Standard Deck Card Games

Card games have long been loved as a source of entertainment and an opportunity for socialization. With just a standard fifty-two-card deck, you can play hundreds of different games, such as Spades, Poker Squares, Slap Jack, and Crazy Eights. In this quick guide, we’ll explore how to play these four fun standard deck card games.

Spades

Spades is a classic trick-taking game with the goal of reaching a certain number of points. It’s often played in pairs but can be done with three to six players.

Every round starts with each player making a ‘bid’ or a prediction of how many ‘tricks’ they’ll win in the round. Every correct bid constitutes a ‘contract,’ which is awarded ten points. ‘Overtricks’ (aka bags) or plays beyond the bid are given one point each.

When a round begins, the first player leads with a suit, with everyone else required to follow suit in hopes of winning (or not winning, depending on their bid) the round. If a player can’t follow suit, they must play a trump card–in this case, a Spade. What is a Spade in cards? It’s the suit characterized by a leaf symbol, often colored black. When a Spade is played, all other players must play the same.

Spades typically ends when a player or team reaches 500 points. Free online Spades is available on Spades.co!

Poker Squares

Poker Squares, also called ‘Poker Solitaire,’ is a single-player game that’s ideal for people looking to sharpen their Poker skills. The objective is to form the best poker hands possible in a five-by-five grid.

The player draws one card at a time from the deck and then places it on the grid. Once a card is played, it can’t be moved.

When twenty-five cards have been laid out, the player reads them in rows and columns to determine a score. Points are as follows:

• Royal Flush: One hundred
• Straight Flush: Seventy-five
• Four of a Kind: Fifty
• Full House: Twenty-five
• Flush: Twenty
• Straight: Fifteen
• Three of a Kind: Ten
• Two Pair: Five
• One Pair: Two
• High Card: Zero

Slap Jack

Slap Jack is a fast-paced–and slightly physical–game that’s great for groups! The goal is to win all the cards in the deck by being the first to slap each Jack as it appears in the center.

Cards are dealt evenly among players. When the game starts, each player places one card face down quickly at the center of the table in turns. When the card played is a Jack, players race to slap their hand down to take the card, as well as the cards beneath it. The first player to do so takes the pile, placing it under their pile of cards and shuffling it to form a bigger hand.

If more than one player slaps at a Jack, the one who’s the quickest, i.e. the one with their hand directly on top of the Jack, wins. If a player mistakenly slaps a card other than a Jack, they must give one card face down to the player of the card played. When a player runs out of cards during a round, they must still play until the next Jack is turned. This gives them the chance to get a new pile, otherwise they’re out of the game.

Crazy Eights

Crazy Eights is a shedding card game; that is, the objective is to get rid of all of one’s cards. Players are given five cards each, and the first to play lays down any card at the center of the table. The next player must follow with a card from the same suit or denomination–except the eights, which can be played regardless of the previous card. Players can draw from the discard pile at any time, even if they have a playable card (though they must do it if they don’t).

Looking to try your hand at Spades online? Spades.co has you covered–try it out for free today!