Are you looking for a crazy, loud and addictive game to liven up your game nights? Well Corks is the one for you!
Whether you have a party of three, or the whole clan of fourteen round (yes, I said 14!!), this is bound to get people laughing, joking and becoming Mr/s Smug. This game is a loud and frantic one – please move all drinks glasses off the table, I have learnt the hard way.
Aim and Set Up
The aim of Corks is to collect a set of four cards of the same colour, and as soon as you have, quickly grab a wooden cork that’s placed in the centre of the table, before your opponents grab theirs.
Select one less cork than the number of players (e.g. for six players, select five corks) and place them in the centre of the table, an equal distance from all players. Next, select a set of four cards of the same colour for each player, shuffle them together and deal four back out to them. Leave the remaining cards in the box and choose a player to be the Corker (the person who ensures no cheating or cat scraps occur).
How to Play
When the Corker calls ‘Go’, all players simultaneously discard a card of a colour that they don’t want from their hand, placing it face down on the table and sliding it across to the person sitting to their left.
Then, pick up the card that the player to your right has discarded to you.
Remember you’re trying to collect four cards of the same colour, so if you’re originally dealt two yellows, one red and one blue, it’s probably a good idea to try and collect four yellows. On your turn, select the red or blue card, lay it face down on the table and slide it to the person on your left. Fingers crossed, the person sitting to your right will have slid a yellow card your way!
Once everyone has collected their card, decide on the next card you want to discard. The play continues with players putting down and picking up as they try to collect a set of four matching cards.
Now for the madness!
As soon as you’ve collected four matching cards, you must take a cork from the centre of the table, but how you do this is up to you. You can do it stealthily, casually or blatantly. When the other players see the first cork has been taken, it’s then a free for all, they must also grab a cork from the centre of the table, no matter if their cards are matching colours or not! The person who doesn’t grab a cork in time is eliminated.
After each round, when a player has been eliminated, remove one cork and one set of four cards. Shuffle the remaining cards and reposition the remaining corks ready for the next round.
Once only two players remain, it is time to swap the last cork for the golden cork (ooooo!). Normal game rules apply for the final, but you should think tactically and not necessarily pass your opponent the card they are expecting – keep them on their toes, mess with their mind, and keep your cool. As soon as you have those matching four cards, grab that cork as fast as possible!! You can then gloat about being the golden cork winner.
Just one more game… guys?
Corks is a game that fits in anywhere – a family gathering, a special event, an awkward works doo – it gets everyone out of their shells and is the perfect ice breaker. Give it a go, I promise you won’t be disappointed (but please remember to move those drinks out of the way… the red wine splash is still in my carpet to this day).
