# Any card games in which suit color matters? **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [March 31, 2012, 5:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-card-games-in-which-suit-color-matters/617356 "2012-03-31T05:26:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2012, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-card-games-in-which-suit-color-matters/617356/21 "2012-04-02T16:18:11Z")
> [@Duke](#): > > Could be either, really. David Parlett (card-games author) thinks that Costly Colours came first and introduced the idea of the crib, which then was borrowed by Cribbage; i.e., Noddy and Costly Colours are co-ancestors of Cribbage. But even he doesn’t know for sure (and he would if anyone did). Yeah, I have his Oxford Dictionary of Card Games which is what I was using as a reference. In this book, he just calls noddy an ancestor and costly colors a “fascinating relative” of cribbage. I can see cribbage being seen as a refinement of costly colors, or costly colors being an elaboration of cribbage. ---
**Author:** ![Duke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e8c25b/32.png) [@Duke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duke)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2012, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-card-games-in-which-suit-color-matters/617356/22 "2012-04-02T17:00:10Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > Yeah, I have his Oxford Dictionary of Card Games which is what I was using as a reference. In this book, he just calls noddy an ancestor and costly colors a “fascinating relative” of cribbage. I can see cribbage being seen as a refinement of costly colors, or costly colors being an elaboration of cribbage. Parlett has two other books on cards which are interesting…one of which, _A History of Card Games_, is just about game origins. I really should have tried to talk to him when I lived in Oxford. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2012, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-card-games-in-which-suit-color-matters/617356/23 "2012-04-02T18:48:11Z")
> [@Duke](#): > > Parlett has two other books on cards which are interesting…one of which, _A History of Card Games_, is just about game origins. I really should have tried to talk to him when I lived in Oxford. I’m going to have to pick that up. His Oxford Dictionary is my favorite general book on card games. ---
**Author:** ![Meeko](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e495f1/32.png) [@Meeko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Meeko)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2012, 5:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-card-games-in-which-suit-color-matters/617356/24 "2012-04-03T05:46:25Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > Yeah, I have his Oxford Dictionary of Card Games which is what I was using as a reference. In this book, he just calls noddy an ancestor and costly colors a “fascinating relative” of cribbage. I can see cribbage being seen as a refinement of costly colors, or costly colors being an elaboration of cribbage. This would imply that cribbage is sane, relatively speaking. Are we talking the same Cribbage here? That being said, I wouldn’t change Crib a bit, It moves me closer to center in the big picture of “Normal”. ---
**Author:** ![Enderw24](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ba9def/32.png) [@Enderw24](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enderw24)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2012, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-card-games-in-which-suit-color-matters/617356/25 "2012-04-03T14:14:51Z")
> [@Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](#): > > Clubs and spades are both black while diamonds and hearts are both red. Are there any games in which suit color matters? If not, why not make clubs green and diamonds blue? Some decks do. You can buy decks where diamonds are orange and clubs are blue or green. This is helpful for two demographics: 1. poker players (online) who are playing a ton of games simultaneously and don’t want to waste time or potentially confuse one card for another. It also makes finding flushes much faster and easier. 2. nearly blind bridge players. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2012, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-card-games-in-which-suit-color-matters/617356/26 "2012-04-03T14:37:47Z")
I’ve also used an Uno deck for regular card games. And vice versa–using two regulra decks with jokers to play Uno. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2012, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-card-games-in-which-suit-color-matters/617356/27 "2012-04-03T15:20:12Z")
> [@Meeko](#): > > This would imply that cribbage is sane, relatively speaking. > Are we talking the same Cribbage here? Oh, you, cribbage isn’t _that_ crazy. I’ve taught it to people in like ten minutes. It’s a lot easier to teach than a lot of those contract games (like bridge, tarock, ulti, pinochle, skat, etc.) Now, grasping the subtlety of cribbage and how to best play cribs while taking into account your board pegging position, intuiting your opponent’s cards, etc., that takes a long time. Forever, I’d say. But that’s like most any game. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-card-games-in-which-suit-color-matters/617356.md?page=1)