Objective
Get rid of all your cards before anyone else. Tricks do not score on their own in Go Boom; they only decide who leads next. What matters is emptying your hand, and in the points version, catching the other players holding plenty of cards when you do.
Setup
Pick a dealer. Deal seven cards to each player, one at a time, starting on the dealer’s left. Put the rest of the deck face down in the middle as the stock.
Cards rank from ace (high) down to two. With a big group, shuffle two decks together so the stock does not run dry in the first few tricks.
How to play
The player on the dealer’s left leads by putting any card face up in the middle. Going around to the left, each player must play one card that matches the lead card’s suit or its rank. If the jack of diamonds is led, you may play any diamond or any jack.
If you have no card that matches, draw from the stock one card at a time until you get one you can play, then play it. If the stock is empty and you still cannot play, you pass for that trick.
When everyone has played or passed, the highest card in the suit that was led wins the trick. The winner sets the trick aside face down and leads any card to start the next one. Play goes on until someone plays their last card.
- 1Lead any card, or follow the lead
- 2Match the lead card’s suit or its rank
- 3Can’t match? Draw until you can, or pass if the stock is gone
- 4Highest card of the suit led wins and leads next
- 5First player out of cards wins the round
Scoring
For a quick game, the first player out simply wins. To play a longer match, the winner of each round scores points for the cards still held by everyone else. Agree on a target before you start, such as 100 for a short game, and play rounds until someone reaches it.
| Card left in a hand | Points to the winner |
|---|---|
| Ace | 1 |
| 2 through 10 | Face value |
| Jack, Queen, King | 10 each |
Pass the deal to the left after each round. If two players reach the target in the same round, the higher total wins.
Variations
Two decks: with identical cards in play, two players can tie for the highest card of the suit led. Most tables give the trick to the one played first.
Crazy Eights is Go Boom’s close cousin. It drops the tricks, plays every card onto one pile and makes the eights wild, so once your group knows Go Boom it is an easy next step.
For very young players, play with open hands on the table and help them spot their legal cards. It turns the game into a matching lesson.
Tips from the table
Keep a spread of suits for as long as you can. A hand with something in every suit can almost always follow, and every time you cannot, you draw. Drawing is the fastest way to lose.
When you win a trick, lead from your longest suit. The other players are more likely to run short of it and have to draw.
Get rid of your high cards when you can win a trick with them. In the points version, a king caught in your hand at the end costs you ten.
Video Guides Are on the Way
We’re filming Game Guides that walk through full hands at the table, from the deal to the score.
Frequently asked
Do I have to play if I can?
Yes. If you hold a card that matches the lead card’s suit or rank, you must play one. You may only draw when you have nothing that matches.
Can I draw even if I could play?
No. Drawing is only allowed when you cannot follow. Once you draw a playable card, you play it.
Who wins the trick if someone matched by rank?
Only cards in the suit that was led can win. The highest of those takes the trick, no matter what other suits were played on it.
Is Go Boom the same as Crazy Eights?
No. Both ask you to match suit or rank and race to empty your hand, but Go Boom is played in tricks and has no wild cards.
New rules every month
Get the next game before it hits the site.
