Simple Fun with Dairyman and the Quest for Ice Cream
Take dicey chances with the daily routine of collecting milk and turning it into ice cream with Dairyman.
I learned a very important lesson over the last year or so of playing solo board games: Lightweight games are definitely worthwhile. Maybe they’re not as fancy nor exciting as some of the heavier games, but they have their place. I tracked down a few possible solo variants for Dairyman and prepared to spend a little time simply tossing dice around!
Game Overview
Game Name: Dairyman
Publication Year: 2016
Designer: Chih-Fan Chen
Artists: Chih-Fan Chen and Katie Welch
Solo Mode: Unofficial Solo Variant
Use 2-3 dice to make sums of 10 and purchase various milk products. Then, use the special yellow die or freeze tokens to turn that milk into finished dairy goods, like cheese and ice cream. That’s about it! There are a number of solo variants out there, so I started off with the oldest one. It seemed pretty easy to understand, too. To the barn!
The Necessary Cows
Yes, indeed! The Calico Critters stopped by to celebrate all things related to milk. There wasn’t a more perfect game for these cows to show up for! At least, none that I own…
Gameplay was very easy to follow, aside from a few odd rules. It looks like the translation isn’t the greatest.
For instance, the rulebook states to collect a freeze token with the third reroll. That’s… Wrong. It’s the third roll total, but only the second reroll when that triggers.
Aside from this, though, I had a nice time simply rolling the dice and trying to do what I could with them. Simple!
Finding the Solo Value in Multiplayer Games
For the most part, I only purchase board games that offer a solo mode from the beginning. Stretch goal solo modes or the like usually make me wary, though I still look at some of these products. So what’s up with this game? Someone has a husband who enjoys board game deals, no matter what! We don’t play them all immediately… Queue my entrance!
Over the years, unofficial solo variants have come out from very talented individuals. Some work better than others, yet the time and effort yield surprisingly good results! I have many other multiplayer games I all but wrote off, yet I’ve never been able to part with them. Thank goodness for everyone out there who works on solo variants for older games!
Celebrating Dairy
More cows! Part of both plays revolved around my high-quality ice cream. So there it was, on display with some other tiny milk containers! Someone looks hungry…
At one point, I thought I was missing something because there weren’t a lot of decisions to make. Yet that was the point! There’s nothing too deep here, nor complex.
It’s about collecting milk and turning it into, among other things, ice cream. Cute, fun, and “cool” like a bad joke!
Sometimes, it’s more about taking the time to relax with a board game. That’s precisely what I got with this one!
Session Overview
Play Number: 1 and 2
Solo Mode: Unofficial Solo Variant
Required Play Space: 14″ x 20″
Setup Time: Almost None
Play Time: 20 Minutes per Play
Outcome: 330 and 365 (1 Win and 1 Loss)
Yum! I didn’t fare too poorly overall. A normal victory is at 350 points, and I shall grant a lot of the credit to the dice. A few times when I had just a pair left and risked the reroll, I happened to get 5-5 or 6-4. Lovely! Perhaps this didn’t stand out, but it was a nice way to end my day.
%
1 Play
Affordability
Price & Value
5
Functionality
Challenges & Mechanics
7
Originality
Design & Theme
8
Quality
Components & Rules
8
Reusability
Achievement & Enjoyment
6
Variability
Distinctness & Randomness
4
+ Pros (Positives)
- The theme is very simple, adorable, and fun in a way that creates a relaxing game setting devoid of conflict.
- Although the artwork is minimal, the style matches the game perfectly and provides an easy way to identify tiles.
- Decisions are straightforward, although there are times when choosing how to use the yellow die matters.
- Bad luck usually leads to a temporary benefit with an additional die, which helps make gameplay feel fair enough.
- The box size is very small and fits everything well without any unused space, which is helpful for storage.
- Setup and cleanup are virtually nonexistent with a small number of components and a small play area.
– Cons (Negatives)
- The rulebook is short but has translation issues that need to be researched in order to understand everything.
- Luck is just about the only aspect of gameplay since the dice are rolled and rerolled during every round.
- Play time can feel a little lengthy for how lightweight gameplay is, particularly with limited decisions to make.
- Uncommon or rare instances can flood the market with high-value tiles, making it difficult to move ahead.
Continue the Conversation
Although not very prominent, have you played any of the unofficial solo variants for Dairyman? Which is your favorite? I didn’t expect much from this little game, and it delivered exactly what I expected. The dice flew constantly as I tried to follow a simple sequence. It was fun in its own way! Lightweight games certainly work well just when we need them to!
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