Jumanji Board Game: family board game
Jumanji Board Game Rules: How the 1995 Milton Bradley Game Works
The jumanji board game rules for the 1995 Milton Bradley original set up a cooperative race to the center of a jungle board for 2-4 players, ages 8+. Families get dice, a timer, a decoder, and a film hook.
- 1995
- 2-4 players
- Ages 8+
- family board game
- Milton Bradley
Ready, set, go! The sand timer gives you eight seconds, and everyone rolls.
Quick explainer: a round of the 1995 Jumanji board game
Move your pawn along a path each turn. Land on a jungle space, and trouble starts.
For the original feel, look for the 1995 game or the 2017 reissue.
- Step 1:
Setup: shuffle the Danger cards face down on DRAW, place each pawn on its START space, and put the rhino on its home base. Everyone takes one rescue die.
- Step 2:
Roll the number die and move your pawn along your path toward the center. Then follow the space’s directions.
- Step 3:
Land on a Blank Jungle space? Draw a Danger card, slide it under the decoder, and read the rhyme aloud to reveal a symbol and number.
- Step 4:
You’re the player in danger. Say Ready, Set, Go, turn the 8-second timer, and don’t roll. Everyone else rolls a rescue die at once.
- Step 5:
Rescuers keep rolling until they get the card’s symbol or the wild hourglass. If everyone succeeds in time, you stay put and each rescuer advances the card’s number.
- Step 6:
If a rescuer fails, move backward the number shown on the card.
- 7Step 7:
On a Special Jungle space, everyone rolls together, including the player taking their turn. A failed roll sends the card to the next empty Doomsday Grid space.
- 8Step 8:
On a Rhino space, you can block a player with the rhino. They get past by rolling an even number or waiting for another player to move it.
- 9Step 9:
Reach the center by exact count and call out Jumanji. The whole group wins. Fill all ten Doomsday Grid spaces first, and everyone loses.
That round covers the loop, but a few rules shape the game: who rolls rescue dice, what counts as success, and how the Doomsday Grid ends things. Here’s each one, step by step. For a simpler, newer take, compare the Jumanji Deluxe board game.
For teamwork, try the cooperative Deluxe electronic edition.
Jumanji board game rules, explained
Setup
Assemble the board center and attach the card decoder as shown in the manual.
Shuffle the Danger cards and place them face down on the DRAW space.
Each player takes a pawn and places it on the matching-color START space. Return unused pawns to the box.
Place the rhino on its home base.
Each player takes one rescue die. Return unused rescue dice to the box.
The player who suggested the game goes first, holding the number die and timer. Play passes clockwise.
Turn by turn
Roll and move
Roll the eight-sided number die and move your pawn along its path toward the center. Follow the directions on the space where you land. Each pawn stays on its own path.
Blank Jungle: another player comes to the rescue
Draw a Danger card, slide it face up under the decoder, and read its message aloud. The window shows a symbol and a number. You’re the timekeeper, so you don’t roll. The other players roll their rescue dice until each shows the symbol or the hourglass, all before the sand runs out.
Rescue outcome
If every rescuer succeeds in time, you stay put and each rescuer advances by the number on the card, ignoring space directions. If anyone fails, you move backward by that number.
Special Jungle: everyone joins the rescue
These spaces also use a Danger card, but every player rolls at once, including the active player. If anyone fails in time, put the card on the next empty Doomsday Grid space.
Rhino spaces
Move the rhino in front of a player to block their pawn. That player gets free by rolling an even number on their turn, or when someone else lands on a Rhino space and moves the rhino.
Wait for a 5 or 8
A wait 5 or 8 space holds your pawn until you roll a 5 or 8. The film has a verse about waiting until the dice read five or eight, so this space gives it a nod.
End of the game and scoring
There’s no scoring. The first player to reach the center by exact count and call out Jumanji wins for the whole group. If all ten Doomsday Grid spaces fill with unresolved Danger cards first, everyone loses.
Key rules
Symbols and the hourglass
Rescue dice show symbols such as a rope, saber, die, axe, racquet, open door, and raft. The hourglass is wild and matches any symbol on a card.
Reach the center by exact count
You must reach the center by exact count, either on your turn with the number die or when a Danger card moves you. If your roll is too small, move the number shown.
The 8-second timer
The sand timer sets the rescuers’ deadline. The player in danger flips it after saying Ready, Set, Go.
Everyone wins or loses together
Nobody beats anyone else here. One player reaching the center wins for all, while a full Doomsday Grid means everyone loses.
Tips for your first game
- Before the first draw, agree on who holds the timer: the player whose turn it is keeps both the timer and the number die.
- Stop rolling your rescue die as soon as it shows the card’s symbol or the wild hourglass.
- Count the spaces to the center before you roll. Winning takes an exact count.
- Keep an eye on the Doomsday Grid as the group’s clock: it has ten spaces, and each failed group rescue uses one.
- Read each Danger card message aloud before starting the timer, so everyone hears the symbol clue.
For the display shelf, the Noble Collection replica copies the film's board.
The game takes the film’s central threat, a jungle that spills into the room until someone finishes. It doesn’t use the film’s prop, though, and some details come from the rhyming messages rather than the plot. The Jumanji board game from the movie page compares each version with the film.
The 1995 game and the film behind it
Check the age on the box: listings for wooden editions disagree between 6+ and 8+.
The game
Design and release
Milton Bradley released Jumanji: The Game in the United States in 1995 as a film tie-in. The box is dated 1995 and lists 2-4 players and ages 8+. A collector listing counts 43 physical pieces, not including the rules.
Editions and reprints
Cardinal Games issued an updated version in 2017 with new colorized artwork, and changed some Danger-card riddles. Later Spin Master games share the name but use different rules, so they have their own pages.
The film or series it covers
This covers Jumanji (1995 film, directed by Joe Johnston), based on Chris Van Allsburg's 1981 picture book. It doesn't cover the 2017 film Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle or the 2019 sequel Jumanji: The Next Level.
The game takes its cue from the film's premise, not a scene-by-scene retelling. Jungle dangers come alive, the group has to finish the game to stop them, and messages rhyme. In the film, verses appear in the crystal ball at the board's center; the toy uses a decoder and Danger cards instead.
Scenes and story beats in the game
- 1
The film's verse about waiting until the dice show five or eight turns up in the game's wait 5 or 8 space.
- 2
The decoder in the board's center takes the place of the film's crystal ball, which displays cryptic messages.
- 3
The Ants card has a rhyme of its own: They march and eat and march and eat; if I were you I'd watch my feet.
- 4
The shared win-or-lose outcome follows the film's rule: the game's effects stop only when someone finishes it.
What’s in the 1995 Jumanji box
- 1 gameboard
- 1 card decoder
- 30 Danger cards
- 4 wooden pawns
- 1 eight-sided number die
- 4 eight-sided rescue dice (sizes vary between copies)
- 1 plastic rhinoceros
- 1 eight-second sand timer
- Rulebook
Jumanji 1995 editions and reissues
Milton Bradley original 1995
The first release, tied to the 1995 film. It has the wooden pawns, sand timer and 30 Danger cards.
Cardinal Games reissue 2017
Colorized board artwork and some changed Danger-card riddles, with the same decoder and rescue-dice design.
1995 Jumanji board game FAQ
What are the jumanji board game rules?
Move along your own path toward the center. Land on a jungle space and draw a Danger card, then read it in the decoder. The group rolls rescue dice before the 8-second timer runs out. Reach the center by exact count and call Jumanji to win as a group.
How many players can play the jumanji board game 1995?
2-4 players, ages 8+. Each player gets one pawn and one rescue die.
What pieces come with the Jumanji board game from 1995?
The jumanji board game pieces include a gameboard, card decoder, 30 Danger cards, four wooden pawns, an eight-sided number die, four rescue dice, a plastic rhinoceros, an eight-second sand timer, and the rules.
What are the jumanji board game riddles?
Each Danger card has a rhyming message revealed by the decoder, plus a symbol and a number. The Ants card, for example, tells you to watch your feet.
Is the Jumanji board game cooperative?
Yes. One player reaches the center and calls out Jumanji, and the whole group wins. If the Doomsday Grid fills first, everyone loses.
How does the 1995 version differ from the 2017 version?
The 2017 Cardinal reissue adds colorized artwork and updated riddle messages. Its rules and components follow the same design.
For the original feel, look for the 1995 game or the 2017 reissue.
For teamwork, try the cooperative Deluxe electronic edition.
Sources
- Jumanji Game Manual, scan on the Internet Archive ia800501.us.archive.org
- Wikipedia: Jumanji (film) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikiquote: Jumanji (1995 film) en.wikiquote.org