Top 15 Card Games to Play with your Friends

Looking to combat quarantine boredom?

Is quarantine getting tedious? You’ve played through every video game you own and binged watch every show created since the dawn of time. So, now what. Let’s talk about old school entertainment. Cards. Not just for euchre halls and backroom gambling. There are so many fun card games out there, so let’s talk about some of the best card games out there. 

#1 - Let’s showcase a couple of adult card games. One of the most popular being  Cards Against Humanity. This is a party game for horrible people, as stated on their website. You start by getting your friends together and dealing out a set number of white cards. Then each player takes turns drawing a black card. The black cards have fill-in-the-blank statements. Each player will then fill in the blank with whatever is on their white cards. The person who drew the black card chooses the funniest answer and the person who played that card wins the round and gets the cards played. The player with the most cards at the end of the games wins. This game is known for its wild, raunchy humor. This is typically a card game for adults, but they have expanded into card games for kids with a recent expansion, though you may want to read through the cards first, just in case. 

#2 - Other fun card games for adults are drinking card games. With enough determination, any card game can be a drinking game, but there are some specifically made for the occasion.  King’s is a popular drinking game and is played with your run-of-the-mill deck of  cards. Each card represents an action for the party. If you draw a six then the girls at the table drink if it is red, boys if it is black. Draw a jack and everyone drinks. Of course, these rules differ from place to place so make sure to have a written copy so everyone knows what the rules are. You can find a copy of the general rules on Wikipedia. Typically one to two games is enough to get the party started, be safe and drink responsibly. 

#3 - Maybe you’ve outgrown the drinking and are looking for something a bit more family-friendly at this point. Card games for 3 or more people might be a good place to start.  The card game War is a great way to introduce your kids to cards. War is a simple game and helps children learn numbers and helps them identify the value of a number. You want to deal cards to every player until there are no more. Don’t look at the cards, keep them face down. Each round every person will take the card from the top of their deck and play it. The highest card wins and the player gets those cards. The winner is the person who ends up with every card. This game is completely based on chance and can go on for a very long time. 

#4 -  Another family-friendly game, best for groups of 3 or 4, is a fan favorite, Uno.  Uno cards have actions on them, such as reverse, draw 2, and skip. This game gets competitive and there is some variation in the rules among player groups so make sure you get the rules ahead of time. 

#5 -  Other easy card games that are family card games include Old Maid, Go Fish, and Match. These games can be played with a deck of cards, though they do make custom playing cards for these games. These games are the best 2 player card  games for kids. They introduce deception, memorization, and point counting. If you buy the custom sets they will come with directions for the games, if you choose to use a plain deck of playing cards, you can always look up the rules online. These games can also be two player card games for adults if you enjoy them.

#6 -  If you are looking for card games to play with a group of friends then try  poker. Poker can be played in a variety of ways. Texas Hold’em has grown in popularity in the past years. Las Vegas holds a Texas Hold’em world series event. You might find games in your local bars or lodges that require a buy-in, as it is a gambling game. The idea is easy enough. Each player is dealt two cards, face down. Don’t show these off. Then the dealer lays 5 community cards. The flop, a set of 3 cards dealt at once. The 4th card is the turn and the 5th is the river. After each set of cards is dealt, the players go through a round of betting. The idea is to make the best hand out of your two cards and the five community cards. 

#7 -  Another popular gambling card game is Blackjack. You are dealt 2 cards initially. If your cards add up to less than 21 you can choose to keep them or take another card. The idea is to hit 21 and not go over. Single player card games are hard to find, but this one comes close. There is one player and the dealer, and the idea is to beat the dealer’s hand without going over 21. 

#8 - If one player card games are what you are looking for, try Solitaire.  Solitaire is fairly straightforward and can be played alone. There are many apps and online sites where you can play solitaire if you aren’t interested in toting around a deck of  cards with you. It also requires a bit of space to play, so the app will be easier. 

#9 - Maybe you are looking for some family-friendly craziness that has cool playing cards and a load of laughs. Try  Exploding Kittens. The name may be a little off-putting, but it is geared towards children 7+. There is a NSFW version if you are looking for some adult fun instead. The game works as follows. The cards are laid face down and each player takes turns drawing cards. If you draw the exploding kitten then you explode and are out of the game. You can avoid this by using a diffuse card. If you use the diffuse card, you lay the diffuse card face up on the table and put the exploding kitten back in the deck wherever you want, but you cannot look at the other cards in the deck. Each round the players can use action cards, as many as they want, then they must draw a card. The action cards let you look at cards in the deck, skip your turn, shuffle the decks, along with a variety of other things. The goal is to be the last person standing, or in this case intact. Add fun twists to your game with  this expansion pack.

Head over to the website to check out an example playthrough. 

#10 -  If you enjoy TTRPGs then Dungeon Mayhem may be for you. This card game lets you play as a Rogue, Wizard, Paladin, or a Barbarian, as you battle your way through a dungeon. Each player has a unique set of cards for attacking, defending, and healing. On your turn, you can attack, heal, or defend. The game ends when there is only one player left standing. 

#11 -  If you are looking for games to play with friends, try True Colors. A card is pulled and votes are secretly cast among your friends as to which player they think matches the description most accurately. You earn points by predicting how many votes you will receive. 

#12 -  If you and 2 or 3 of your friends have terrible and twisted senses of humor, then consider Joking Hazard. This card game is based on the Cyanide and Happiness comics. This plays similar to Cards Against Humanity in that each of the players takes turns judging. Each player gets 7 cards and should always have 7 cards, so replenish after each round. The game begins when the judge flips a card from the stack. If the card has a black border then it goes in the middle of a 3-panel set. The judge plays a card to the left or right and the players each finish the panel. The judge picks the winner and the next round begins. If the card drawn has a red border then the card is played in the last part of the panel and it is up to the players to fill in the other two spaces. The player with the most winning cards at the end wins the game. 

#13 -  Looking for something a bit spooky. Your Worst Nightmare is a card game designed to get people to face their worst fears. You start the game by shuffling the deck and laying the first 4 cards face up. Each player ranks those fears from 1 to 4 with 1 being the scariest and 4 being the least scary. After jotting down their own ranks, they pick another player and guess their ranks. Points are awarded for each correct guess and the first player to 13 points wins. 

#14 -  The And is a fun card game that helps people connect. This game has editions for dating, long-term couples, friends, family and so many more. The rules are simple, be honest. Players pick 12 cards and take turns reading and answering all 12. You are able to pass if a question makes you uncomfortable. This card game is designed to bring you closer to people. 

#15 -  Everyone has played Would You Rather, now it comes in a fun card game called Pick Your Poison. The rules are the same. Two cards are played face down and each player picks which card they would rather do, then everyone reveals their answers. It’s a fun way to find out how weird your friends are. 

If you decide to buy one or more of these games, might we suggest a couple of accessories? There are a number of ways to store cards. Card cases such as this  large case, or these  smaller chests. You can also buy these adorable  small cases for single sets. 

Written by: Melissa Crosby

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