking, and trying our luck.

Russian Lottery from Tenth Kingdom

Where to buy, price

I bought the Russian Lottery from Tenth Kingdom on Wildberries three years ago - time flies, right? Back then, it cost 733 rubles. Now, the same game is listed for almost 1,000 rubles on the same platform, but if you search online, you can find similar versions on other marketplaces and online stores for between 500 and 2,000 rubles. I was glad I snagged it when I did, considering the price has gone up.

Description

Russian Lotto is an absolute blast to play with family and friends - it's a great way to spend quality time together. The game supports anywhere from 2 to 24 players, making it perfect for a fun night in. We draw numbers from a bag, and the first person to fill in all the numbers on their card wins. It's a real nail-biter, and it's suitable for kids as young as 7 years old. We've played it with our kids, and they love it just as much as we do.

Packaging

The Russian Lotto game comes in a big, sturdy cardboard box with a classic design featuring the game's cards and wooden balls. It's a great-looking package, and it's clear that the manufacturer has put some thought into the design. I was also impressed to see that the box includes a warning label stating that the game is suitable for kids as young as 3 years old. The box itself is quite impressive, with a nice weight and a classic design that's sure to appeal to fans of the game.

One thing that caught my eye was the sticker on the side of the box with the manufacturer's details, including the date of manufacture and a serial number. It's a nice touch, and it gives you an idea of what to expect from the game. But let's be real - the real star of the show is the 90 wooden balls that come with the game. They're the perfect size for little hands to hold onto, and they're made with a nice weighty feel that makes them easy to handle. I was worried they might be too small, but they're actually just right.

The box bottom has a description of the game, its preparation, and gameplay. Even the old title from the TV version is there, like: 11 - drumsticks

90 - grandfather

I was relieved to find that the game itself was unaffected by any imperfections in delivery.

What's inside

The packaging included 24 cards, 90 dice, 100 red tokens, the rules, and a cloth pouch.

I was stoked to find the iconic red pouch with the dice, a card deck for the game, and a packet of red plastic tokens, which the game calls markers. In the old version from the nineties, we didn't have these, so we used regular buttons instead. Honestly, it was super important to me that the pouch with the dice was red and not any other color.

The cards - there are 24 of them, which is plenty to play with a huge group of 12 people (if you give each player two cards). We usually play with our family of 4-5 people.

The numbers on the cards are big and clearly printed. The typography is a standard five-point font.

I've been using these standard-sized cards for a while now, and I'm impressed with the quality of the paper they're made from. It's not cardstock, but it's super durable - as long as you don't bend or crease them, they should last for ages. Markers/tokens - the little packet I got had a decent amount, but I didn't count them. The packaging said there were 100, but I'm not one to double-check.

They're made of dense, bright red plastic, and they fit snugly in the card. In games with four to five players, they're more than enough. Dice - for me, it was just as important as the red bag to have wooden dice with red numbers.

I love how these dice are the perfect size - not too big, not too small. And they're made from real wood, with a smooth finish. They feel warm to the touch. Each side of the die has numbers on it, which is a great touch. One thing that's a bit of a letdown is the inconsistent numbering - sometimes the numbers are thin and not well-colored, while others are thick and overdone. Maybe they're from different batches, I don't know. It's also worth noting that this can happen on the same die, depending on which side you look at. First things first, I checked to make sure all the dice were accounted for when I first opened the game. It may seem like a no-brainer, but trust me, it's crucial during gameplay. I built a matrix with all the dice to make sure everything was in order.

Getting started

No assembly or extra prep work is required, just hand out two cards, a handful of chips, and you're good to go. It's also a good idea to iron out the rules beforehand – you can tweak them to your liking.

Russian Lottery

The goal of the game is to be the first player to cover the numbers on your card.

Gameplay: the host draws a die from the red bag without looking, announces the number on the die, and players cover the corresponding numbers on their cards with red chips. The winner is the first player to cover their entire card.

We usually play the same way as in the TV version of the Russian lottery game. Each player gets two cards (you can randomize them or choose specific numbers if you want).

One of the players combines the roles of player and host – they draw the balls from the bag, call out the number on the ball, and if it's on their card, they cover it with the ball.

In the first round, the player who covers any horizontal line of five numbers wins.

In the second round, the player who covers a complete card wins.

In the third round, the player who covers all numbers on two cards wins.

This round is the last one. After that, you can swap cards and start a new game by putting the balls back in the bag and mixing them up.

We don't have a Jackpot, though!

xa0

Verdict: Russian Lottery is our go-to family game that we've been playing since the early nineties, and now we're on our third generation, passing it down to our kids. It's a simple yet thrilling tabletop game that doesn't require any special skills, just a bit of luck and good fortune. It's perfect for families or large groups, and you can play for fun, for bragging rights, or for real money. This Russian Lottery from the Tenth Kingdom is the game of my childhood, with the same cards, wooden draw balls, and a red bag that's just as charming as I remembered!

I highly recommend this tabletop game.