# Card game recommendations **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [February 22, 2018, 2:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/card-game-recommendations/809313 "2018-02-22T02:39:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2018, 2:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/card-game-recommendations/809313/1 "2018-02-22T02:39:24Z")
The “Best and worst board games” thread is drifting a bit, so I thought I’d open a thread for folks to recommend card games that others don’t know about. I’m especially interested in games that aren’t played with a standard deck. [No Thanks](https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/12942/no-thanks) is one that I’ve only ever seen once (until I bought it), with very simple rules and interesting strategy. The 33 cards are printed sequentially with the numbers from 3 to 35. Each player gets something like ten chips to hold secretly in their hand. To play, you remove nine cards, face-down, from the deck (so nobody knows what cards are missing), then turn the top card face up. On your turn, you only have two choices: 1. Say “No thanks” and put a chip on the card; or 2. Take the card and any chips on it. At the end of the game, you get points equal to the sum of the value of your cards, minus the number of chips you have. If you have cards in a sequential run (21,22; or 32,33,34,35, for example), only the lowest card gives you points. Low score wins. With the very simple binary choice on your turn, it looks like it’d be boring. But evaluating all the factors–do you need that card to complete a run? does another player need that card? Are there a lot of chips on it? How many chips are in your hand? How many chips do you think the other players have? Can you chip it this turn and pick it up next go-round with a lot more chips on it?–makes the strategy far more interesting than it’d first seem. What other odd little card games do folks recommend? ---
**Author:** ![Defensive\_Indifference](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/defensive_indifference/32/6502_2.png) [@Defensive\_Indifference](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Defensive_Indifference)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2018, 2:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/card-game-recommendations/809313/2 "2018-02-22T02:48:46Z")
Probably not very odd or obscure, but pinochle was a big part of my life growing up. It uses some of the familiar playing cards, but not a standard deck. It’s not a terribly challenging game, with many of your plays required by the rules if you aren’t leading. But it’s enjoyable enough and gives you something to do while you sit around and shoot the shit and eat chips. And it gives you a reminder to sing: The worms crawl in. The worms crawl out. The worms play pinochle on your snout. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2018, 3:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/card-game-recommendations/809313/3 "2018-02-22T03:12:07Z")
**[Sushi Go!](https://www.amazon.com/Sushi-Go-Pick-Pass-Card/dp/B00J57VU44/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1519269109&sr=8-1&keywords=sushigo)** is a hit card game in our family. Easy to understand after one quick practice round and the whole game does not take much time. You make decisions and your decisions matter. Fun game, great theme. ---
**Author:** ![Quimby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/22d042/32.png) [@Quimby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quimby)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2018, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/card-game-recommendations/809313/4 "2018-02-22T14:48:54Z")
Flip City was recommended to me on this board and it ended up something I enjoyed. It isn’t very deep but it is fun. I have played Monopoly Deal a few times and so far I like it. But the granddaddy of card games is Magic the Gathering. It can be a rabbit hole of time and money since it’s a Trading card Game in that you buy randomized packs to collect cards but they do make premade decks designed for beginners you can pick up and play with a friend. There are also a few Board game-esque products that have multiple decks designed to be played against each other. ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2018, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/card-game-recommendations/809313/5 "2018-02-22T16:02:46Z")
> [@Mahaloth](#): > > **[Sushi Go!](https://www.amazon.com/Sushi-Go-Pick-Pass-Card/dp/B00J57VU44/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1519269109&sr=8-1&keywords=sushigo)** is a hit card game in our family. Easy to understand after one quick practice round and the whole game does not take much time. You make decisions and your decisions matter. Fun game, great theme. I really need to get that one–I’ve never played it, but everything I’ve heard about it has been great. > [@Quimby](#): > > But the granddaddy of card games is Magic the Gathering. It can be a rabbit hole of time and money since it’s a Trading card Game in that you buy randomized packs to collect cards but they do make premade decks designed for beginners you can pick up and play with a friend. There are also a few Board game-esque products that have multiple decks designed to be played against each other. Oh God. I can’t be trusted with MtG–after sinking hundreds and hundreds of dollars I couldn’t afford into it back in the early nineties, I gave all my cards away to a younger cousin and never looked back. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2018, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/card-game-recommendations/809313/6 "2018-02-22T16:05:58Z")
> [@](#): > > Quoth **LHoD** : > > Each player gets something like ten chips to hold secretly in their hand. But everyone knows how many each player starts with, and everyone knows what plays everyone else is making, so it’s only a “secret” if your memory fails you, correct? I think in situations like that, I prefer to just drop the pretense and make it public knowledge. ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2018, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/card-game-recommendations/809313/7 "2018-02-22T16:12:34Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > But everyone knows how many each player starts with, and everyone knows what plays everyone else is making, so it’s only a “secret” if your memory fails you, correct? I think in situations like that, I prefer to just drop the pretense and make it public knowledge. This is a bit of a flaw–but in my experience, the game moves fast enough that it’s pretty difficult to track how many chips every other player has. In a group with widely different ability, it’d be a real problem, but most folks are just vaguely tracking what others have. ---
**Author:** ![Inner\_Stickler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inner_stickler/32/318_2.png) [@Inner\_Stickler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inner_Stickler)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2018, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/card-game-recommendations/809313/8 "2018-02-22T16:13:54Z")
> [@Mahaloth](#): > > **[Sushi Go!](https://www.amazon.com/Sushi-Go-Pick-Pass-Card/dp/B00J57VU44/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1519269109&sr=8-1&keywords=sushigo)** is a hit card game in our family. Easy to understand after one quick practice round and the whole game does not take much time. You make decisions and your decisions matter. Fun game, great theme. I like the concept of sushi go but the tallying after each round is annoying. If I have to get out a pad and pencil, I’d rather just play cards. ---
**Author:** ![Stanislaus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stanislaus/32/3391_2.png) [@Stanislaus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stanislaus)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2018, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/card-game-recommendations/809313/9 "2018-02-22T16:33:25Z")
No Thanks is excellent. We play it with the kids (8 & 5) with chips out in the open - it hasn’t yet occured to them to count, and I try not to keep close count so as not to take too much advantage. I probably could get the 8 year-old to count other players’ total points if I leant on him (i.e. he’s numerate enough), but there’s no fun in that and it’ll be so much the better if/when he works out he can do it. ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2018, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/card-game-recommendations/809313/10 "2018-02-22T16:47:06Z")
It occurs to me that with chip-counters it’d be perfectly within the rules to mess with them: “How many chips do you think I have? Seven, I’ve got seven. Wait, make that three chips for me, five for Laura, six over there for Chris, Laura has one, I have four…” ---
**Author:** ![septimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/septimus/32/410_2.png) [@septimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/septimus)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2018, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/card-game-recommendations/809313/11 "2018-02-22T17:52:03Z")
(I agree that in games where you could know holdings from memory, they should just be public. Better to reward clever strategy than reward brute memory.) Some of the best card games, I think, are the classics: Cribbage and Casino for two players; Hearts or Contract Bridge for four players. There are other trick-taking games suitable for 4 or 5 players. [Goofspiel](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goofspiel) can be played with 2, 3 or 4 and is good for a change of pace. (Count Ace as 15 or so, not 1.) Since OP want something other than 52-card deck, try [Klabberjass](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Klaberjass), a 2-player trick-taking game with a 32-card deck. [Tonk](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tonk_(card_game)) is a very simple fast-paced melding game for 4 players or so. ---
**Author:** ![N9IWP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/n9iwp/32/3154_2.png) [@N9IWP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/N9IWP)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2018, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/card-game-recommendations/809313/12 "2018-02-22T18:29:46Z")
Sushi Go Party has a score track (plus it offers variety and handles more players) For “mostly card” games, I linke [Bruges](https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/136888/bruges), [Ethnos](https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/206718/ethnos), and [Progress](https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/140717/progress-evolution-technology) Brian ---
**Author:** ![MaxTheVool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9fc29f/32.png) [@MaxTheVool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MaxTheVool)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2018, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/card-game-recommendations/809313/13 "2018-02-22T18:32:14Z")
Highest recommendation: Hanabi (the deluxe edition uses mah jong tiles, and is vastly better if you can find/afford it, but the original game has cards). It’s a cooperative game with hidden information. The players are working together to lay out 1 through 5 in order of each of the 5 colors, a bit like playing solitaire. But you can’t see your own hand, you can only guess what’s in it based on the hints your teammates give you, which are severely constrained. Where it really starts to get fun is when you start establishing conventions as to what the various hints mean, trying to guess from what clues people did or did not give what your cards could be, etc. VERY deep and fun, probably unsuitable for kids under 11 or so Another recommendation: Tichu. This is a published version of what (according to Wikipedia) is a mishmash of traditional Asian card games, but whatever it came from, it’s super fun. It’s a bit like Great Dalmuti (or Asshole) (or Feudal Wars) with partners, but with enough extra rules to keep it fresh and exciting. Final recommendation: [Barbu](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barbu_(card_game)), which has the brilliant mechanic of having several different subgames, and the dealer deal the cards, picks up their hand, looks at it, and then chooses which subgame to play. ---
**Author:** ![McDeath\_the\_Mad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a3d4f5/32.png) [@McDeath\_the\_Mad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/McDeath_the_Mad)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2018, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/card-game-recommendations/809313/14 "2018-02-22T18:49:57Z")
I recommend “Wizard”, it’s a trump (the good kind) based game that is quite enjoyable. It can be played with 2-8 players, 4+ is ideal. This does involve a custom store bought deck. I also recommend Euchre, great for playing while enjoying a few cocktails. MtM ---
**Author:** ![Allecher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a6a055/32.png) [@Allecher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Allecher)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2018, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/card-game-recommendations/809313/15 "2018-02-22T18:56:36Z")
I will second Sushi Go Party and Hannabi, and add [Chrononauts](https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/815/chrononauts). ---
**Author:** ![Straight\_Dope\_Bruab](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f04885/32.png) [@Straight\_Dope\_Bruab](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Straight_Dope_Bruab)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2018, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/card-game-recommendations/809313/16 "2018-02-22T19:33:08Z")
I love Tichu, but it’s hard to play because it really works best with exactly 4 people who need to be partners. And there’s 4 weird cards I have to keep explaining to people. Pro-tip: most Tichu sets come with 2 decks. Pull the special cards out of the second deck and put them off to the side face-up so you can remind people what they are. There used to be a decent Tichu iPhone app, but it hasn’t been updated in quite a while, and I think it’s stopped working correctly (it hung the last time I tried it). I picked up Wizard, and it’s pretty fun. Best of all you can play it with 2-6 people with no partners. And the 2 unusual cards are easy to explain. It’s a lot more bidding-heavy than Tichu (which I don’t love) but all in all it’s a fun game. ---
**Author:** ![Quimby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/22d042/32.png) [@Quimby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quimby)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2018, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/card-game-recommendations/809313/17 "2018-02-22T20:20:32Z")
I also enjoyed Hannabi and came back in to add it. It doe stake some getting used to to draw cards and _not_ look at them. Also it isn’t a game you can play while chatting or watching something but it’s a fun and different cooperative game. ---
**Author:** ![Max\_Torque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Max\_Torque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Torque)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2018, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/card-game-recommendations/809313/18 "2018-02-22T20:25:12Z")
I got to try this one last year at a local comic/gaming con, and liked it enough to buy it: [Pina Pirata](http://a.co/1zTfAvy). The deck has somewhere around 50 cards, each unique. Each card has a picture of either 2 pirate animals on it (say, a Parrot and a Tiger) or just one (say, a solo Octopus). Game play is like Uno: play a card with an animal that was just played. Someone plays a Walrus/Baboon, you can play a Baboon/Turtle, next person can play a solo Turtle. First person to run out of cards wins the round. Easy enough so far. The interesting bit: when someone runs out and wins the round, they pick three tiles from a stack of about 80 and reads them. One they keep (there’s a treasure map piece on the back, it takes four to win), one they put back, and one they place face-up in front of everyone. Each tile has a new rule that applies for the duration of the game. New rules are things like: when you play a Tiger, you can play again if you have a card that plays. The last player who played a Turtle can’t win. When a Penguin is played, the order of play reverses. When a Baboon is played, everyone must pass their entire hand to the left. When you play a Rat, everyone must show a Rat from their hand, or they must draw. Stuff like that. By the third or fourth round, the additional rules make gameplay crazy. By the eighth round, play gets so convoluted that you might want to scrap the rules and start over. Example: we had additional rules for both Parrots and Penguins, and then we got a rule that said, “Parrots are Penguins and Penguins are Parrots”, and our heads exploded. Anyway, it’s fun, and simple enough that little kids can play. ---
**Author:** ![septimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/septimus/32/410_2.png) [@septimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/septimus)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2018, 5:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/card-game-recommendations/809313/19 "2018-02-23T05:00:49Z")
> [@MaxTheVool](#): > > … Final recommendation: [Barbu](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barbu_(card_game)), which has the brilliant mechanic of having several different subgames, and the dealer deal the cards, picks up their hand, looks at it, and then chooses which subgame to play. In a complete round (28 hands using the Wikpedia rules) each player must declare each subgame exactly one time. I recall a very similar game (called “Kings”) circa 1970, though I only played it once or twice. There were 16 hands in a round, since there were just four subgames, three of them "negative: _Last Two_, _Kings_, and _Kings & Jacks_. ---
**Author:** ![Swampwolf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8edcca/32.png) [@Swampwolf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Swampwolf)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2018, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/card-game-recommendations/809313/20 "2018-03-13T21:50:49Z")
I recommend Fluxx. There are different varieties including Dr. Who, Monty Python, and many more. You can play a card that brings up an odd rule that has to be played every time (my personal fave is the one where you have to sing a Monty Python song before each turn, followed closely by, IIRC, 4 lines from any sketch). There are infinite variations, and it’s even 2-player friendly. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/card-game-recommendations/809313.md?page=2)