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Pairs

Pairs

2014·James Ernest, Paul Peterson, Heinrich Glumpler

2 - 8 players
15 min
Light weight: Learn it in minutes

From BoardGameGeek

Pairs is the name of the game, and pairs of cards are what players want to avoid. The game uses a 55-card deck that contains one 1, two 2s, three 3s, and so on up to ten 10s. At the start of the game, shuffle the deck, then remove five cards from play unseen. Deal one card face-up to each player. Whoever has the lowest card is the first active player. She decides whether to "hit" - that is, be dealt another card - or forfeit the round. If she hits and is dealt a card that doesn't match a card she already has in front of her, then the next player clockwise becomes the active player; if the card does match, then the round ends, she keeps one of these matching cards as penalty points, then everyone else discards their cards and a new round begins with each player being dealt a card. If the active player forfeits, the round ends and she takes the lowest-valued card visible on the table as penalty points, then a new round begins. Penalty cards remain set aside, even if the deck is shuffled to continue play. If a player acquires more penalty points than the predetermined threshold, then the game ends and this player loses. (Alternatively, players can use coins to track scores between games, with the loser paying everyone one coin, paying her score in coins to the player with the lowest score, etc.) There are many versions of Pairs from Cheapass Games. The base game play is identical, but the artwork (and artist) vary across the versions. Some include special game rules relevant to the theme of the deck. In general, you can find new/experimental/user-submitted rules at the official website, and many non-English versions of Pairs also include rules for additional games to play with this deck.

Pairs

Watch first

Learn to play

How to play Pairs, by James Ernest10:53

How to play Pairs, by James Ernest

James Ernest

James Ernest

Review

Pairs Card Game: Review12:37

Pairs Card Game: Review

David Niecikowski, PhD

David Niecikowski, PhD

Which Pairs video should I watch?

Pairs has 3 videos from 2 creators: 1 review and 2 how-to-play guides. They date from 2014 to February 2024.

To learn the rules, start with "How to play Pairs, by James Ernest" by James Ernest, which runs 11 min.

For an opinion before you buy, start with "Pairs Card Game: Review" by David Niecikowski, PhD.

If you like it, try Tak, Pirates of the Spanish Main and Lords of Vegas, also by James Ernest, or Smash Up, also by Paul Peterson.

All videos

How to play Pairs, by James ErnestHow to play10:53

How to play Pairs, by James Ernest

James Ernest

James Ernest

How to Play PairsHow to play3:37

How to Play Pairs

James Ernest

James Ernest

Pairs Card Game: ReviewReview12:37

Pairs Card Game: Review

David Niecikowski, PhD

David Niecikowski, PhD

Creators who cover this

All channels
James Ernest
James Ernest
2 videos of this game
David Niecikowski, PhD
David Niecikowski, PhD
1 video of this game

Games like this

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Tak

2017·James Ernest, Patrick Rothfuss

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205
Creators
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2 players·20 - 60 min·Medium weight

Pirates of the Spanish Main

2004·James Ernest, Michael Mulvihill, Mike Selinker

Videos
85
Creators
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Mainly how-to-play and unboxings

2 - 10 players·30 min·Light weight

Lords of Vegas

2010·James Ernest, Mike Selinker

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Mainly reviews

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Smash Up

2012·Paul Peterson

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Creators
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Mainly reviews

2 - 4 players·45 min·Medium weight

About Pairs

From BoardGameGeek:

Pairs is the name of the game, and pairs of cards are what players want to avoid. The game uses a 55-card deck that contains one 1, two 2s, three 3s, and so on up to ten 10s. At the start of the game, shuffle the deck, then remove five cards from play unseen. Deal one card face-up to each player. Whoever has the lowest card is the first active player. She decides whether to "hit" - that is, be dealt another card - or forfeit the round. If she hits and is dealt a card that doesn't match a card she already has in front of her, then the next player clockwise becomes the active player; if the card does match, then the round ends, she keeps one of these matching cards as penalty points, then everyone else discards their cards and a new round begins with each player being dealt a card. If the active player forfeits, the round ends and she takes the lowest-valued card visible on the table as penalty points, then a new round begins. Penalty cards remain set aside, even if the deck is shuffled to continue play. If a player acquires more penalty points than the predetermined threshold, then the game ends and this player loses. (Alternatively, players can use coins to track scores between games, with the loser paying everyone one coin, paying her score in coins to the player with the lowest score, etc.) There are many versions of Pairs from Cheapass Games. The base game play is identical, but the artwork (and artist) vary across the versions. Some include special game rules relevant to the theme of the deck. In general, you can find new/experimental/user-submitted rules at the official website, and many non-English versions of Pairs also include rules for additional games to play with this deck.

Designers

James Ernest, Paul Peterson, Heinrich Glumpler

Artists

Brett Bean, BJ Becker, Echo Chernik, Ferran Criado, James Ernest, Phil Foglio, Kaja Foglio, Mutsumi Hagiiwa and 19 more

Publisher

Cheapass Games

Categories

Card Game

Mechanics

Push Your LuckPlayer Elimination
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