Find it fast! Find it first!
Pictureka!, from Winning Moves Games, is a fun, fast-paced card game that gets the whole family in on the fun.
What’s super great about this compact card game is that it houses four different ways to play. In 8-Away, each player is dealt eight cards, which they place on four piles of two face up. Then, the first Mission Card is flipped. The players must race to match one of their four face-up top cards to match either of the missions on the Mission Card. For example, you can match “Something Chilly” or “A 4-legged thing.” Once you find a match, you place your card on top of the Mission Card and yell, “Pictureka!” Then it’s time to get creative. Players must then explain to the other players why their card definitely matches the phrase on the Mission Card, and the rest decide if it counts. The first player to get rid of all eight cards wins.
Alphabetti scraps the Mission Cards and only uses the picture cards. The oldest player starts with the deck of picture cards. Before the game starts, all players decide on the range of letters they are going to use for the game coming up—such as A-M, or D-P, etc. The dealer deals the cards out on the table face up every two seconds. Once four cards are dealt, the dealer starts playing cards on top of the piles of cards on the table. All of the players search through the cards for an item that starts with the current letter. Once they find that card, they yell, “Pictureka!” and explain their match, and the other players decide whether or not it counts. This version of the game is fun because it challenges players to get creative and use synonyms to make a match. The player with the most cards at the end wins.
Cow’s Creative Combo challenges players to match three cards in their own hand to their own specific Mission Card, to be the first to match four Mission Cards. If they don’t have three cards that match one mission, they have to draw different cards on their turn, and the turn passes to the next player. This is probably the most challenging of all the games, since you have to match multiple cards, and it’s also the only one that you’re not racing as a group to be first.
In Matchureka, players make a 5 by 4 grid of face down picture cards, and turn a Mission Card face up. On each player’s turn, he or she flips two cards and see if those two cards match one of the missions on the Mission Card. If it does, they get to take the Mission Card, and the first player to collect four Mission Cards wins. This version of the game brings in strategic play, as players are challenged to remember where certain pictures are so they can try to cleverly match the missions on the card.
Overall, this game is great for all ages, so the whole family can play together. The instructions are easy enough for younger players to follow, and it also teaches kids about friendly competition. Since the other players are the judges on whether or not someone receives points, it teaches them the importance of being fair, while in a competitive situation. Plus, gameplay is fast, so groups can play multiple rounds (or games) in one sitting.
