I really don’t know my left from my right. I’m not exaggerating. I once gave my husband driving directions that sent us in a complete circle because I confidently pointed left when I meant right. He still brings it up at dinner parties. So when I had kids, I knew directional confusion might be genetic, and I wanted to get ahead of it early, before they hit kindergarten and a teacher expected them to know their left hand from their right.
That’s how our family found Left Right Center, usually called LCR. It’s a simple dice game that takes about two minutes to learn, works for kids and adults at the same table, and, as a happy side effect, turned out to be one of the easiest ways I’ve found to teach left and right without it feeling like a lesson.
What Is Left Right Center (LCR)?
Left Right Center (L.R.C.) is a fast, social dice game played with three special dice and a handful of tokens. It’s wildly popular as a family game night and party game because there’s almost no strategy involved. Luck decides everything, which means a six-year-old has just as good a shot at winning as an adult, and the game moves so quickly that no one has time to get bored waiting for their turn.
What You Need to Play
Three special dice, each marked with L, C, R, and blank or dotted sides. They are sold as a set, often packaged in a small plastic tube.
Three tokens per player to start. The game comes with plastic chips, but we’ve used all kinds of stand-ins over the years: Hershey’s Kisses, crayons, Foamies, Matchbox cars, and when the adults play, coins or even dollar bills.
Three or more players. There’s no upper limit, making it a great choice for a full table at a holiday gathering.
How to Play Left Right Center
Give every player three tokens to start.
On your turn, roll one die for each token you currently hold, up to three dice at a time. If you have only one token left, roll just one die.
Look at what each die shows. An L means pass one token to the player on your left. An R means pass one token to the player on your right. A C means that token goes into the center pile, out of play for the rest of the round. A blank or dotted side means the token is safe, and you simply keep it.
Pass the dice to the next player and repeat.
Keep going around the table. Players who run out of tokens are still in the game; they just wait, since a token could be passed back to them on a later turn.
The game ends when only one player still has tokens. That player wins everything in the center pile.
How to Win
There’s genuinely no skill involved once the dice leave your hand, which is part of the charm. The winner is simply the last player holding any tokens when everyone else has passed theirs either away or into the center.
Fun Variations and Token Ideas
Swap in anything small and countable as tokens. We’ve played with candy, buttons, LEGO pieces, and on long car trips, even cut up pieces of paper with numbers written on them.
Play for real stakes at adult game nights. It’s common for adult groups to use dollar bills instead of chips, turning the center pile into an actual pot. If you go this route, agree on the buy-in amount before the first roll.
Speed it up. With younger kids who have shorter attention spans, start everyone with just two tokens instead of three. Games end much faster, keeping the energy up.
Travel edition. The dice and tokens fit easily in a small bag or in the plastic tube the game usually comes in, making LCR one of the best car-ride or waiting-room games we own. I’ve walked into my son’s room and found him playing an entire round solo, with his stuffed animals standing in for the other players, which tells you how little setup this game actually needs.
Why This Game Quietly Teaches Left and Right
Here’s the part that made this game a regular in our house, beyond just being fun. Every single roll asks a kid to process left versus right in real time, under a little bit of friendly pressure, which is a much more effective way to build that skill than a worksheet ever was for my kids.
A couple of tricks that helped early on: I’d say “L is for left” out loud to give them a letter to hang onto. For right, I’d point out that “rrrright” starts with the same rolling r sound, while “lllleft” doesn’t, which gives kids a sound-based way to double-check themselves without needing to stop and think about which hand they write with.
Within a few game nights, I watched my own kids go from hesitating on every roll to calling out L’s and R’s without pausing. They didn’t know they were practicing a skill. They just wanted to keep playing.
Common Questions About Left Right Center
How many people can play Left Right Center? Three or more, with no real upper limit. It’s one of the few games that works just as well with a big group as a small one.
How many dice do you need? Three special LCR dice, marked with L, C, R, and blank or dotted sides.
Can adults play Left Right Center for money? Yes, this is a common adult variation, usually played with dollar bills instead of chips. The winner takes the center pot.
Is Left Right Center the same thing as LCR? Yes, LCR is just the common shorthand for Left Right Center. You’ll see it sold under both names.
What age is this game good for? We’ve played with kids as young as four or five with a little help, and it stays fun well into adulthood, which is rare for a game that simple.
If your family gets hooked on this one, you’ll find more easy, low-prep family game ideas like this one throughout our Activities section under Games and Puzzles.
