Smack it! How to Play Quick Links: | Objective | Setup | Playing the Game | Cards | Winning the Game | Say Your Numbers | FAQ | Components |
Objective of Smack it!
The objective of Smack it! is to be the last player with cards left in your pile.
Setup
- Shuffle all of the cards.
- Deal out the cards face down to the players as equally as possible. Each player gathers up their cards into a pile. They shouldn’t look at the cards in their pile.
- The player to the left of the dealer starts the game. Play will proceed left/clockwise during the game.
Playing Smack it!
To start your turn you will flip over the top card from your stack and add it to the pile in the middle of the table. You should turn your card where you can’t see what is on it before the other players. Players should try to flip their card as quickly as possible to keep up the game’s pace.
Depending on what card you flip over, you may need to take a special action. See the Cards of Smack it! section below for more details.
After you have flipped over your card and taken the corresponding action, your turn ends. Play passes to the player on your left.
Cards of Smack it!
Number Cards
Most of the cards in the game will feature a number on them.
When you play one of these cards from your pile, you will not take a special action. Your turn will immediately end.
Challenge! Cards
When a player reveals a Challenge! card, all of the players will take turns (in turn order) flipping over a card from their pile. The player that flips over the card with the highest number on it, wins the center pile. They will add these cards face down to the bottom of their pile. The players could also decide to reshuffle the cards whenever a player adds cards to their pile. The player that won the challenge restarts the normal play of cards.
Should any of the players reveal another Challenge! card during the challenge round, the challenge starts over with each player flipping over another card. The player that plays the highest number card wins all of the cards from the center pile.
Smack It! Cards
Whenever a player plays a Smack it! card, all of the players race to slap the center pile. This includes when a player reveals a Smack it! card during a challenge round. You should try to not slap too hard to prevent hurting yourself or another player. The first player to slap the center pile wins all of the cards from the center pile. They will add these cards to the bottom of their pile.
If two or more players slap the card at the same time, whoever slapped closest to the center of the bulls-eye on the card wins the center pile.
Should a player ever slap the pile when a Smack it! card wasn’t played, they will take a card from their pile and add it to the bottom of the center pile. This also applies if a player cheats in any other way.
Winning Smack it!
Whenever a player runs out of cards in their pile, they are eliminated from the game.
When a Smack it! card is played, an eliminated player can still slap the cards. If an eliminated players is the first player to slap the card, you will remove the cards from the center pile from play. The player to the left of the slapper restarts play. If an eliminated player ever slaps when they shouldn’t, they are permanently out of the game.
The last player remaining with cards in their pile wins Smack it!.
Say Your Numbers Smack it!
You can use this variant game to help teach children numbers 1-50.
The game is mostly played the same as the normal game. The one difference is that whenever a number card is played, the player has to read the number printed on the card.
Smack it! FAQ
If you have any questions about how to play Smack it!, leave a comment below on this post. I will try to answer any questions asked as best and as quickly as possible.
Smack it! Components
- 50 number cards (1-50)
- 4 Challenge! cards
- 3 Smack it! cards
- Instructions
Year: 2014 | Publisher: Arizona Game Co
Genres: Card, Family, Speed
Ages: 6+ | Number of Players: 2-7 | Length of Game: 10-15 minutes
Difficulty: Light | Strategy: Light | Luck: Moderate
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