Board / Card Games: What's Hot Now: Hollywood Gin Rules

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Hollywood Gin Rules Nov 22nd 2011, 10:05 Hollywood Gin is a close relative of the card game Gin Rummy. Players 2 players Deck Use a standard 52-card deck. NOTE: An Ace is always low card in Hollywood Gin; it cannot be used as high card. Also, face cards are worth 10 points each; number cards are worth their face value; an Ace is worth one point. Goal Collect sets (three or four of a kind, or three or more consecutive cards of the same suit) to earn points. The game is played over several rounds. Setup Choose a dealer randomly to deal the first round; throughout the game, the winner of each round deals the next. Shuffle the deck and deal 10 cards to each player. Players should look at and sort their cards. The next card is turned face up in the middle of the table to start the discard pile. The remaining cards are placed face down next to the discard pile to form a draw pile. Gameplay Each normal turn consists of two parts. First, you must take a card -- either the top card from the draw pile or the top card from the discard pile. Second, you must discard a card (face up) onto the top of the discard pile. NOTE: On the very first turn of each round, the non-dealer decides whether or not to take the first face up card. If that player declines, the dealer may take the card. If one of the players takes the card, that player completes his turn by discarding and then the other player takes a turn. If both players decline to take the card, the non-dealer starts the game by drawing the top card from the draw pile. Knocking The round ends when a player "knocks." This may be done on any turn (including the first turn) after drawing but before discarding. A player may knock when he has the ability to form sets, discard one card, and have 10 points or fewer remaining in his hand. NOTE: A single card cannot belong to two sets. After knocking and discarding, the player who knocked organizes and spreads all of his cards face up on the table. The player who did not knock does the same. If the knocker did not go gin (see "Going Gin" below), the opponent is also allowed to lay off any unmatched cards by adding to the knocker's sets (e.g. adding a fourth card to a group of three of a kind, or adding further consecutive cards of the same suit to a sequence). NOTE: You're never required to knock. You may continue playing in an effort to develop a better hand. Basic Scoring Each player calculates the value of their unmatched cards. If the knocker's count is lower, he scores the difference between the two counts. If the knocker did not go gin, and the values are equal -- or the knocker's value is greater than his opponent's -- then the knocker has been undercut. The knocker's opponent scores 10 points plus the difference between the values. Going Gin If the knocker has no unmatched cards, it's known as going gin and he scores 25 bonus points (some sources say the bonus should be 20 points). Additionally, his opponent cannot score any points, even if his opponent also had no unmatched cards. Hollywood Scoring In effect, three games will be played simultaneously. When a player wins his first game, that score is credited to the first game. His second win is credited to the first and the second games; his third win and all subsequent wins are credited to all three games. The three games are scored separately and they end separately. When the third game ends, a new series may begin. Example: Bob wins with 10 points. This is used as his first score in the first game. Alexandra wins with 18 points. This is used as her first score in the first game. Bob wins again, this time with 30 points. This is used twice: as his second score in the first game, and his first score in the second game. Bob wins again, this time with 4 points. This is used three times: as his third score in the first game, his second score in the second game, and his first score in the third game. At this point in the example, the scores over the three games would be: Alexandra, 18 / 0 / 0 Bob, 44 / 34 / 4 Draws If only two cards remain in the draw pile after a player discards and neither player has knocked, the round ends in a draw. The same player deals again. Winning Additional rounds are played until one player's cumulative score reaches 100 points or more in a game. That player is the winner of that game. The overall winner is the player who wins two of three games.

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Board / Card Games: What's Hot Now: Monopoly 101

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Monopoly 101 Nov 22nd 2011, 10:05 Monopoly is published in 26 languages and sold in 80 countries. But how much do you know about this game, first published commercially in 1935 -- the height of the Depression? Whatever you want to know about the board game Monopoly, these links will provide it. Monopoly Rules and Strategy When you play Monopoly, do you get money for landing on Free Parking? If so, you're not playing by the official rules -- and you're making the game longer and probably less fun than it should be. There are also some time-proven strategies to being a successful Monopoly player. How to Improve Monopoly How to Win at Monopoly Monopoly Rules and Variants Best Monopoly Books Playing Monopoly Online When you can't find anyone to play Monopoly in person, there are several ways to enjoy the classic real estate game online for free. How and Where to Play Monopoly Online Monopoly History Monopoly's history is not as simple as you might imagine. Charles Darrow was not the first person to design a Monopoly-like game, and the publication of a 1974 game called Anti-Monopoly led one man to do a lot of investigating. Collecting Monopoly Monopoly may be the most collectible board game in history, as hundreds of editions have been published through the years. Many major U.S. cities and universities have their own special themed editions of Monopoly, as do the NFL, Coca-Cola, Betty Boop, the Simpsons, Elvis Presley, NASCAR and many others. Some collectors have amassed thousands of Monopoly-related items, including board games, computer games, mugs, greeting cards, keychains, gum, boxer shorts and more. Collecting Monopoly Top 10 Monopoly Editions If You Like Monopoly, Try These Games There are many great board games with an economic theme. Monopoly is the best-known, but many others deserve a spot on your game shelf.

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Board / Card Games: What's Hot Now: Monopoly Online at Atari.com

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Monopoly Online at Atari.com Nov 21st 2011, 10:05 Creating a New Table If there are no games to join, or if you want to be the one to set the rules, click on the "New Table" button in the game lobby above the chat area (and directly below Mr. Monopoly). You have several decisions to make before the game can begin: Will the game be rated? If you leave this box checked, the outcome of the game will affect the rating for registered players who take part. How many players? You can choose 2, 3 or 4. Auctions? Leaving this box checked means the game will include auctions, which speeds things up and in my opinion provides for a more strategic experience. Build Evenly? This has to do with houses and hotels. When checked, this box requires players to develop their properties evenly (so you could not build a hotel on one property in a color group while having just one or two houses on another property in that group). Collect 2x Salary? If you land directly on Go, you collect $400 instead of the normal $200. I don't recommended this option because it lengthens the game and introduces more luck. Short Game? If this feature is checked, several features are used to make the game as quick as possible. Collect Fines on Free Parking? All fines are paid to a separate pot instead of the bank; when someone lands on Free Parking they win this pot of money. Again, I don't recommended this option because it lengthens the game and introduces more luck. Once you've created a table, simply wait for other players to join in and then the game will begin. Playing the Game Once the game loads, your first task is to choose a token. The key is to pay attention to Mr. Monopoly. He'll let you know when it's your turn and what you need to do. When it's your turn, click on the "Roll Dice" button in the upper left corner of the board, or simply click on the two white dice in the lower right corner. Your token will move automatically, and any rent or fines you have to pay will also be taken care of automatically. If you want to build houses or hotels, click on "Assets" and then click on the property you want to improve. The green "+" button will add a house; the red "+" button will add a hotel. You can sell houses and hotels by using the green and red "-" buttons. If you want to mortgage a property, click on "Assets" and then click on the property you want to mortgage. Press the "Mortgage" button. You can unmortgage properties in a similar manner. To propose a trade with another player, click on "Trade" and then choose the properties you want to swap. Trades can also involve cash. If a property has a white square with squiggly writing on it, that property has been mortgaged. Beware of multi-player games -- they have some quirky features. Most notably, if one player leaves, that player can give all of his property to any one of the remaining players. This can be very frustrating -- especially if you're playing a four-player game, get out to a lead, and then two players leave -- both giving their property to the fourth, who is then handed a commanding lead. And, yes, I speak from experience. Remember that there will be some delays over the Web. When you click on "+" to add a house, for example, it might take a couple of seconds for that house to pop up on the screen.

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Board / Card Games: What's Hot Now: How to Win at Ticket to Ride

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How to Win at Ticket to Ride Nov 21st 2011, 10:05 In spite of not having any dice, and players being allowed to choose what cards to take on their turn, Ticket to Ride has a significant amount of luck. This means that no strategy is guaranteed to win all of the time, or even most of the time. But if you want some basic Ticket to Ride strategy, here are some tips on how to win at Ticket to Ride. DRAWING TRAIN CARDS The most basic action in Ticket to Ride is drawing train cards. Your other two options are drawing additional tickets and placing trains, but you will be doing that slightly less often. On your turn, the most frequent thing you should be doing is drawing cards. This is especially true towards the beginning of the game, when you're trying to figure out what options you have. With only a few cards in your hand, it's not easy to determine which color tracks you'll want to lay down, even if you know what tickets you are trying to fill. Until you have more cards, you don't know which color you'll need your wild card locomotives for. That's why drawing cards early on is an important strategy. And unless you have a good reason not to (such as later in the game when you need one specific color), you should always draw facedown cards from the deck. The reason for this is simple: You might get a wild card. Drawing a face-up wild card takes your whole turn, so if you can draw two cards from the deck on your turn and one of them is wild, you've gotten a free extra card you wouldn't have gotten from taking face-up cards. Once your hand is more filled up, it will be easier to see what colors you have a lot of, what colors to use your wild cards on, and what colors you need so badly that it's worth picking them up from the face-up cards. Until then, keep drawing from the deck! DRAWING ADDITIONAL TICKETS Contrary to what you might think, you don't always need a lot of tickets to win the game. Yes, completing more tickets gives you more points, but failing to complete your tickets will lose you points, making it more difficult to win. One common strategy is to take a turn to draw tickets near the beginning of the game, to see if you can match any new routes to the ones in your hand, ideally finding some overlap. Usually a better strategy is to take a few turns to draw train cards first, and then if you want to take a turn to draw tickets, you'll have more information about what color tracks you might be able to play on before choosing what tickets to keep. The goal of the game is completing tickets, which means once you have completed all the tickets in your hand, you should be doing one of two things: Either trying to end the game as fast as possible, or drawing more tickets to complete. If the game continues but you complete no additional tickets, you lose ground against the other players. PLACE TRAINS Placing trains on the board is a balance between not wanting to move too soon, and not wanting to move too late. If you play on the board too early, other players can easily see where you are trying to make connections, and place trains to block you. On the other hand, if you wait too long to play your trains and just draw cards for a dozen turns, some of the key small connecting routes (like Atlanta to Nashville) will disappear before you get a chance to take them. As a good rule of thumb, take a few turns to draw cards at the beginning of the game before playing any trains. What you want to avoid is playing one early connection on the board, and then having to draw more cards for three turns while other players block that connection. You should instead draw sufficient cards that you can take a few turns in a row to play trains, so other players don't have as much time to block you. If a short grey connection is part of your route, build that first. Other players won't necessarily be able to save up enough cards for a 6-length colored connection you need, but every player can easily play on a short grey connection, so those are the most urgent ones to grab. Finally, try to build outwards from your original connection to form an unbroken line of connections stretching from east to west (or west to east). This cross-country line will not only give you more points (especially if you can get longest train), but will also make picking up and filling additional tickets much easier, because any two cities you need to connect probably aren't far away from somewhere on your line.

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Board / Card Games: What's Hot Now: Electronic Catchphrase

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Electronic Catchphrase Nov 21st 2011, 10:05 Gameplay in Brief: In Electronic Catchphrase (or Catch Phrase), you're trying to get your teammates to say a particular word or phrase -- fast. Because if the buzzer goes off while it's your turn, the other team scores a point. Players are divided into two teams, seated in a circle with alternating team members. The first player starts the electronic timer, then passes the handheld unit after he gets his team to guess the first word or phrase. The timer provides built-in tension, and I always have a good time playing Electronic Catchphrase. Basics: For 4 to 16 players divided into two teams (best with 6 to 12 players), ages 12 and up. Designer: No designer is credited. Publisher: Electronic Catchphrase is published by Parker Brothers / Hasbro and Waddingtons Games. Genre: Electronic Catchphrase is a party game and a word game. A music edition is also available. Awards: Electronic Catchphrase is on my list of the best games for family gatherings.

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Board / Card Games: What's Hot Now: Top 10 Political Games

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Top 10 Political Games Nov 20th 2011, 10:05 They say that politics makes for strange bedfellows. These political board games and card games make for some good times. They are my picks for the best political games. (I have also posted an article featuring many other political-themed games.) 1. 1960: The Making of the President Image courtesy of Z-Man Games For 2 players, ages 12 and up. Designed by Christian Leonhard and Jason Matthews, published by Z-Man Games. The 1960 U.S. presidential election was a contest between two dramatically different personalities: John F. Kennedy and Richard M. Nixon. Although Kennedy won the real-life election, this tremendous board game allows players to relive the event for themselves. Everything about this game is top-notch. The gameplay is superb, while the components perfectly evoke the feeling of a mid-20th century presidential campaign. 1960: The Making of the President takes 90 to 120 minutes per game. 2. Die Macher Image courtesy of Valley Games For 3 to 5 players, ages 14 and up. Designed by Karl-Heinz Schmiel, published by Valley Games. Seven regional political races take place in Germany, followed by the general election, to determine who will set policy for the next four years. Players have their party's philosophy, poll results, the ability to influence the media, and other tools at their disposal. I'm not alone in thinking this is a great political game -- it's rated in the top 25 games of all time at BoardGameGeek.com. Die Macher takes about 240 minutes (four hours) per game. 3. Twilight Struggle Image courtesy of GMT Games For 2 players, ages 14 and up. Designed by Ananda Gupta and Jason Matthews, published by GMT Games. Twilight Struggle is a brilliantly designed wargame that has received widespread acclaim. One player is the United States; the other is the Soviet Union. They compete during the 45 years of the Cold War, covering such events as the Cuban Missile Crisis, the Vietnam War, and the possibility of nuclear war. Gameplay is driven by a deck of about 100 cards that is divided into "early war" and "late war" sections. Experienced players have a definite advantage by knowing what cards might come up, but the deck is very well balanced. About 180 minutes (three hours) per game. 4. Campaign Manager 2008 Image courtesy of Z-Man Games For 2 players, ages 10 and up. Designed by Christian Leonhard and Jason Matthews, published by Z-Man Games. Campaign Manager 2008 opens with players building a deck of 15 cards (out of 45 possible cards) that they will use throughout the game to win electoral votes in battleground states like Pennsylvania, Florida and Ohio. The first player to get past 270 electoral votes is the winner. Every game I've played has been tense to the end, exactly what I want in a political game. About 45 to 60 minutes per game. 5. Quo Vadis? For 3 to 5 players, ages 12 and up. Designed by Reiner Knizia, published by Mayfair Games. Who can best influence outcomes in the Roman Senate? The answer to that question will determine the winner of this game. Players try to maneuver their politicians through the committee structure and into the best positions. But along the way, they have to help their opponents because that's the only way to win all-important prestige points. Quo Vadis? takes about 45 minutes per game. 6. Junta Image courtesy of West End Games For 2 to 7 players, ages 12 and up. Designed by Eric Goldberg, Vincent Tsao and Ben Grossman, published by West End Games. Politics is never more dangerous than it is in the Republica of Los Bananas. Players first elect El Presidente, who then proposes a budget that everyone must vote on. But players must watch their backs -- someone is always plotting a coup, and assassination attempts are common. Junta takes about 240 minutes (four hours) per game. 7. Koalition For 4 to 10 players, ages 12 and up. Designed by Hartmut Witt, published by Hexagames. This is a card game about elections in 12 European countries, with each player trying to obtain power in as many places as possible. Because there are so many political parties involved, winning with a simple majority is unusual. More often, players will need to form coalitions. Koalition takes about 150 minutes (two and a half hours) per game. 8. Louis XIV For 2 to 4 players, ages 12 and up. Designed by Rüdiger Dorn, published by Rio Grande Games / Alea. The French court of the late 1600s is the setting for this strategy game, in which players become members of the court and try to influence various court advisors. Being able to do so allows players to complete missions, earning benefits and scoring victory points. There is a lot of player interaction as they try to take influence away from their opponents while securing it for themselves. About 90 to 120 minutes per game. 9. Kremlin For 3 to 6 players, ages 12 and up. Designed by Urs Hostettler, published by Avalon Hill. At the height of its power, politicians worked to move up the hierarchy of the Soviet Politburo. Kremlin gives players the chance to secretly shape that process, promoting some leaders and sending others to exile in Siberia. The player who is able to get their Party Chief to wave to the audience three times at the May Day parade wins. About 75 minutes per game. 10. Mr. President For 2 or 4 players, ages 12 and up. Designed by Jack Carmichael, published by 3M. Interestingly, 3M released three separate games titled Mr. President, the first in 1965 and a second, much better-known, version in 1967. (A 1971 version also included significant changes to the gameplay.) Mr. President covers every major aspect of the election process, including nominee selection, advertising, fund-raising and debating. In the two-player game, one player controls the president and vice-president of a party. In the four-player game, two teams of candidates compete. About 60 minutes per game.

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Board / Card Games: What's Hot Now: Monopoly: Rent in Jail?

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Monopoly: Rent in Jail? Nov 20th 2011, 10:05 Question: Can I collect rent from other players while I'm in Jail? Answer: Yes. In terms of rent collection, Monopoly players conduct business as usual while in jail.

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