Overview
Cambio is a draw-and-discard game for two or more players (best with four to six). Each player keeps a small face-down grid of cards and tries to hold the lowest possible total when someone declares the game over.
The game rewards memory, attention, and an instinct for when a known hand is good enough — and punishes the opposite of all three.
Components
- 2 or more players, optimally 4–6.
- An unmarked, regular 52-card deck with both jokers.
- For every multiple of six players, add an additional deck.
Objective
Hold the lowest scoring hand on the table when the game ends. The game ends as soon as a player calls Cambio on their turn; everyone else takes one final turn, all hands are revealed, and the lowest total wins.
Setup
Shuffle thoroughly. Deal four cards face down to each player in a 2×2 grid. Place the remaining deck face-down in the centre of the table; the discard pile builds face-up alongside it as cards are played.
Players may not rearrange the cards in their grid — once dealt, they stay where they are.
Opening peek
Before the first card is played, every player looks at their own bottom two cards. Once play starts, no more free peeks at your cards.
Play proceeds clockwise, starting with the player to the left of the dealer.
Turn structure
On your turn you briefly hold five cards — your four in the grid plus a new one — and you put one of those five face-up on the discard pile, leaving four cards in your grid for the next player. The turn breaks into three actions:
Take the top card of the deck and look at it.
Either keep the new card (swap it into your grid; the card you displace becomes your discard candidate) or don't (the card you just drew is the candidate).
Place your candidate face-up on the discard pile. If it's a power card (7, 8, 9, 10, J, Q, K), its effect fires now.
Or, instead of any of that, call Cambio to end the game for yourself. See Calling Cambio below.
Card values
| Card | Value | |
|---|---|---|
| Red King (♥ ♦) | −1 | K ♦ K ♦ ♦ K ♥ K ♥ ♥ |
| Joker | 0 | JOKER ★ |
| Ace | 1 | A ♥ A ♥ ♥ |
| 2 – 10 | Face value | 5 ♦ 5 ♦ ♦ |
| Face cards (except Red King) | 10 | J ♣ J ♣ ♣ Q ♥ Q ♥ ♥ K ♠ K ♠ ♠ |
Power cards
Four power cards do something special when discarded by the active player on their turn (step 3 above). Each effect resolves before play continues. Cards added to the discard pile via a snap have no effect.
Seven or Eight
See your fateNine or Ten
Spy againJack or Queen
Swap unseenBlack or Red King
Peek and flingSnap
At any point, any player may snap the top card of the discard pile by slapping a card of the same rank from the table on top of it.
What a successful snap does
- If you snap with one of your own cards, that card joins the discard pile and you do not replace it. Your grid shrinks by one.
- If you snap another player's card, you transfer one of your own cards into their grid in the empty slot you just created. Your grid shrinks; theirs stays the same size but gains an unknown card.
- A snapped card has no effect, even if it's a power card — effects only fire on a normal discard (step 3 of the active player's turn).
- You may never snap directly from the deck.
What a failed snap does
If you turn over a card to snap but get it wrong, the card stays where it is — and you draw a new face-down card from the top of the deck as a penalty, growing your grid by one.
Calling Cambio
On your turn, instead of drawing, you may declare "Cambio". You forfeit the rest of your turn. Each remaining player takes one last turn, then everyone reveals their hand and totals are scored.
You cannot call Cambio out of turn. The call must be made before you touch the deck.