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I’m lucky: I grew up with two other siblings, so on game nights, we had a full group of five people — me, my brothers, and our parents. Our go-to was often one of three games: Monopoly (my dad sat on his cash so we didn’t know how much money he had), Nightmare (the VHS game from the 90s with the scary-faced demon guy), and Spoons (the best card game on earth).
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But like I said, I was lucky. I didn’t know the struggle that comes with playing cards with only two people until I moved out on my own. If you face the same challenge, never fear. These six games are perfect for an intimate game night of cards with you and just one other person.
You only need a standard deck of 52 cards for these games.
Just like regular golf, the goal in Golf the card game is to get the lowest score over nine deals (or holes, if you want to keep the metaphor). Players each place two rows of three face-down cards in front of them and turn any two cards in their layout face up. Then, taking cards from the remaining pile, each player tries to replace every card with a lower numbered card. Face-down cards can be replaced with a face-up card drawn from the pile. Once all six cards in front of you are face-up, the round is over. Do this for nine total rounds, keeping track of the amount the cards add up to for each round. If you have the lowest total after nine, you win.
Speed was always my favorite game to play with my brothers (one or both), because the goal is to get rid of your cards the quickest — and we’re very competitive people. Here’s how it works. You put stacks of facedown cards in a row across the table: five cards, then one card, then one card, then another five cards. Then, give both players 15 cards each, and both of you draw five cards from that 15.
To play, you each flip over one of the single-card stacks in the middle. You have to play a card higher or lower than the visible cards. Place it right on top of the visible card, and continue building off that new card. If no cards are playable, flip a card over from the pile of five and place it on the top of one of the middle piles. Remember to keep five cards in your hand at all times. The first person to run out of cards wins.
Spit is similar, but with a different card arrangement of five stock piles instead of one.
For these games, you’ll need to purchase the card pack. It’s worth it, though!
This is more of a bonding game than anything else — there’s no competition involved. Each card in No Wrong Answers has a question you ask the person you’re playing with to learn about them. Examples: “Which cereal mascot would be the best kisser?” “Your nose is broken and you can only smell one thing for the rest of your life. What is it?” “What ultra-specific skill would you bring to a heist?” The questions (and answers) are hilarious.
This game would be fun with many players, but my fianée and I played it on our own the other night and had a fabulous time. For In A Pickle, all the cards have objects or concepts on them. The goal is to make stacks of four cards ascending in size based on the object and what it fits inside. For example, a set could look like this: pickle→jar→kitchen→house. To win, collect five sets.
Love Letter is super quick and easy to learn, especially because the deck itself is only 16 cards. The goal? To be the first to get your love letter to the princess. Each card has an action, like looking at another player’s hand, or discarding a specific card. You win by being the last one standing when the pile runs out.
