Switch Card Game Rules
Switch is a popular card game for two or more players that involves players trying to be the first to get rid of all of their cards. Switch is similar to other popular shedding card games, like Uno and Mau Mau. For each turn a player has, they can lay down any card from their hand that matches the card previously laid down between the players. For example, if the card last laid down was a five of diamonds, the player may put down any five or diamonds card. If the player doesn't have a card available that they can lay down, they must pick up an extra card.
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Basic Rules
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Playing with one regular deck of playing cards and the amount of cards that are dealt to each player is determined by the dealer. Typically, 28 cards are dealt onto the table for a four player game, with each player having a hand of nine cards. The remaining cards are placed into the middle, known as the pool. This card deck is for when a player must draw an extra card. To start the game, the first card on top of the pool deck is flipped over. Playing clockwise, the first player should lay down a card of theirs that matches the card shown from the top of the pool.
Dealing
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The dealer is determined by the player who draws the lowest card from the deck. If there is a tie for the lowest card, then another drawing must take place. After the deck is thoroughly shuffled, the dealer must deal seven cards to each player with all of the cards facing up. The remainder of the deck is placed aside and players begin to match their cards.
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Power Cards
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Typically the rules of Switch include some sort of special or "power" cards. These cards are agreed upon before the game begins since variations of power cards exist. The ace card can be laid down at anytime on top of any card and is the most valuable card to have. The jack card is used as a reverse card that reverses the order of turns. Playing an eight card means that the next player loses their turn. Laying down a four card means that the next player must draw four cards from the deck, and laying down a two cards means the next player must draw two cards from the deck.
Joker Card
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The use of the joker card in the game is optional. A variation of the rules includes that if a joker card is laid down, the next player must draw five cards. This makes the joker cards the must damaging of special cards to use, and this rule is typically used more when having players of four or more. Also, the player who lays down the joker card can decide the next suit to be played, For example, if a player has laid down a joker card they can say they only want three cards to be played.
Scoring
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Scoring is also something that is determined by all of the players before the game is played and can be determined in a number of ways. For example, cards can be worth their face value, meaning a seven card is worth seven points. A popular scoring rule is that jokers are worth 50, aces are 20, jacks are 15, eights are 10, fours are 35, and twos are 30. The scoring is not done until the end to determine the how many points each player's remaining cards are worth.
Ending the Game
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The game is over once a player gets rid of all of their cards. Depending on the rules that the players want to play by, the game can continue with the remaining players or simply end as soon as one player has no cards. The player with no cards can also call out, "Switch," as similarly done in the game Uno. Games can continue for usually up to six games for four players. The winner is determined by who has the lowest number of points in the end.
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