Go Fish

Go Fish is usually the first card game anyone learns. You ask other players for a rank you are collecting, and either they hand it over or you draw from the pond. It teaches turn-taking and remembering what other people asked for. A game takes about 10 minutes.

What You Need

• Players: 2-6. Three to five is best.
• Deck: One standard 52-card deck. Suits do not matter at all - only ranks.
• Extras: Nothing.

Key Terms

• Book: Four cards of the same rank. Collecting these is how you win.
• The pond (stock): The face-down pile of undealt cards in the middle.
• Go fish: What the other player says when they do not have what you asked for.

Setup

1. Deal 5 cards to each player, or 7 each if only two or three of you are playing.
2. Spread the rest face down in the middle as the pond.
3. Sort your hand by rank so you can see what you are collecting.

How to Play

Play passes clockwise, starting to the dealer's left. On your turn:

1. Ask one specific player for one specific rank: "Alex, do you have any sixes?"
2. You must already hold at least one card of that rank. This is the rule beginners forget.
3. If they have any, they must hand over all of them. You then take another turn.
4. If they have none, they say "go fish" and you draw the top card of the pond. If it happens to be the rank you asked for, show it and take another turn. Otherwise your turn ends.
5. Whenever you complete a book of four, lay it face up in front of you.

Scoring & Winning

• Each completed book is worth 1 point.
• The game ends when all 13 books have been made, which happens when the pond is empty and hands are exhausted.
• Whoever has the most books wins. If you run out of cards while the pond still has some, draw a new hand of 5 and keep playing.

Example

You are holding two 6s, so you may ask Alex for sixes. Alex has one and hands it over, giving you three and another turn. You ask Sam for sixes next, Sam says go fish, and you draw from the pond.

Variations

• Pairs instead of books: younger players often collect pairs rather than sets of four, which makes games much shorter.
• Ask anyone: some groups let you take another turn only when you get a card, not when you fish successfully.
• Authors: the older adult version, where you must name the exact card you want.

Tips for New Players

• Listen to what everyone else asks for. If Sam asked for kings, Sam has a king.
• If you take all of someone's 9s, remember they now have none.
• Asking for a rank you have three of is safe - you are close to a book and nobody learns much from it.