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Go Fish Game

Go Fish Game is one of the first card games a child learns. It is easy to play and and gives them a chance to boss you around by telling you to go fish!

go fish cards

Object

To make sets of four cards of the same value (called a book), by asking your opponents for them or by fishing them out of the fish pond.

Number of players

2 or more

Equipment

Standard 52-card deck or a deck made specifically for the game.

Set up

Shuffle the deck.
For two or three players deal each player seven cards, one at a time and face down.
For four or more players deal each player five cards, one at a time and face down.

The remaining cards are put in the center of the table face down and become the fishpond.

To play

All players examine their cards, the player to the left of the dealer begins the game by asking the player on his right for any desirable card. For example; he may have three 8's in his hand, so he asks the player on his right if he has any eights.
If that player has any eights in his hand, he must hand all of them over.
If he doesn't have any eights, he replies, "Go Fish," and the player who asked for the eights takes a card from the top of the fishpond pile.

If the card he draws from the fishpond is an eight, he says, "I fished my wish," shows the card to the other player and continues his turn by asking the player on his right for another card. If the card he draws give him a book, he lays the book down and continues on with his turn.
If the card he draws from the fishpond is not an eight, his turn ends and the player on his left gets to ask for a card.

When a player succeeds in getting four of a kind, he lays it down and gets to ask for another card.

Winning the game

There are two ways to a Go Fish game can end.
The first way is if a player empties his hand completely by making books with them.
The second way is for a player to have the most books made when the fishpond dries up.

Strategy

Try to remember what rank of card a player has asked for since players are not allowed to ask for a card unless they have one in their hands already. When it's your turn to ask for a card, you'll know what the other players are holding in their hands.

Variations on go fish game

For an easier version of go fish, use pairs as books instead of four of a kind.

For a harder version, use two decks and require 8 of a kind for a book.