How to Play

The rules of RUSH 81 are simple: Each number (or color) must be used once in every row, once in every column, and once in every 3x3 sub-grid (box). Or, stated differently, a number (color) cannot be repeated within a row, column, or box.

To start the game, each player is dealt a set of playing pieces (tiles). Play is turn-based, and proceeds in a clockwise manner. At the start of each player's turn, one of the 3 timer buttons (15 seconds, 30 seconds, 60 seconds) is selected to determine how long that player has in order to make their move. A player gets one chance to correctly play one of the tiles in their hand. If the move is correct (indicated by the green light), play passes to the next player. If the move is incorrect (indicated by the red light and buzzer), the player must remove the tile from the game board and pick up another one from the pick-up pile.

The object of RUSH 81 is to be the first player to get rid of all the tiles in your hand. RUSH 81 allows players of all skill levels to enjoy the game and have a chance to win:

  1. Experienced players can be given less time to make their move on each turn while beginners can be given more time.
  2. A harder puzzle can be chosen which requires experienced players to guess more often.
  3. Since tiles are drawn at random, it is possible that a beginner may receive a better starting hand than a more experienced player.

Game Variations

  1. All Tiles

    After the initial setup, divide all the remaining tiles as evenly as possible between players (i.e., do not reserve any for a pick-up pile). Players must choose their tiles from the bag without looking. For example, if there are 49 remaining tiles and 4 players, then 3 players will get 12 tiles and 1 player will get 13 tiles. In this case, 4 games should be played so that each player is forced to start with 13 tiles for one game.

     

  2. One Number (Color)

    After the initial setup, place one tile of each number (color) into the bag.  Each player then chooses a tile from the bag without looking.  Players then take all remaining tiles of their chosen number (color).  Depending on the tiles chosen, some players may start with more tiles than others.

     

  3. All Numbers (Colors)

    After the initial setup, each player gets one tile of each number (color), and the remaining tiles are used to form the pick-up pile.