Great game to start off the list.

My favorite game. It has everything: skill, luck, bluffing, the decisions of going for it or playing it safe, simple rules, easy setup, game length can be as quick or long as a player wants, has player elimination (but you can always buy back in), good party game, good social game, good drinking game, can be an intimate couples game (strip variant), I will stop there.

I think it is the most played game in Movies and Television shows because everyone knows it, and it has built in drama. It has been overexposed on ESPN, etc., but I just think that goes with the "reality TV" genre right now, and I think it is better reality TV than anything else out there (I don't watch it myself; I would rather play).

"No Mr. Spock.......not chess......poker". Star Trek - "The Corbomite Manuever."

I'm burnt on poker. When I started to rebuild my collection in 2002, it seemed like the majority of my friends switched to playing poker and poker only. I don't mind playing a game or two of hold 'em, but all night? Can't do it.

I'm remembering this the next time I host a session after EPGS. (I know it's been a while; still, I don't believe you've ever partaken.)

I play this more than any other game. I've gradually raised my rating over the years, it's now a 10 in my book.

Not just a favorite card game, but favorite games period!

It's oft been said that "Cribbage is 60% luck, and 60% skill... and the winning or loosing is in the overlap."

My dad taught me this game when I was 10. I am forever grateful.

Best game I ever learnt for two people. It seems full of trivial rules at first but is a really skillful game. I have probably played cribbage more than any other game.

6-handed version (played with a pinochle deck) is really far and away better than the 4-handed. The latter just seem to lack depth in comparison.

Any game where you get to stick cards behind your ears is ah-right in my book!




(p.s.- this is what you do when you are "in the barn")

"In the barn" and "milking the cow?" or something similar is not as common in Michigan. Somewhere we discussed this but for the life of me, I can't find it now using the search feature. As a mid-westerner tho - it is definitely a right of passage to play Euchre. Anyhoo, yes, I love this game.

edit:
found it!

I guess since I grew up playing Pinochle for so long I always hated Euchre.

I kind of feel like it's the short bus of Trump/partnership games.

No offense meant to the multitude that love playing it, but I think if you took the time to really learn pinochle you'd never play this game again unless you were on a long bus trip and had minimal time and space.

Ditto here as well, though I cut my teeth on Spades...Euchre has always felt like it's missing too much of what I like about Spades.

This is my favourite classic card game.

I much prefer hearts with "spot hearts" scoring (hearts count face value, hearts picture cards 10, Queen of Spades 13), as it de-emphasizes the Queen of Spades (as compared to regular scoring with 1 point per heart card, 13 for the QoS).

Awesome game. The variant we played throughout college was that the Jack of diamonds is worth -5 points. It adds an interesting element to the game.

Our game style was fairly aggressive where we were always trying to shoot the moon, which we typically tried to do every hand, avoid all points, which we did when shooting was hopeless, or catch the Jack of Diamonds without getting the Queen of spades.

At a former job we played this to death at lunch. Finally one of the high muckity-mucks learned that we were playing so he started reserving a conference room and joined us.

We loved dumping the Queen on him because he would always shout "You're all Sons of the BITCH!!!!"

Good times, good times.

3 in the morning is a good time to play hearts. When nothing really matters but the convivial company of friends and the pretty colours of the cards in your hand.

A nice game that scales down as well as up is always welcome.

I would probably mention this as one of the better 3 player card games...though I haven't played it in ages now since I bought all these schnazzy Euro card games like Cosmic Eidex, Flaschenteufel, and the like.

Don't feel too bad; I've never played Euchre, Cribbage, Pinochle OR Bridge

I love bridge. But I learnt to play from about age 6 alternating as the fourth player with my brother - my parents and grandfather making up the other three. As a result I am have a firm grasp of the rules but have no idea how to bid properly. I find learning the conventions really difficult as I am an 'instinctive' bidder.

I joined the Acol bridge club once to try to learn better but they always looked so embarrased whenever I turned up to the beginners evenings because my card play was definitely advanced, but my bidding was pre-school. In the end I stopped going and now I search in vain for players who are a) not afraid and b) don't mind my strange bidding.

At High School I used to play Euchre and 500.

Then I went to Uni, learned to play Bridge, yelled "Euchre and 500 suck!" then spent 6 hours most days sitting in the bar playing Bridge.

IMHO, it is the partnership and the trick taking game.

We never took it seriously - which is probably anathema to real Bridge players - we never learned or used the bidding conventions - we hardly ever even scored, we just played and played and played and played enjoying the the beauty of the game play at it's most simplistic - from reading your partners and oppositions bids (without defined conventions) to the dummy (the guy who sits out), and everything in betwee.

Don't get put off by the whole bidding convention thing or the complexities in that business. The game itself is dead simple and beautiful.

It's just tops.

I loved playing this until my partner bought a bidding book. We started creating our own bidding techniques before that and it was quite fun. Memorization has never been my bag, so I quit when everybody started using different techniques.

Much more fun when the intellect is engaged.

If you and your wife go at it in partnership games, you should seriously consider NOT being partners in Bridge. It's true that Bridge has broken up marriages.

But um, no offense, but after reading this list, I have a feeling that your wife will pick it up faster than you. But to offer a bit of practical advice, most trick taking card games are exercises in counting. The basics is just knowing how many card of each suit was played. Then you can plan your play better.

In most climbing games (like Presidents and A**hole, Tichu, or Peon/Peasant mentioned on this list,) the basic skill is counting the high cards so you can time when you win the stack.

(btw - I'm surprised nobody has added Wizard yet.)

Essentially War with some physical dexterity added in -- but that's enough skill added for me to consider it an okay game as opposed to a worthless one =)

This was a physical sport at my school. We would pass 2 decks to each player and have at it (the game would literally last hours)

Ah... memories

A very painful game that was repeatedly banned from a coffee house I used to hang out at.

Do not play this with the ladies, especially the ladies who wear hand jewelry...you will be sorry.

I'm surprised this was already listed - I was planning on listing it myself

I'd still call this my favorite game. Never gets old because it's a new game every time.

Completely agree, one of my group's favorites...

There was a time when, just before the Mao was declared, he'd roll a d4, and make THAT many rolls... we did that until we had 75 rules circulating around... then we quit

Haha, 75?? That seems quite a bit beyond the saturation point I think I think we usually quit at the 10-15 (1-3 hour) range. When you can't remember your OWN rules to enforce them anymore, let alone other players' rules... then it's about time to stop, hehe.

Another really good "couples" game (i.e., 2 teams of 2). It combines bidding and trick-taking like Bridge, but without the wealth of "bidding conventions" and other "unwritten" tactics.

My wife & I just re-learned Pinochle and have enjoyed the opportunity to play with my parents when they visit (it's one of the few games that my Dad will play).

Played two-player it is a decent game. You draw a replacement card for each card you play, making new melds over the course of the hand.

Played three player it is an excellent game. Two play against one. Vicious.

Played double-deck four player in partnerships it is perhaps the best traditional-deck four player card game in existence outside of Bridge. The only other game that's close is Spades, and IMO Pinochle is much better. If you play Euchre, you'll have no trouble learning Pinochle, although you're better off having someone teach you instead of mucking your way through it using a book or pagat.com. The bidding for the right to call trump sets the bar for the score you must make in meld points plus card points taken in tricks after the meld phase. Watching what others meld helps you card count the 20 card hand you're holding. Much more depth than Euchre, where the decisions are rarely challenging.

He pretty much covered it.

Two-handed was the first version, but I prefer Gin Rummy and Cribbage (but this is probably my third favorite, but at third rarely played).

Three-handed is okay, but I prefer Hearts.

Four-handed Partnership Pinochle is great. I think Bridge is better, but Pinochle is lighter and is played more by me. I have to agree to disagree with David, in that I prefer single pack Partnership Pinochle (48 deck). To keep it light, but intellectually satisfying, twelve tricks per hand is my favorite. With double pack I have to count way too much (I'll take Bridge if I am that stimulated), and there are too many duplicates of the same rank (just my personal preference; I have played both ways many times).

I played partnership Pinochle during my days at Temple University. I never tried the 3pl version, but have heard from many that it is an exceptional game.

I guess redundant seeing as I commented on the Euchre post area.

I started playing when I was Eight with my parents and grandma, and I take every opportunity to teach other friends so I have more people to play with

WE always play with single deck partnership, but with the four card "kitty" in the middle. High bidder takes the four cards and adds them to their hand and then discards any four they choose into their "trick points"

It adds an element of draw poker and a little bit of bluffing on the bids.

Such a great game because even non-card counters can count at least the trump, and the more you play with people and learn their style, the more intricate a game can get.

If anyone's in the Phoenix area and wants to learn or play a partner game let me know.

It's definitely worth the one night it will take to learn as opposed to the three dictionaries you'll have to read to play bridge.

I'm still trying to get this played with my 'casual' game group. One guy there likes Poker but doesn't want to play this since it doesn't have the gambling aspect :P

I totally forgot about Rummy (and its kin)...



Thanks for adding it.

-DK

Made an awful lot of beer money playing $.10/point rummy all throughout college. This game will always have a place in my heart [or maybe my liver]...

I guess this was a big game in the army (at least in the 70's) - so this is a game I grew up playing with my dad. One of the few games he would regularly play with us. And he was almost always SANDBAGGING!!!!!!!!

Was my basic card game of choice for years, and is one of my few 10 rated games based on all of the fun I've had with this.

Spades is a huge pain in the ass to play for me now though because I'm used to playing a specific variety of Spades that only a small group of people in Kalamazoo, MI play, and several members of that old group have spread out around the country now.

I am still very fond of this though...I just wish I could play it more.

Played this so much that I've played once in the past 9 years. Before that, 2-3 times a week, no less than 4 hours a shot. Really a great game, tho.

Don't! I say don't play this in Bavaria unless you know the rules and are an experienced player. This is THE game in bavaria. I am bavarian and never got the hang of it although my 3 little brothers play it and beat the ... out of me every time. Heck even my grandmothers play better than me. Takes a lot of experience to master. Yea ok my grandmothers have been playing this game for 70+ years and my parents and my brothers and my friends... but I'm sick of this game. The main reason being: mastering the game mechanics is pretty easy, but playing it right (with your father/grandmother/uncle/even little brother) without getting yelled at and ridiculed is tough. Hate this game even though i'm bavarian. Excellent game though, so I'm told (by my father/grandmother/uncle/little brother)

one more note: the bavarians have a totally different deck of cards. You guys play with the french deck of cards, Schafkopfen is usually played with the german deck of cards, making the game a bit easier.

Eichel -> Grass -> Herz -> Schelln

Clubs -> Spades -> Hearts -> Diamonds

and

Ober -> Unter -> As -> 10 -> König -> 9 ->...

Q -> J -> Ace -> 10 -> King -> 9 -> ...


This should make it clear. Clearer than this post, I guess.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sheepshead

Who said anything about not getting yelled at. I've been playing for two years now with people that grew up playing the game. I'm still learning all of the subtle nuances of the game, such as knowing when to play what cards based on who picked, who led what, who threw off what, where the picker is in position of the card led, ...

That's what i'm talking about. Now imagine your dad and grandmothers sitting there with you and you just don't know what to play, which card to pick... Yeah I guess I'm a bit traumatized

I'd never heard of this game until I read "Around the World in 80 Days". Interesting that people still play it.

I absolutely love this game! And it's probably the game that I have played the most.

I was introduced to the variation called "Bid Whist" by some guys I used to work with. It's incredible - I'd love to play this more often. I need to read up on the difference between Bid Whist and classic Whist - BW was anything but basic.

Normal Whist is a useful game to know if you're trying to break someone into a more advanced game with bidding, like Spades, because it takes some of the complication away and allows them to learn the fundamentals of taking tricks.

A bit dull for the seasoned card flopper though.

I played this a lot in high school. Then in college it suddenly switched to playing Spite and Malice. Good times

Played a LOT of this with my dad and siblings back when I was a teen.

(need an emoticon for nostalgia)

Canasta!

I came to this game late, and the specially marked cards available from some publishers make it easy to learn and play.

Oh, go for the 4 deck version, Hand and Foot. Takes this to a whole new level.

Thanks for the list! I still love card games, plus it's usually not hard to find people willing to play.

This was the card game I was into before Spades...and is probably still one of my favourite 2 handed card games, though I prefer Wyatt Earp for this style game with 3.

I eventually burned out on this, though I do still play it on occasion. For a while I had some eternal games going with friends where we would just keep adding the scores up in a huge book. At least one of them was well over 100,000.

I grew up playing belote which is in the same family. My friend and I were probably the only two eight year olds in suburban Philadelphia who played belote.