Feeling bored during lunchtime after the school banned electronics? Have nothing to do? Well, one idea is to play card games with friends! Personally, my friends and I play the card game Fish every day. It’s a fun and engaging game that combines logic/reasoning, bluffing skills, and teamwork with a bit of luck. Everyone’s engaged and on the edge of their seats at the end! Read on to find out how to play!
What You Need:
6 people and a deck of cards.
How to Start:
Evenly deal the 54 cards (each person should have 9 cards each). Each player can look at their own cards but cannot see anyone else’s.
There are two teams. If we label players 1-6 clockwise around a circle, Players 1, 3, and 5 are on a team, and Players 2, 4, and 6 are on the other team.
Goal of the Game:
There are 9 “sets” in the deck. The 4 “low” sets are 2-7 of each suit (e.g. 2 of hearts, 3 of hearts, 4 of hearts, 5 of hearts, 6 of hearts, and 7 of hearts). The 4 “high” sets are 9-A of each suit (e.g. 9 of spades, 10 of spades, J of spades, Q of spades, K of spades, and A of spades). The last set is the four 8’s and two jokers.
The goal of the game is to get at least 5 sets for your team. To get a set, a person needs to “call” the set. When calling the set, the player should first be sure that their whole team has all the relevant cards of the set by deducing that through what his/her teammates ask for/receive from the other team. Then, they would need to name which person has which card of the set. For example, I can say “I have the 3 and 4 of hearts. [teammate 1] has the 2 and 7 of hearts and [teammate 2] has the 5 and 6 of hearts.” If you call correctly, then that set goes to your team. If not (e.g. you call the wrong card from a person, or your team is missing a card), then that set is awarded to the other team.
How to Play:
A “turn” is when you ask for a card from one person from the opposing team. To ask for a card from a certain set, you must have at least one card from that set. For example, if I have the six of diamonds, then I can ask for “low” diamonds (e.g. 2, 3, 4, 5, and 7 of diamonds). Having a “low” diamond does not allow me to ask for a card from “high diamonds,” or the 8 of diamonds, as they are from different sets.
If you ask a person and they don’t have that card, then the turn gets passed on to the person you asked. If the person does have the card you asked for, then it’s your turn again, meaning that you continue asking.
As the game progresses, you have to utilize your skills of logic and reasoning to rule out what cards your teammates don’t have and find out what cards your teammates have, so you can eventually call the set. The game ends once all the sets are called. The team with more sets called wins.
More Advanced Version – Includes “Trolling”
“Trolling” is when a person asks for a card that they already have. For example, if I have the six of diamonds and I ask for the six of diamonds, that’s when I’ve “trolled.” It’s a bit more advanced because it doesn’t allow you to rule out a card from the person who asked. I would suggest beginners first master the non-trolling version to get the hang of the game, then possibly add trolling after everyone understands the game to spice it up!
Reasons Why You Should Play:
Fish is a super accessible game to improve deduction skills, train memory, practice bluffing, and learn how to be part of a team. Additionally, since it’s so difficult and complex, it’s hard to get bored as the game plays out differently every time. It’s also perfect for playing at lunch because a game typically takes between 20 and 40 minutes. The game keeps you fulfilled for all of lunch while having fun with your friends! It also allows you to observe your friend’s behavioral patterns. Do they tend to troll more? Are they good at lying? Fascinating, ain’t it?
