Contents
Welcome to the Bargain Hunter Game!
Are you ready for an exciting shopping adventure? In this game, I will provide you with a list of items, and it’s your job to find the best deal. Remember, the key to winning is finding the lowest price!
How to Play:
- I will give you a list of different items.
- Your task is to compare the prices of those items.
- Look for the item with the lowest price.
- Once you’ve found the lowest price, you win that round!
- Keep playing and try to win as many rounds as possible.
Tips to Help You Win:
- Pay attention to the prices listed for each item.
- Be careful not to overlook any discounts or special offers.
- Take your time and compare the prices thoroughly.
- Remember, the lowest price is the key to victory!
Now that you know the rules, it’s time to start playing. Are you ready to become the ultimate Bargain Hunter? Let the game begin!
We all love a good deal. It’s hard to resist the urge to buy, buy, buy. But in the end, we often find ourselves with a bunch of stuff we don’t really need. That’s when it hits me – it’s the things that truly matter that have real value.
But here’s the thing, only you can decide what’s valuable to you. We all have different tastes and preferences. And it gets even trickier when there are others who want the same thing!
Components
- There are 108 bargain cards in 6 different colors.
- There are 2 super-special offers.
- There is a rulebook.
Object of the Game
When you receive the cards, your goal is to play a trick-taking game.
Throughout the game, the trump color (if any) is determined in each trick and can change from one trick to the next.
You aim to collect cards that match the value you have chosen. These are your bargains for the round. However, beware, because other cards may have a negative score.
After all the tricks in a round are played, you have the chance to discard one type of unwanted item to reduce your negative score. At the same time, you can choose a new bargain for the next round. The round starts again with the remaining cards.
The winner of the game is the player who collects the most bargains and has the least amount of negative points.
Playing the Game
When we play with 3 players, we have 6 rounds. If we have 4 players, we play 4 rounds.
First, before we start the game, we need to decide who will be the dealer. We can do this by drawing lots. In each round after the first one, the role of the dealer will pass to the next person going clockwise. The dealer shuffles the deck and deals 8 cards to each player. The cards are dealt face down.
After the dealer finishes dealing the cards, there will be some cards left over. These cards will not be used in the current round. They will be set aside and saved for future rounds. Each player takes the cards they were given and arranges them in their hand.
Getting Ready
Before we start the game, there is something we need to do in the first round. Each player takes their turn to show one card from their hand. This card will be used for the bargain pile. It shows everyone what they are hoping to collect in the next part of the game, which is the trick-taking game. The player who is seated to the left of the dealer goes first, and the other players follow their lead.
When I play the game, I can choose a bargain that someone else has already chosen. But then it’s harder for both of us to find our bargains.
If I win a trick and it has my chosen bargain, I add it to my pile of bargains. Each of these cards is worth one point, no matter what their value is.
The rest of the cards I win in a trick are worthless at first. I put them face down next to my pile of bargains to form the odds and ends stack. Each card in this stack will count as minus one point in the end, regardless of its value.
However, I can clear part of the odds and ends after each turn. With some luck and strategy, I might even be able to turn some of those odds and ends into bargains and change negatives into positives.
The Fun Card Game
So here’s how it goes: I’m sitting to the left of the dealer, and I get to make the first move by leading a card. Then, it’s your turn, and we’ll take turns playing one card each.
- Now, the first thing you need to know is that the color of the first card played sets the tone for the rest of the game. Think of it as our starting point.
- If you don’t have a card of the same color that was led, don’t worry! You can play a card of any other color. But here’s the catch: you have to let us know if this new color is going to be the trump color or not. And remember, there can only be one trump color per round.
- Alright, here’s the exciting part. The player who plays the highest card in each round wins that trick. If there’s no trump card, then the highest card in the color that was led takes the trick. But if there is a trump card, then the highest trump card wins.
- Oh, and by the way, the winner of each trick gets to lead the next one. So, let’s hope you’ve got some winning moves up your sleeve!
Now, here’s an interesting twist: each card appears twice in the deck. So, if you decide to play a card that’s already in the trick, you have the power to choose whether your card is higher or lower than the previous one.
The best card in the game is called the super special offer card. It’s so powerful that you can play it even if you have a different colored card already on the table. But here’s the twist: the first super special offer card played is actually higher than the second one.
Let me show you how it works with some examples:
Anke starts by playing a green 2. According to the rules, everyone else at the table must play a green card if they have one. Bert and Chris both have green cards, so they follow the lead and play their green cards.
Next, Bert plays a green 7. Chris really wants to win this trick, but he doesn’t have a green card to play. Luckily, he does have a super special offer card, which he knows is higher than any other card in the game. So he plays his super special offer card and explains to everyone that it’s higher than the first 7.
Now, let’s say Doris doesn’t have any green cards in her hand. She plays a yellow 6 instead. By doing this, she’s letting everyone know that yellow is not the trump color. And guess what? Chris ends up winning the trick!
Here’s another example:
Anke starts by playing a yellow 4. Bert doesn’t have a yellow card, but he does have a blue 9. He decides to play the blue 9 and declares that blue is the trump color.
Now it’s Chris’s turn. He would love to win this trick, but he’s stuck with yellow cards in his hand, so he has to follow the lead and play a yellow card. However, he also happens to have a super special offer card, which he thinks might just save the day. So he plays his super special offer card as the highest trump card.
Doris sees this as her chance to get rid of her super special offer card as well. She plays it and hopes to win the trick. However, Chris ends up winning because his super special offer card is higher than Doris’s.
Okay, one more example:
Anke starts by playing a blue 5. Bert doesn’t have a blue card, but he really wants to win this trick. So he plays a red 3 and announces that red is now the trump color.
Chris also wants the trick, but he doesn’t have any blue or red cards. He decides to play a yellow 9 instead. Unfortunately for him, he can’t declare yellow as the trump color because it’s already red.
Finally, Doris plays her only card, a red 3, and explains that it’s lower than Bert’s red 3. Bert ends up winning this trick.
So, as you can see, the super special offer card is a real game-changer. Just remember, the first one played is always higher than the second one. Are you ready to take your game to the next level?
If you win a trick, the first thing you need to do is check if you have any cards that match the bargains you picked.
If you do, you can put those cards in your bargain pile. Any other cards, including the special offers, go in your odds and ends stack face down.
The round of the trick-taking game ends when all the cards have been played. Then, it’s time to clear things up.
Clearing
You need to sort all the cards in your odds and ends stack. Starting with the player who won the last trick, each player can get rid of all their cards that have the same value by putting them in the trash heap. But guess what? You might still be able to make new bargains from your odds and ends! Only if you have:
- 3 cards with the same value when playing with 3 players
- 2 cards with the same value when playing with 4 players
When you play a round of this game, any cards that are worth fewer points than the ones you currently have are discarded. Only cards with a higher point value are kept. This means that the lower-value cards are thrown away. But here’s the twist: those discarded cards can actually benefit you. Instead of being completely useless, they are added to a separate pile called the bargain pile. This pile represents the potential for future points.
So, not only do you get rid of the lower-value cards, but you also turn them into something valuable. The minuses become pluses. It’s like transforming something negative into a positive. And on top of that, you get to set a new bargain for yourself in the next round.
Imagine if life worked the same way. Instead of dwelling on the negatives or feeling bad about the things that didn’t go as planned, we could turn them into something positive. We could find a way to use those experiences to our advantage. It’s a fresh perspective that can bring new opportunities and growth.
Think about it. When something doesn’t go your way, instead of getting discouraged, you can see it as an opportunity for growth. Maybe it’s a chance to learn from your mistakes or try a different approach. Just like in the game, you can take those minuses and turn them into pluses.
And here’s the best part: the old bargain, the one that didn’t work out, is applied to you no longer. You get to start fresh with a new bargain, a new plan, and a new outlook. It’s a chance to leave behind what didn’t work and focus on what can work.
So the next time you face a setback or a disappointment, remember this game. Remember that even the negatives can be turned into positives. It’s all about shifting your perspective and finding the potential in every situation. Just like in the game, you have the power to transform the minuses in your life into something positive.
Examples:
So, here’s the deal. I’m playing a game with three other people. In the first round, I managed to collect 6 bargain cards. I won three tricks and got my hands on some more 6 cards. Now, let me show you what’s in my odds and ends stack: 1, 3, 3, 3, 3, 4, 4, 5, 7, and 9.
Okay, now I’m getting rid of two 3s by tossing them in the trash, and I’m putting another 3 in my bargain pile. This means I’m no longer on the hunt for 6s, but I’m all about the 3s now.
Here’s a little secret: I actually have two 4s in my odds and ends stack. Shh, don’t tell the other players! If I manage to get even more 4s in the next round of tricks, I can switch to a new bargain when the opportunity presents itself.
When we’re playing the game, some of us like to get rid of our save value card during clearing. Those super special offers can’t be cleared though, so we have to keep them until the final scoring. We can throw sets of any size, it doesn’t matter if they’re not big enough to change our bargain card. We can even choose to stop throwing off cards altogether.
Time for the Next Round
The next dealer gathers up all the cards from the trash heap and shuffles them. Then they put those cards under the rest of the deck. After that, they start dealing out the cards and we begin the next round.
If there’s not enough cards left to deal eight to each player, we just deal out as many as we can so that everyone gets the same number.
New Round, New Bargain
If you decided to choose a new bargain during the clearing round, all the cards that had your old bargain will now go into your odds and ends stack.
I have some news for you – from now on, you can’t just throw any card on your bargain pile. Nope, it’s not that simple anymore! Now, the only card that matters is the one on top of your pile. It’s the boss, the one calling all the shots during the trick round.
So, here’s what happened. I managed to snag the 6 bargain in the first round of our card game. But then, when it was my turn to clear, I decided to switch things up and put down the 3 bargain instead.
Now, fast forward a bit. I ended up winning a trick with some cards – 2, 3, 6, and 8. So, I placed that lucky 3 bargain on the pile, and the 6 went with the 2 and 8 into my odds and ends stack.
The Game’s Over!
After playing the specified number of rounds, the game comes to an end. In the final round, we all get to clear twice. Yup, you read it right – we get not one, but two chances to clear things up. And here’s the cool part: we get to choose two values to discard and maybe add to our bargain pile.
Naturally, everyone picks the values they have the most cards of. The ones we don’t need anymore – those go straight to the trash heap. But what about the ones we still want to keep? Well, they go on the bargain pile! And at the end, we all count up our cards in those two stacks – pretty satisfying, if you ask me.
In this game, each card has a different value. Bargain cards give you points, while odds and ends cards take them away. The player with the most points at the end wins.
Here’s some advice:
Decide early on which cards you want to turn into bargains. If you don’t, you might end up with a bunch of cards in different values that you can’t get rid of, and that can hurt your score.
Even if you don’t win any tricks in the first round, don’t worry. You can still win the whole game. Just focus on giving other players odds and ends cards to bring down their scores.
Keep track of what values other players have been collecting. They’re usually going to have fewer of those cards in their odds and ends pile.