SKIP-BO
2-6
7+
20
Test your skills and strategy! Be the first to use all your cards by creating sequential stacks, and you totally ace the game!
User Reviews (7)
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Mattel’s redux of “Spite and Malice”, Skip-Bo is an easy going, simple family style card game for 2-6 players.
Players are in a race to play out their 30 card “stock pile” via the use of 4 common build piles in a shared area. These build piles are completed by playing cards numbered 1 through 12 in sequence. (1 starts a pile, then play all the way up to 12, where the pile is then removed). Players maintain a hand of 5 cards while also having to manage their own 4 discard piles. Also included are cards labeled “Skip-bo”, which serves as the game’s wild cards and can be played as any number.
This game comes with a whopping 162 card deck, but the cards play fast, so you’ll find your draw pile empty in no time… which means play is often interrupted by having to stop and have a huge shuffle break! My wife and I go through the entire draw pile at least 2-4 times per game. And since the heart of this game depends on getting sequential runs, you’ll want to ensure the draw pile gets extra-extra-shuffled so no one can just draw an easy run.
My Grandma used to play this game religiously and would always have an automatic card shuffler nearby. Now I know why!!
Unfortunately, the card stock they use for this game is a little more on the flimsy side, which is a bummer considering the shuffling abuse these cards will endure.
All in all, Skip-bo is like Uno’s dorky cousin.
And although some excitement can be had when you get on a fast playing roll (or a “Hot Run!” as my wife calls it), serious gamers won’t have the patience to persevere.
Skip Bo is a great, light family game. It plays 2-6 players, and is played much like the card game Kings on the Corner, if you’re familiar with that.
The game is equivalent to having 3 full playing decks, with the jokers acting as wild cards. Each player has 30 cards in their deck, and 4 discard piles in front of them. At the start of their turn, or when they run out of cards in their hand, you draw until you have 5 cards in hand. There are four columns in the center where players play their cards, starting at 1 and going down to 12. Players play as much as they can or wish to, using cards from their hand and discard pile, and finish their turn by discarding a card to one of their 4 discard piles. This requires careful forethought on what you’re laying down because once you cover up a card in your discard pile, you can’t access it until you get rid of the card on top of it.
When a column reaches 12, the column is removed from play and a new column started in its place. Play continues until one player plays their last card. A player scores 25 points plus 5 points for every card their opponent has left. The first player to 500 points is the winner.
The game is more involved than most playing card games, and this game requires some planning and foresight in how you set up your columns, but overall the game is pretty basic and simple. It’s great for families, but for gamers, it isn’t too exciting. Nothing more than a filler game.
The object of this game is to rid yourself of a stack of 20 – 30 cards in front of you. You do this buy playing cards from your hand and discard piles into a shared group of up to 4 piles in the middle of the table in ascending order from 1 – 12.
This game is an exercise in patience. There are multiple times during each game when you can do nothing for several turns in a row whilst waiting for one card for your hand to go off. You are also constantly not playing cards to avoid helping your opponents further slowing the game down.
The amount of cards in your pile that you have to get rid of is a double edged sword you need more cards to even out the randomness that occurs. Quite often you will get just the card you don’t want several times in a row and then get 5 cards all out in one turn. But then having 30 cards prolongs the game for me to an insufferable length. And any less cards then its just the luck of the draw and if you are going to play a game of luck better to find a fun one.
There are a lot better card games out there to fill this time slot. I advise giving Skip – Bo a miss.
I work with people who have mental and physical disabilities and this is a game that we play A LOT. Good game for learning and practicing numbers. I have tried mixing it up by counting backwards and it worked out well. It would be nice for this game to had different conditions that players could play. Such as counting backwards, or only playing odds/evens, only playing colors or pure skip-o card piles. There are better children/family games that you could play, but this (like go fish and old maid) is one that many people know how to play.
Something about this card game feeds my drive to put things in order. I’m not particularly OCD, but when it comes to this game, I love getting all my little numbers in a row. I kept begging my kids to play it with me over Christmas, and thankfully they obliged. This is a nice, simple family game, easy for kids to learn. It’ll round out your collection of popular card games like Uno and Rook. It can even be used to teach counting skills, if you want to use it with younger kids.
Skip-Bo
This game is nothing spectacular that you need to go tell everyone about however it is still good enough to keep around in any collection.
Game play
Each player is given a 30 card deck (you can easily change this number for a longer or shorter game) which is face down in front of them with only the top card upright and five cards in their hand.
There are four community piles in the middle that each player alternates playing on and then four individual piles in front of each player for their temporary discards. Each player will play cards in the community piles from 1-12 (With the occasional wild skip-bo card) while trying to eliminate their deck of 30 cards. The first player to do so wins.
Typical Turn
The player will pick up cards bringing their hand back to 5 cards.
They will then play the cards in their hand, from their deck and temporary discards until they can no longer play, then temporarily discard a card to one of the piles in front of them. (Once you cover up a previously discarded card it cannot be played again until the one on top of it is played)
What I like about this game
This is an easy game to teach anyone to play, and not only can they enjoy it on their first play through but depending on the cards they get they can even win against a veteran player.
What I love about this game
My wife who isn’t a big gamer really likes to play this game, and it has encouraged her to play many others.
What I don’t really like about this game
It can be a little repetitive, and there is a lot of shuffeling to do. The cards can get warn out but because there are so many of the same types, worn cards don’t really give away anything.
What I hate about this game
There are times when you cannot get one specific card for a long time while you watch other players zoom right through their deck. This usually happens to everybody at some point so it evens out but when it doesn’t it can be very frustrating.
In Conclusion
It has been a solid little game that has gotten a lot of play time, and because it is small it travels really well and can be played without very much surface space.
And it was completely forgettable.
Sometimes, I move the box out of the way while trying to get a game I want to play.