Quick Rules
Go Fish is the friendly card game many of us learned as children and later taught to our own grandchildren. You play against one, two or three computer players with a standard 52-card deck. The goal is to collect books: all four cards of one rank, such as four Kings or four 7s.
- The deal. Everyone gets 7 cards (5 each when four are playing). The rest are spread face down in the middle as the pond.
- Ask. On your turn, ask one player for a rank you already hold at least one of: "West, do you have any 7s?"
- Hand them over. If they have any, they must give you every card of that rank, and you ask again.
- Go fish. If they have none, they say "Go fish!" and you draw a card from the pond. Draw the very rank you asked for and you show it and ask again. Otherwise your turn ends.
- Books. As soon as you hold all four of a rank, lay them down as a book.
- Empty hand. If you run out of cards, you draw one from the pond on your turn. If the pond is empty too, you are out.
- Winning. When all 13 books are made, the player with the most books wins. Ties are shared.
Asking Takes Two Taps
Tap a group of cards in your hand to choose the rank, then tap the player you want to ask. The box above your hand says it in full, such as "Ask West for 7s?", and one big button sends the question. Every exchange is written out in plain words in the move list, so you never miss who gave what to whom.
Under each player's name you will also see the ranks they have asked for and still hold. Remembering that is the whole secret of Go Fish, and now you don't have to keep it in your head.
Tips for Winning
- Listen to the questions. A player who asks for Queens has at least one Queen. If you get a Queen later, ask that player first.
- "Go fish" is news too. A player who just said "Go fish" for 9s has none, at least until they draw.
- Finish what you started. When you hold three of a rank, asking for it can end in a book, and a book can never be taken from you.
- Ask the player with the most cards when you have nothing better to go on.
- Use the Hint button. It suggests a question and explains why.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is this Go Fish game free?
Yes. Play as many games as you like for free, with no account, no download and no ads over the game.
Does the computer cheat?
No. The computer players never see your cards, each other's cards or the pond. They only know what anyone at a real table could hear: who asked for what, who handed over how many cards, and which books are down. When the game ends you can open Show All Hands to see what everyone was dealt, and every game has a deal number you can replay to get exactly the same cards.
What do the difficulty levels change?
Only memory. On Easy the computers forget what was asked and mostly guess. On Normal they remember the last few rounds. On Hard they remember every question and every card that changed hands for the whole game. Tap Why? next to any computer move to see what it remembered.
What is the pond?
The pond is the pile of face-down cards left over after the deal, spread in the middle of the table. When someone tells you to go fish, you draw the top card from it.
What happens when I run out of cards?
On your next turn you draw a card from the pond and carry on. If the pond is empty too, you are out, but the books you made still count. A house rule in Settings lets you draw five cards instead of one.
Can I play with more or fewer computer players?
Yes. In Settings choose 1, 2 or 3 computer players. With four at the table everyone is dealt 5 cards; with two or three, 7 cards each.
Does the game save my progress?
Yes. Your game is saved in your browser after every move, so you can close the page and continue later on the same device.
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