Winner takes all! These are the best nostalgic card games

With a bit more downtime on your hands, you may be left wondering what to do to pass the time. But rather than spending spare time watching movies or baking that third batch of biscuits, why not use it as an excuse to dust off the old deck of cards that is likely hidden away in the corner cupboard and bring the family together over a classic game of cards.

Although it might have been a while since you’ve shown off your shuffling techniques, everyone loves a good game of cards and even the grandkids can get involved in the fun if they’re stuck in the house as well – or, if you live apart and are following the government’s guidelines – why not play via video chat.

Solitaire

The beauty of solitaire is that you don’t need a partner, making it absolutely perfect for those in self-isolation. The aim of the game is to line up every suit in ascending order from ace to King.

Anyone can play this as long as you have a deck of cards, bench space and some spare time! Line your cards up in a row of seven and begin to match them up with their correlating suit until you’ve conquered the whole deck. Then once you win, collect them all and start again!

500

Although this classic is basically known as the national card game of Australia, long-time players of the game might be surprised to find out that it was originally played in the US. The game is called 500 because the first person to reach this amount of points wins.

The high stakes game is an extension of the American game Euchre and is not only popular down under but also in places like Canada, New Zealand and Scotland, although each version differs slightly.

Gin Rummy

This game is derived from the very popular game Rummy (as its name suggests) but is a much faster version of the game for those who looking for a good time, not a long time. The objective of this fairly simple game is to be the first player to accumulate the predetermined number of points.

Once these points have been reached the winner must then either knock on the table or shout the famous line “Gin!”. This game is quick to learn and is one of the best ways to keep busy on a slow day.

Donkey

This game was always a hit with the kids as it was quick, easy and involved a lot of chanting. Donkey technically has no winner but it definitely has a loser which is essentially the objective of the game. Against everything else, you do not want to be the donkey.

President

In Australia this game is more appropriately called ‘scumbags’ or it can go by the name ‘warlords’. But whatever you call it, the fast-paced competitive game is definitely a good way to pass your time during isolation.

The aim is to be the first player to get rid of all of your cards leaving you to be the leader or the president while the one who comes last is now in the less-appealing role of the ‘scumbag’ (or whatever other insulting name the group can come up with).