# Favorite card game for two people? **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [September 26, 2009, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-card-game-for-two-people/511661 "2009-09-26T18:05:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![misterW](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f1d935/32.png) [@misterW](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/misterW)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2009, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-card-game-for-two-people/511661/1 "2009-09-26T18:05:48Z")
What is your favorite card game for two people and why? My girlfriend and I are looking to learn some good card games we can play with each other. ---
**Author:** ![Covered\_In\_Bees](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7ab992/32.png) [@Covered\_In\_Bees](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Covered_In_Bees)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2009, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-card-game-for-two-people/511661/2 "2009-09-26T18:25:19Z")
Magic: The Gathering. ---
**Author:** ![notfrommensa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f14d63/32.png) [@notfrommensa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/notfrommensa)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2009, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-card-game-for-two-people/511661/3 "2009-09-26T18:48:19Z")
Gin and Cribbage. eta, oops you wanted reasons: Both are relatively easy to learn, but both take some strategy. And you can gamble sexual favors on the results. That way, you both win!! ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2009, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-card-game-for-two-people/511661/4 "2009-09-26T21:32:27Z")
Uno or Rat-a-Tat Cat. ---
**Author:** ![Purgatory\_Creek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/74df32/32.png) [@Purgatory\_Creek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Purgatory_Creek)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2009, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-card-game-for-two-people/511661/5 "2009-09-26T21:48:31Z")
\*\*Purgatory Man \*\*and I love playing cribbage, but I can’t really explain why. It’s fun, it makes us do elementary math in our heads, and it involves props, I guess. I also like playing 2-handed Spades. It’s one of those games you can just play forever, allowing your scores to build up to 7 figures and beyond. You can easily carry on a conversation while you play, and all it requires is a deck of cards, a writing instrument, and a scrap of paper. I always wanted to learn to play gin, but nobody ever wanted to learn to play it with me. ---
**Author:** ![Justin\_Credible](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a8b319/32.png) [@Justin\_Credible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Credible)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2009, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-card-game-for-two-people/511661/6 "2009-09-26T22:41:12Z")
Scrabble Slam and Monopoly Deal are really fun and easy to learn. They’re cheap too - you can find them at Wal-Mart or Target for $5. Magic: The Gathering is fun too, but can be difficult for beginners to learn if they don’t have an experienced player teaching them. Plus, it can get expensive. ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2009, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-card-game-for-two-people/511661/7 "2009-09-26T23:29:17Z")
Like notfrommensa, I’ll throw in votes for crib and gin. For the same reasons. Also counting in crib can be fun in itself. ---
**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:** [September 27, 2009, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-card-game-for-two-people/511661/8 "2009-09-27T00:04:51Z")
[Carcosonne: The Castle](http://www.boardgamegeek.com/image/76186) ---
**Author:** ![fubbleskag](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c2a13f/32.png) [@fubbleskag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fubbleskag)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2009, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-card-game-for-two-people/511661/9 "2009-09-27T00:57:37Z")
I’ll 3rd Cribbage for sexual favours. ---
**Author:** ![Sigmagirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c89c15/32.png) [@Sigmagirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sigmagirl)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2009, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-card-game-for-two-people/511661/10 "2009-09-27T01:06:25Z")
Cribbage; I grew up with it. All the adults played it, and the kids watched until old enough (8 or so) to play. ---
**Author:** ![Superhal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Superhal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superhal)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2009, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-card-game-for-two-people/511661/11 "2009-09-27T01:14:16Z")
Trumps. I even devised a solitaire version. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2009, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-card-game-for-two-people/511661/12 "2009-09-27T01:42:13Z")
[Race for the Galaxy](http://www.boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/28143) is a great space-themed card game for 2 to 4 players. ---
**Author:** ![misterW](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f1d935/32.png) [@misterW](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/misterW)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2009, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-card-game-for-two-people/511661/13 "2009-09-27T02:57:36Z")
Thanks for all the replies! I should have specified, though; we’re looking just for games that can be played with a standard deck of playing cards. ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2009, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-card-game-for-two-people/511661/14 "2009-09-27T03:41:12Z")
[Spite and malice.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spite_and_Malice) ---
**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:** [September 27, 2009, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-card-game-for-two-people/511661/15 "2009-09-27T04:15:46Z")
My granpap taught the whole family a card game called Casino, that all of us really enjoy. Really, most card games can’t really be played properly with two people at all. ---
**Author:** ![Hoopy\_Frood](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hoopy_frood/32/8452_2.png) [@Hoopy\_Frood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hoopy_Frood)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2009, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-card-game-for-two-people/511661/16 "2009-09-27T17:14:06Z")
I’ll echo cribbage. My father and I back when I was a kid could spend an entire Saturday afternoon playing it. I never got bored of it. Unlike Gin, which while an enjoyable game, for some reason I can only play it in small doses (i.e. no more than 3 games in a sitting) before getting bored of it. Two-handed spades isn’t bad, but I found there was a considerably bigger luck factor in it then in four-handed spades. I didn’t find the game as fun. (Granted, cribbage is another “better lucky than good” game, but it’s really fun.) ---
**Author:** ![Sitnam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Sitnam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sitnam)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2009, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-card-game-for-two-people/511661/17 "2009-09-27T21:28:12Z")
[Lost Cities](http://www.boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/50) [Balloon Cup](http://www.boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/5716) ---
**Author:** ![alfonzos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4bbf92/32.png) [@alfonzos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alfonzos)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2009, 5:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-card-game-for-two-people/511661/18 "2009-09-28T05:07:50Z")
I second Lost Cities and Balloon Cup and add Jambo. All three are published by Rio Grande Games. ---
**Author:** ![fusoya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ecccb3/32.png) [@fusoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fusoya)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2009, 5:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-card-game-for-two-people/511661/19 "2009-09-28T05:12:04Z")
Spit all the way!!! That game is more pyschological than poker! ---
**Author:** ![Tenebras](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/977dab/32.png) [@Tenebras](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tenebras)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2009, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-card-game-for-two-people/511661/20 "2009-10-04T20:22:06Z")
My fiancee and I play cribbage like it’s going out of style. It’s a great game. We recently learned Pinochle, which is also really fun once you figure it out. In December we’re planning on teaching the 4 handed version to my sister and her husband. At the moment, we’re trying to learn to play bridge, so we’ve been playing all four hands face up around the table and then doing our damnedest to set ourselves… 🙂 [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-card-game-for-two-people/511661.md?page=2)