SOLVED. Childrens book "The Big Game"? about 1975, a boy learns that life is not a game

[Robert]

This misbehaving boy thinks life is just a big game, so he is thrust into a fantasy world that is just a big game to learn his lesson. There are big numbered squares and he has to roll a die and advance. He has adventures along the way like meeting a roman soldier (centurion?) and he meets a wicked boy who is kind of a warning of what he will become if he doesn't straighten up. When he asks the boy what made him go bad he says "staying up late and hot showers". I was afraid of hot showers for some time afterward. Eventually he completes the game and can go home again resolved to be better. Can I have imagined all this or is it a real book? (Solved on Reddit: it's The Big Joke Game by Scott Corbett)

[Becca]

Looks like this has been solved over on Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/whatsthatboo...

The book is The Big Joke Game by Scott Corbett

[Kris]

I notice your header is marked as Solved. Glad you found your book, Robert.