Here's a fun game to play during your next family night. A great, and gentler, alternative to Slapjack, everyone is sure to enjoy it!

Number of Players: 3 to 8. The game is best for 4 or 5 players.

The Deal: Any player deals, 1 card at a time, until all the cards have been dealt out. It doesn't matter if they don't come out even.

Object: To win all of the cards.

The Play: As in Slapjack, each player turns up 1 card at a time at his turn to play. The card must be turned away from the player and dropped on the table, except that each player starts a pile in front of himself for his turned up cards. For example, in the game for 4 players, after each player has had a turn, there will be 4 piles of face-up cards and 4 packs of face-down cards.

When a player turns up a card that matches a face-up card on any other pile, the 1st player to say "Snap!" wins both piles and puts them face down under his own pack.

A player who says "Snap!" at the wrong time, when the turned-up card does not match one of the other piles, must give the top card of his pile to the player who just turned up his card.

As in Slapjack, a player who runs out of cards may stay in for the first "Snap!" in the hope of getting a new pile. If he does not win the first "Snap," he is out. A player who cries a false "Snap" is out if he has no cards to pay the penalty.

Skillful Play: You have to keep looking around to make sure you know which cards are on top of the piles, since they keep changing as the game goes on. You must be ready at all times to shout "Snap!" very quickly. If 2 or more players begin the word at the same time, the player who ends the word first, wins. If you're a slow speaker, this is no game for you.

"My grandmother used to play this game with me." says Karen Butterworth, "She preferred it to Slapjack--which can become rough when one of the players was a girl. We had to make a special rule once because little Lisa said 'Snap!' every time a card was turned. She had to pay a penalty card most of the time, but this was more than offset because she won every single pile! Grandma said this wasn't fair, so we adopted the rule that after three false 'Snaps' a player was out."

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Karen Butterworth is a successful freelance author that writes regularly for Kids Games n Crafts, a site that focuses primarily on helping you choose the fun and interactive games to help your children grow. Her articles have also been featured on related family sites such as Baby Shower Ideas & Games and Wedding Reception Ideas & Invitations