Read the table before touching a card
Press Deal cards on the table to start a new game. Cards are dealt around all four seats. A saved game resumes without dealing again. The Dealer badge moves clockwise each round, and the player to the dealer’s left begins. Skip animation shows the saved result immediately; Options also has a reduced-motion setting.
You begin with 15 cards and two ways to build: matching ranks, or consecutive natural cards of one suit. For example, 7♥, 8♥ and 9♥ form a sequence. A 7♥, 8♣ and 9♥ do not. Twos and jokers can join matching groups within the limits, but never substitute into a sequence.
Your cards sit at the bottom. Each named seat shows a card count, and your partner's name appears beside yours above your team's melds. Us and Them show the running scores. Tap that score area for round history and the recent play log.
Take the simplest first turn
Tap the face-down stock to draw two cards. The visible discard is another possible source, but taking it has conditions; learning to draw from the stock first avoids that extra decision. Drawing changes the turn instructions to melding and discarding.
Look again at your hand after drawing. You may play eligible combinations, but you are not required to meld on every turn. If you cannot reach the opening minimum, select one card and tap Discard. Your partner and opponents take their turns, then the table returns to you.
Prepare an opening without rushing
Your first team meld must meet the displayed card-point minimum. At the start of a new game it is 50. Three Kings alone are worth 30 and fall short. Three Aces are worth 60 and can meet that minimum, provided the rest of the move leaves your hand in a legal state.
Tap the cards you want to use, then Add meld. The prepared cards appear on your side of the table with a dashed border. Select another group and add it if you need more points. Press Play melds when ready, tap a prepared group to undo it, or use Undo all. To extend an existing meld, select your cards and tap that meld. The destination selector also offers sequences in Samba and wild books in Hand & Foot. Nothing is played until you submit it.
Know your first milestone
Seven consecutive natural cards of one suit make a Samba. Your team needs two completed canastas or Sambas in any combination before going out. A three-card sequence is a useful start, but it does not satisfy that requirement. Keep checking both teams' exposed combinations as the round develops.
The round score combines cards played, bonuses, threes and any going-out bonus, then subtracts cards left over. Open the complete scoring guide when you want to check an unfamiliar amount. Your cards and companions stay saved while you read.
If you get stuck
- Use Hint for one legal suggestion, then choose whether to play it.
- Tap a meld to inspect its cards and whether it is complete.
- Your whole hand stays visible. Cards overlap, with the rank and suit at each exposed corner; long hands use more rows. Select a card to raise it.
- Open the menu for Rules & help or Options. There is no turn timer.
- A rejected move leaves the previously saved state intact. Read the explanation before trying again.
Practice one opening without guessing
Imagine that you hold 6, 7 and 8 of hearts, three Kings and several unrelated cards. Draw two stock cards first. The hearts can form a natural sequence because the ranks are consecutive and the suits match. Their values total 20: the 6 and 7 are worth 5 each, and the 8 is worth 10. The Kings contribute 30, so both combinations together can reach a 50-point opening.
Prepare the hearts and the Kings as separate groups, then submit them in one plan. If the minimum were 90, the same cards would not suffice. A Joker cannot be inserted into the hearts sequence to increase its points or repair a missing card. You would need another valid group or enough eligible natural sequence cards while retaining a legal end to the turn.
Finish the turn deliberately
When you have played the combinations you want, select one remaining card and press Discard. The selected card rises so that you can check its number and suit. Selecting is not discarding: you still control the final action. If you have a prepared meld plan, play it or clear it before finishing the turn. A plan represents a proposal, not cards already accepted on the table.
Watch the visible card move to the discard pile and the next participant take a turn. When your turn returns, begin with the draw stage again. You cannot keep adding cards before drawing just because you were building that rank on your previous turn. The phase instruction tells you which part of the routine is active.
What you should know after two turns
You are ready to continue practicing when you can identify your partner, the face-down stock, the face-up discard and your team's shared meld area. You should be able to explain why three matching cards differ from a pair, why an opening may need several groups, and why the last selected card has not been discarded until you confirm it.
You do not need to master every pickup or exit to continue. Use the optional Learn to play guide for the first controls, then read the discard examples when a pickup becomes relevant. Use the scoring guide after a round so that the bonuses describe combinations you have actually seen. There is no timer, and opening a guide does not require you to replace the saved game.