Game on: you know…

Well. It turns out that if you really want to avoid blogging, combining ongoing building work with someone being Ill All Week is a good way to go. Except that I didn’t want to avoid it (and being ill all week is NOT a good way to go).

But the illness had its upside – because we had been given a pack of UNO just before the bug struck. Junior player, continuing to build reading skills, thought that it was pronounced ‘you know’ (which is fair enough really – think university, unity and lots of other words where you say ‘you’ at the start).

Rather a lot of my blog posts seem to be referring to my personal history.  UNO is part of my family’s history – but not mine.  Because when I started full-time work in the first half of my gap year, and everyone else went on holiday together, they discovered UNO. And I wasn’t there.

Needless to say, they all know about UNO – but for some reason, they didn’t spread the cheer. (Probably my Sore Loser status at the time.)

My mum helps out in a local school, and whenever they have one of those ‘end of term bring in games’ type days, she always brings in UNO. I think she’s a bit of a shark when it comes to playing. We will wait and see, because we haven’t yet had a match.

Mum and Dad refer to UNO with a mock Essex accent, since it turns out they met a family from Essex on that particular holiday, and I think the family must have introduced them to the game.

But really, however you come across it – whether now, or in a couple of decades’ time – do. Do try it.  You’ll be hooked.

What kind of game is it?

UNO is a card game.  The box holds slightly over two normal packs’ worth of cards (106, if you want to know).

UNO doesn’t really need you to count – bonus.  You need to recognise numbers 0-9, and four colours, and that’s about it.  The pack suggests you need to be 7+ to play, but I think it could be possible at a younger age.

The main constraint, in fact, is whether a younger player can hold a larger number of cards in their hand.  But you can probably find a way for them to lay out their cards next to them, without you seeing them.

How do you play UNO?

Everyone starts with 7 cards.  (You could play with fewer to start you off, if you wanted.)
You have the rest of the deck of cards face down, and one turned up: that’s the card that sets the number and the colour you’re playing on e.g. blue 4.

Everyone takes it in turns put down a matching card. You can either match the colour e.g. you could play a blue 7, or you match the number e.g. red 4, which would then mean the next player has to put down a red card (or a 4).

If you can’t put down a card, you pick up another from the top of the deck.  If it will fit where play is up to, you can put it down straight away.  If not, you keep it in your hand.

Bit by bit, you get down to 1 card left.  You shout UNO at this point (ie ‘one’ card left). If you can play your final card on your next go, you go out, and win the game.

Shaking things up: the action cards

The other cards are easy to identify from the symbols.  There’s a miss a turn (a circle with a line through – like a road sign), and a reverse card (arrows – so the play goes the other way round the group of players).

There are coloured ‘pick up’ cards, where the first player puts down the card, and the next one has to pick up cards from the deck e.g.

Player 1: blue 3

Player 2: blue 2+ card

Next player picks up 2 cards, and play stays on blue.

Changing colour

There’s a card with 4 colours on – that allows you to change from the colour of cards you are on at the time.  This can be a bit of a relief, at times, if everyone has exhausted their supply of a particular colour.

For junior players, there’s one more card type that usually brings on cackles of glee before they play it.  The card shows four colours and +4 on it – that means you both set the new colour AND make the next player pick up 4 cards.

As we’re still newer to the game, I won’t put down a tactics section yet – maybe in a few days.

Ease of play

I just need to say that, even if you are down with flu/cold/stomach bug, you are still generally able to play this game.  You can play it in bed, or on the sofa, or at a table, as long as you have some kind of flat surface to put the cards onto.

All of this is great news for the person playing nurse, working out how to occupy the invalid. But I’m also thinking train journeys, or ferries, or any of those other times where there’s enough time and space to bring out a pack of cards.

Are we feeling better now? Thankfully, yes.  Are we hooked on UNO? Most certainly.