No Thanks

No Thanks! Is a simple and engaging game suitable for players above 8 years and can be played among 3 to 7 players. 

Related: A list of best card games in NZ

Objective

When playing No Thanks, players have two options; either play one of their chips to avoid picking up the current face-up card or pick up the face-up card and turn over the next card. The aim of the game is to have the lowest score at the end of the game. 

How to play

To play No Thanks card game, you need a No Thanks card set, chips, and 3 to 7 players. Each card has a value that is equivalent to its face value. A deck has 33 cards numbered 3 to 35 and 55 playing chips.

Setting up

To begin, each player is dealt 11 chips, and the remaining chips are returned to the box.  Then shuffle the cards, remove 9 cards randomly and place them in the box without looking at them.

Playing and taking cards

After the 9 cards are removed, the remaining 24 are placed in the middle of the table, and the top card is flipped face-up. 

The player has two options;

• Say No Thanks (pass on taking that card) and place one chip next to the card.
• Accept the card and take any chips next to it.

After a card has been claimed, the player who takes the card flips over the next card, and the play continues.

When all the 24 cards are acquired, every player adds up their cards total value then subtracts the number of chips they have to get the total. 

The player with the lowest score wins the game. 

The rules

The rules of the game are simple and straightforward. Ideally, since each player is only dealt 11 chips, the chips are required to pass on a card, and if you run out of chips, you have to accept the card that is flipped up. 

Another point to note is that each card is worth its point value at the end of the game. 

However;

If the cards are grouped in an unbroken number sequence, they are worth the lowest card. For example, if you have 19 and 20, you will have 19 points.

Strategy

No Thanks card game has two basic strategies that you can implement. 

Strategy 1: Avoid all high cards. This will help you when you run out of chips and have to take the card flipped up. 

Strategy 2: You can try your luck with high-value cards, but make sure to collect chips to counteract the high values on the cards. 

Although these two strategies don’t always guarantee a win, they will always give you an idea of what move to make when you are not sure. 

What interesting about this game is that it does not have complicated steps, and there is not much thinking involved. It plays quick, and the rules are simple.

FAQ