How Do You Play Casino?
Playing the Game
There are two to four players in this game with one deck of cards (jokers are taken out). Four cards are dealt to each player and four cards are placed in the middle of a table and they are face up and spread out to form a line. The player to the left of the dealer goes first. The player has to turn his or her card face up and place it on the table so that all players can see it. Then the player will use that card to try and build on or take as many cards as possible from the middle. This is called a build or capture. Are you with me so far, because I am not getting this?Rules of the Game
- Capture a Card by Pairing: A card from the player's hand matches the number of a face-up card in the middle. The player places his card down and then collects the matching pair for counting at the end of the game.
- Capture Cards by Combining: A player can capture numerical cards (Ace to 10 — not face cards) in combination if the value of the cards adds up to the value of a card in the player's hand. For instance, a player with an 8 could capture a 6 and 2. Ah So! I got it!
- Capture Cards by Pairing and Combining: A player can use both pairing and combining at the same time if the middle cards support this move. As an example, if a player has a 9 and the board shows a 5, 4 and 9, then the player may take the combination (5 and 4) and the pair (9) at once.
- Building: A player may build a combination on a middle pile by adding one of the cards from his hand. For example, if there is a 2 in the middle and a player has a 6 and 8 in his hand, the player can place the 6 on the 2 and say, "building eight." The player who does this may not capture the cards from this build until his next turn. If any of the other players has an 8, they may steal this build before it gets back around to the original player. Face cards cannot be part of builds.
- Build on Builds: A player may build upon another player's build if he has a card that will total the value of the three cards in the build. As shown in the above example, a player with a 9 and Ace could build Ace, 6, and 2 and say "building nine." Similarly, the player must wait a turn to capture this build if no other player captures it first.
- Trailing: If a player cannot capture any cards, or for any other reason wants to lay off a card, he may play a card face-up in the middle. Other players may then capture or utilize this card.
Winning the Game
In order to win the game Casino, a player has to score 21 points. Here is how this works. There is a point system in this game. If no one achieves the minimum number, the points are not awarded. The first player to reach 21 points is the winner. Note that in each round, the cards are dealt again by the dealer, but the cards in the middle remain.- Majority of cards (27 or more): 3 points
- Majority of spades (7 or more): 1 point
- Big Casino (the 10♦): 2 points
- Little Casino (the 2♠): 1 point
- Aces (each): 1 point