With the winter months knocking on our door (if you live in the Northern Hemisphere anyway!), it’s inevitable that we’ll all be spending more time indoors. Those of us who are parents will be thinking of ways to keep our young whippersnappers entertained on those long, dark nights. Luckily for you, we’ve compiled a series of the best card games for the whole family. Let’s take a closer look:
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Snip Snap Snorem
Introduction
The popular (and somewhat noisy) card-matching game is perfect for playing with young children, as well as mixed age groups. It’s played with a minimum number of three players, and suitable for ages four and up.
Cards
Snip Snap Snorem is played with a standard 52-card deck of cards.
Dealing
The entire deck of cards is dealt out to the players (it doesn’t matter if some players get more than others).
Gameplay
The player to the left of the dealer starts by placing a card face-up on the table. The next player looks to see if they have a card of the same rank. If they do, they place it down on top of the first player’s card and say “snip”. They can continue to play if they have yet another card of the same rank by placing the card face-up on the pile and saying “snap”.
If they’re unable to play, the turn goes to the next player, and so on and so forth. The player that places the final card of that rank says “snorem”, earning the right to start the next round of gameplay with the card of their choice. Your kids will soon catch on to the fact that it’s best to lead with a card which they have more than one of a kind.
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Pig
Introduction
Pig is a fun party game that children will love. It’s fast-paced, challenging and will keep them on their toes. If you’re not going to play it tonight, this game is definitely one for their next birthday party!
Cards
Pig is played with a standard 52-card deck of cards, however each player will also need a pen. Also, three cards with the letters P, I and G written on them respectively.
Dealing
The dealer sorts out the deck of cards into piles of four of a kind (eg. 9,9,9,9; 5,5,5,5) – one for each player. The remainder of the cards are discarded. The dealer then shuffles the cards thoroughly and deals until each player has four cards.
Gameplay
The aim of the game is to collect four of a kind, but players must choose which cards they want to collect and discard what they don’t want, face-down. The discarded card is passed to the player to their left, who also discards a card to the next player to the left, and so on.
As soon as a player collects four of a kind, they must put a finger on their nose immediately. When another player sees them do this, they too put a finger on their nose, even if they don’t have four of a kind. The last player to notice the others doing so gets the letter “P” given to them.
The game continues as detailed above until one player receives all three letters, namely the P, the I and the G. The last player in play wins the game.
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Beggar my Neighbor
Introduction
Beggar my Neighbor is a fun card game that’s perfect for kids to learn basic counting skills. It required a lot of concentration but it is a thoroughly good time.
Cards
If the game is played by two or three players, then it can be played with a standard 52-card deck. However, if there any more than three players, you will need to play the game with two decks.
Dealing
All the cards are dealt around the group one by one until there are none left.
Each player collects their cards in a face-down pile without looking at them. The person to the left of the dealer places their top card face-up in the center of the table.
Gameplay
The game moves around clockwise, with each player adding one card to the central pile until an Ace, Jack, Queen or King turns up.
The player who places one of these cards on the pile can then demand payment from the next player. Aces earn four cards, Kings earn three cards, Queens earn two cards and Jacks earn one card.
These “payment” cards are also placed on the central pile. The last player who turns up an Ace or court card has to take the whole central pile and puts it at the bottom of their own. This player gets to start the next round, and the game starts again. The player who goes out first by using up all their cards is the winner.
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Rolling Stone
Introduction
This card game that’s played with between four and six players, and is perfectly suited to kids aged six and up, can be a whole lot of fun, but frustrating too – you can find yourself starting over when you’re just about to win!
Cards
Rolling Stone is played with a standard 52-card deck. If there are six players playing, the two cards are removed. If five players are playing, the two, three and four cards are removed. If four players are playing, the twos, threes, fours, fives and sixes are removed.
Dealing
The players cut the deck between them, and the recipient of the highest cards deals all the cards around the group in a clockwise direction until each player has eight cards.
Gameplay
The player to the dealer’s left begins, and can play any card. The next player to play must follow suit. The game continues like that until a player is unable to follow suit. If this occurs, the player must pick up all the cards played so far, and add them to their hand. That player then starts a new round and can lead with any card.
If everyone manages to follow suit, the player that played the highest card collects the trick but places it in a discard pile. These cards don’t count as part of the player’s hand, so the only advantage to winning a trick is the ability to lead with the suit of their choice to start the next round. The player who gets rid of all their cards first is the winner.
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Gin Rummy Super
Introduction
Part of the big family of Rummy card games, Gin Rummy can trace its origins back to 1909, when it was invented by a father-and-son duo living in New York City. It became a hugely popular throughout the Roaring Twenties, before declining in the 1930s and having a resurgence in 1940s Hollywood.
Cards
Gin Rummy is played with a French deck of 52 cards. The cards are ranked as follows: King, Queen, Jack, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, Ace.
In terms of their points value in the game, an Ace is worth 1 point, the numbered cards have their nominal values, and face cards are worth 10 points each.
Also keep in mind that an Ace can only be melded with a 2 card.
Dealing
Players receive 10 cards each, with the rest forming the stock that is used for players to take cards and discard them. One card of the deck is turned face-up and placed close to the stock. When a player takes a card from the pile, they can get rid of one of the cards they hold.
Gameplay
The main objective of the game is to combine card sets from the suit, or the same rank. Players attempt to meld as many cards as possible.
Try our version of Gin Rummy – Gin Rummy Super!
Our awesome version of Gin Rummy, Gin Rummy Super, is available on both iOS and Android. Be sure to try it today!
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