Jumanji Board Game: family board game
Jumanji Board Game Rules: How the 1995 Milton Bradley Game Works
These jumanji board game rules explain the 1995 Milton Bradley original, a cooperative race for 2 to 4 players to reach the center of a jungle board. Rescue each other from Danger cards with rescue dice before the sand timer runs out. The first pawn to reach the center by exact count calls out Jumanji for everyone.
- 1995
- 2-4 players
- family board game
- Milton Bradley
Ready, set, go! The sand timer gives everyone about eight seconds to roll.
Quick explainer: a round of the 1995 Jumanji board game
On your turn, move your pawn along the path. Land on a jungle space, and trouble starts.
The player taking their turn holds the timer and never rolls to rescue.
- Step 1:
Setup: label the four blank rescue dice, attach the decoder, 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:
The player taking a turn holds the timer and number die. Roll the number die, move your pawn along your color path toward the center, then follow the directions for the space where you land.
- Step 3:
BLANK space: Draw a Danger card, slide it under the decoder, and read the message aloud to reveal a symbol and a number. Say “Ready, Set, Go” and turn the timer. Don’t roll.
- Step 4:
All other players roll their rescue dice at once, over and over, until they show the card’s symbol or the wild hourglass. They have about 8 seconds.
- Step 5:
If everyone succeeds, you stay put and each rescuer moves ahead by the number on the card. If anyone fails, you move back that number, the others stay put, and the card goes on the Doomsday Grid.
- Step 6:
WAIT FOR 5 OR 8 space: the player on your left rolls the number die. If it doesn’t show 5 or 8, you slide back one space and the next player rolls. Keep going until someone rolls a 5 or 8.
- 7Step 7:
JUNGLE space: everyone, you included, rolls to rescue the group. If anyone fails, put the card on the next empty Doomsday Grid space and draw another, until everyone succeeds.
- 8Step 8:
RHINO space: place the rhino directly ahead of any pawn to block it. The blocked player is free with an even roll, or if another player moves the rhino.
- 9Step 9:
Reach the center first by exact count and shout JUMANJI. If the Doomsday Grid fills before anyone does, everyone loses.
The round above covers the loop, but a few rules shape the game: who rolls the rescue dice, what counts as success, how each space works and how the Doomsday Grid ends the game. Here’s each rule in turn. For a newer take, compare the Jumanji Deluxe board game.
Keep rolling your rescue die until it shows the symbol or the hourglass.
Jumanji board game rules, explained
Setup
Add symbol labels to the four blank rescue dice: a rope, saber, die, axe, racquet, open door, raft and hourglass. Put one label on each side in any order.
Place the JUMANJI label on the gameboard center. It cannot be removed once placed. Attach the card decoder with its adhesive, then fit the center through the hole in the gameboard.
Shuffle the Danger cards and place them face down on the DRAW space.
Each player picks a pawn and places it on the matching START space. Keep unused pawns out of play, and put the rhino on its home base.
Each player takes one rescue die. Keep the remaining rescue dice out of play.
The player who suggested the game goes first. The player whose turn it is holds the timer and number die, and play passes clockwise.
Turn by turn
Roll and move
Roll the number die and move your pawn that many spaces along your color path toward the center. Follow space directions only on your turn. At the end of your turn, pass the timer and number die to the player on your left.
BLANK space: the others come to your rescue
Draw a Danger card, slide it face up under the decoder and read the message aloud. You’re the timekeeper, so you don’t roll. Everyone else rolls rescue dice at once until each die shows the symbol or the wild hourglass.
Rescue outcome
If everyone succeeds, you stay put and each rescuer moves ahead by the number on the card, ignoring space directions. If anyone fails, you move back that number, the others stay put, and the card goes face up on the Doomsday Grid.
WAIT FOR 5 OR 8 space
The jungle pulls you back in. The player on your left rolls the number die once. On a 5 or 8, you’re safe and both of you stay put. Otherwise, you move back one space, and the next player to the roller’s left rolls. Continue until someone throws a 5 or 8. If you slide back to START, your turn ends.
JUNGLE space: everyone is trapped
Draw a card, read it, turn the timer, and have everyone, including you, roll rescue dice together. If everyone succeeds, all players move ahead by the number on the card. If anyone fails, put the card on the next empty Doomsday Grid space. Everyone stays put, and you draw again. Your turn ends only after a successful rescue.
RHINO space
You may place the rhino directly ahead of any pawn, but not on the center. That player stays blocked until another player lands on a Rhino space and moves it, or they roll an even number on their turn. If a blocked pawn moves backward, the rhino moves with it.
End of the game and scoring
There’s no scoring. Win by reaching the center of the gameboard on an exact roll and calling out JUMANJI. If the Doomsday Grid fills first, the jungle gets everyone and all players lose. Play again until someone wins.
Key rules
Symbols and the hourglass
The rescue dice show a rope, saber, die, axe, racquet, open door, raft, and hourglass. The hourglass matches any card symbol, except in a two-player game, where it isn’t wild.
Reach the center by exact count
Reach the center on your turn by rolling the number die, or on another player’s turn by moving ahead on a Danger card. If your roll is less than the spaces you need, move that many spaces. If it’s higher, your pawn stays put.
Two players reach the center
More than one player can reach the center in the same turn. Whoever yells JUMANJI first wins.
Challenge game
Want a tougher game? Add 1 to 6 random Danger cards to the Doomsday Grid before you start.
Tips for your first game
- The player taking a turn holds the timer and number die, so the timekeeper changes each turn.
- Keep rolling your rescue die until it shows the card’s symbol or the hourglass. Then stop.
- Count the spaces to the center before rolling. If you roll too high, your pawn stays put.
- Treat the Doomsday Grid like a shared clock: each failed rescue adds a card.
- Read each message aloud before starting the timer so everyone hears the symbol clue.
If the number is too high to reach the center, your pawn stays put.
The game borrows the film’s central threat: a jungle spilling into the room until someone finishes. But the film’s crystal ball becomes a card decoder here. The Jumanji board game from the movie page compares each version with the film.
The 1995 game and the film behind it
In a two-player game, the hourglass isn’t wild.
The game
Design and release
Milton Bradley made Jumanji: The Game in 1995 as a film tie-in. The manual lists 1995 Milton Bradley and 1995 TriStar Pictures copyrights, and The Strong National Museum of Play has a copy.
Later versions
Cardinal Games released a 2017 version, and there are other editions too. Each has its own page on this site; this one covers the 1995 rules.
The film or series it covers
Jumanji (1995), directed by Joe Johnston, is based on Chris Van Allsburg’s 1981 picture book. The 2017 film Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle and its 2019 sequel, The Next Level, followed later.
The game takes its premise from the film, rather than following its plot scene by scene. Jungle dangers threaten the players, and the group must finish the game to stop them. The messages rhyme. In the film, one appears in a crystal ball at the board’s center; the toy uses a decoder and Danger cards instead.
Scenes and story beats in the game
- 1
In the film, Alan is told to wait in the jungle until the dice show five or eight. The game’s WAIT FOR 5 OR 8 space nods to that moment.
- 2
The decoder in the board’s center takes the place of the film’s crystal ball, which displays messages.
- 3
The manual’s sample card has a snake riddle: “When you see it you will shake; it’s big and green and rhymes with lake.” Its symbol is a saber, and its number is 3.
- 4
The shared win and loss reflect the film’s idea that the jungle stops only when someone finishes the game.
What’s in the 1995 Jumanji box
- 1 gameboard with a center labeled JUMANJI
- 1 card decoder with adhesive
- Danger cards with a rhyming message, secret symbol, and number
- Pawns in different colors, each with its own START space and color path
- 1 number die
- 4 blank rescue dice and symbol labels (rope, saber, die, axe, racquet, open door, raft, hourglass)
- 1 rhino figure
- 1 sand timer that runs for about 8 seconds
- Instructions
Jumanji 1995 editions and reissues
Milton Bradley original 1995
The first release, tied to the 1995 film. It needs a little assembly: you label the blank rescue dice and attach the decoder to the board center.
Cardinal Games version 2017
A later version with its own page on this site.
1995 Jumanji board game FAQ
What are the rules for the 1995 Milton Bradley Jumanji game?
Follow your color path toward the center. Land on a Jungle space and draw a Danger card, then read it in the decoder. The other players roll rescue dice before the sand timer runs out. Reach the center by exact count and call JUMANJI to win for everyone.
How do you win the Jumanji board game?
Reach the center by exact count and call out JUMANJI to win for the group. But if the Doomsday Grid fills first, everyone loses.
What happens on the WAIT FOR 5 OR 8 space?
Each time the player on your left rolls anything but 5 or 8, you slide back one space, and the roll passes around the table. You stop as soon as someone rolls a 5 or 8. You don’t roll.
What happens when you land on a JUNGLE space in Jumanji?
Everyone, you included, rolls rescue dice together. If anyone fails, put the card on the next empty Doomsday Grid space and draw another. Keep going until all players succeed.
Which pieces come with the 1995 Jumanji board game?
The game includes a board with a center, a card decoder, Danger cards, pawns, a number die, four rescue dice you label yourself, a rhino figure, a sand timer, and the instructions.
What happens if two players reach the center at once in Jumanji?
More than one player can reach the center on the same turn. The first to yell JUMANJI wins.
Is Jumanji a cooperative board game?
Yes. Players rescue each other, and one player reaching the center wins for the group. If the Doomsday Grid fills, everyone loses.
The player taking their turn holds the timer and never rolls to rescue.
Keep rolling your rescue die until it shows the symbol or the hourglass.
Sources
- Jumanji Game Manual (Milton Bradley, 1995), scan on the Internet Archive ia800501.us.archive.org
- The Strong National Museum of Play: Jumanji: The Game (via Google Arts and Culture) artsandculture.google.com
- Wikipedia: Jumanji (film) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikiquote: Jumanji (1995 film) en.wikiquote.org