Rat a Tat Cat
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Rat a Tat Cat is a memory game created by Gamewright, and it won a Mensa Select award in 1996.
Contents |
[edit] Cards
- Number cards that say 0-9
- 3 0's
- 3 1's
- 4 2's
- 4 3's
- 4 5's
- 4 6's
- 4 7's
- 4 8's
- 9 9's
- "Power cards"
- 3 draw 2's
- 3 peeks
- 3 swaps
[edit] Rules
[edit] Setup
Each player is dealt four cards that are placed, face down, in a row in front of him/her. Everyone is given time to look at the two outermost cards. The players do not look at the middle two cards, and they do not look at opponents' cards!!! The rest of the cards are placed in a draw pile in the middle, and the top one is turned over and forms a discard pile (if this card is a power card, it is placed in the middle and a new one is drawn)
[edit] Objective
The objective is to have the fewest points at the end of the game. The points are the total of all cards that the person has at the end of the round. Therefore, players try to get rid of high cards like 9's and gain low cards like 0's. Since cards are left face down, memory is a very important part of this game.
[edit] Game Play
On a player's turn, he/she takes a card. He/she can either take the top card of the discard pile (but not if it is a "power card") or take the top card of the draw pile. Anyone who takes a card from the discard pile uses it to replace one of his/her face down cards, and puts that card on the discard pile. The other choice is to take a card from the draw pile. If this is a number card, the person may either use it to replace one of the face down cards, or place the drawn card directly in the discard pile.
[edit] If the Draw Pile is Exhausted
If the draw pile is exhausted, the discard pile is reshuffled and placed face down. However, it may be a good idea to end the game immediately, since there would not be any "good" cards in the discard pile: they are not generally placed there, and if placed there by accident they are taken immediately.
[edit] Power Cards
Power cards may only be used if they are drawn from the draw pile. They may not be taken from the discard pile, and are useless if found in the hand. After use, they are placed in the discard pile. If a power card is taken from the draw pile, it does the following:
[edit] Peek
If a peek is drawn, the player may immediately look at ONE of his/her face down cards.
[edit] Swap
If a swap is drawn, the player may switch one of his cards with one of another players cards. However, the player may not look at either card until recieving a peek card. If the player does not want to stop, he/she does not have to.
[edit] Draw 2
A player drawing a draw 2 card then draws another card from the pile, and may use this card as if it were a normal turn. However, if it is a number card and is discarded, or if it is a power card and the player decides not to use it, the player then picks another card from the pile, and plays that as if it were a normal turn.
[edit] The End of the Round
At the end of a players turn, he may choose to end the round. All other players get one more turn. After that, everyone counts up his/her points. Any power cards are placed at the bottom of the deck and replaced with the top card.
[edit] The End of the Game
At the beginning of the game, the players decide how to win. There are three possibilities:
- Play for a specific length of time, and the person with the fewest points at the end is the winner.
- Play a specific number of rounds, and the person with the fewest points at the end is the winner.
- A player with a certain number of points is kicked out of the game, and the last one still in is the winner.
