How To Play Go Fish
Go Fish is a fun game that will amuse and entertain even the youngest card players. It is similar to the game Authors.
Prerequisite
You need to use a standard 52-card pack. Some of the cards will be dealt, the others will be the “stockpile”
Win Condition
The goal is to win the most “books” of all cards. To get a “book” you have to gather any four of a kind, such as four kings, four aces, and so on.
Card ranks
The cards rank from ace (high) to two (low).
Suits are not important. Only the numbers are relevant, such as two 3s, two 10s, and so on.
How to be the dealer
A player deals one card face up to each player. The player that receives the lowest card is the dealer and has to shuffle the cards. The player right to the dealer has to cut the cards.
The dealer completes the cut and deals the cards clockwise. With two or three people, each player receives seven cards. With four or five people, each receives five cards. You have to place the remaining cards onto the “stock”.
How to play
The player to the left of the dealer starts the game and looks directly at any opponent and says, for example, “Give me your aces,” usually addressing the opponent by name and specifying the rank that they want, from ace down to two. The player who is “fishing “must have at least one card of the rank that was asked for. The player who is asked must hand over all the cards requested. If the player does not have any card, they will say, “Go fish!”. the player who made the request draws a card of the stock.
If a player gets at least one card, they are entitled to ask the same or another player for a card. The player can ask for the same card or a different one. The player will continue their turn while they succeed in getting cards. When a player makes a catch, they must reveal the card so that the catch is verified. If a player gets the fourth card of a book, the player shows all four cards, places them on the table face up in front of everyone, and plays again.
If the player does not get any card, the turn passes to the left.
The game will end after all thirteen books have been won. The player with the most books wins the game. During the game, if a player is left without cards, they may draw from the stock and then ask for cards of that rank. If there are no cards left in the stock, they are out.
Final Thoughts
“Go Fish” is a nice game which can be played with everybody. It is really easy to understand.
If you already played this game or like my explanation, I would love to hear about it in the comments.
