38

38 is a fun card game for two players that combines strategy and luck. Choose between competitive play, where you aim for opposite goals, or cooperative play, where you work together to achieve the perfect score. With simple rules and quick rounds, 38 provides entertaining gameplay for players of all ages.

Game Name: 38

Players: 2

Components:

• A standard deck of 52 cards with face cards (Jack, Queen, King) removed (40 cards total, Ace-10 in each suit)

Objective:

• In Competitive Mode, one player chooses "Over" and the other "Under", predicting whether the total score will be over or under 38. The player whose prediction is correct wins the game.
• In Cooperative Mode, both players choose either "Over" or "Under" together and win or lose as a team based on the total score.

Setup:

1. Remove all face cards (Jack, Queen, King) from the deck, leaving 40 cards (Ace-10 in each suit).
2. Shuffle the deck thoroughly.
3. Decide whether to play in Competitive Mode or Cooperative Mode.
   1. In Competitive Mode:
      1. Players cut the deck to determine who chooses the prediction first. The player with the higher card value gets to choose "Over" or "Under". If there is a tie, reshuffle and cut again.
      2. The other player automatically gets the opposite prediction.
   2. In Cooperative Mode:
      1. Players discuss and agree on whether to choose "Over" or "Under" together.

Gameplay:

1. The game is played over 10 rounds.
2. In each round, deal 4 cards face-down from the deck, 2 to each player.
3. Both players simultaneously select 1 card from their hand and place it face-up on the table.
4. Calculate the difference between the values of the two played cards (e.g., if Player 1 plays a 7 and Player 2 plays a 3, the difference is 4).
5. Record the difference as the score for the round.
6. Discard the played cards and the unplayed cards from each player's hand.
7. Repeat steps 2-6 until all 10 rounds have been played.

End of the Game:

• Competitive Mode:
  • After 10 rounds, add up the scores from all rounds to determine the total score.
  • If the total score is over 38, the player who chose "Over" wins.
  • If the total score is under 38, the player who was assigned "Under" wins.
  • If the total score is exactly 38, the game is a push (tie), and no one wins.
• Cooperative Mode:
  • After 10 rounds, add up the scores from all rounds to determine the total score.
  • If the total score is over 38 and the players chose "Over", both players win.
  • If the total score is under 38 and the players chose "Under", both players win.
  • If the total score does not match the players' shared prediction, both players lose.

Additional Rules:

• Aces are valued as 1.
• Players are not allowed to communicate or share information about their cards during the game.

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Q: How is this “Closer Together?”
A: You have to convince a person to play with you!

Q: What can you learn from this seemingly random game?
A: If you cooperate and play enough rounds, you will discover you can win almost every time. Even if you don’t communicate a strategy, you both will come to a similar strategy to minimize or maximize difference. Try it!