Ricochet is played out over a series of rounds. In each round, turn over the top card from the deck face up into the center of a four-card layout.
Then race against your opponents to find the last (5th) card by following the pinballs on the bottom of the cards.
Each pinball indicates which card to look for next according to color and size.
The last remaining card is the 5th card, which is awarded to the first player to correctly identify and slap it.
Components
- 50 pinball cards
- Instructions
Object of the Game
Follow the ball from bumper to bumper to figure out which one is the "final" card in sequence. If you find the correct card first, you collect it. The first player to collect six cards wins.
Setup
Shuffle the deck and deal four cards face up in a cross/diamond pattern in the middle of the playing area as shown, with the pinballs facing out. Place the remaining deck face down nearby.
About the Cards
Each card has a red, a yellow, a green and a blue bumper with a number between 1 and 50. At the bottom of each card is a pinball. The pinball is either large or small, and is in one of the four colors.
The size and color of the ball determines which card to look for next. A large ball means look for the largest number in that color among the remaining cards in play.
A small ball means find the smallest. Here are some examples:
When you see a large red ball, look for the card that has the RED bumper with the LARGEST number.
When you see a small yellow ball, look for the card that has the YELLOW bumper with the SMALLEST number.
When you see a large blue ball, look for the card that has the BLUE bumper with the LARGEST number.
When you see a small blue ball, look for the card that has the BLUE bumper with the SMALLEST number.
Game Play
The oldest player takes the top card of the draw pile and places it face up in the middle of the four cards. This becomes the starter card.
Then, at the same time, all players look at the ball on the starter card to determine which card to look for next.
The ball on the 2nd card indicates which card is the 3rd card, etc., continuing until a player determines which card is 5th. When you find the 5th card, slap it with your hand as fast as you can!
Important Notes:
Each card may only be used once in determining the sequence from the starter through 5th card. In other words, it's a process of elimination.
Once the starter card is revealed, only look at the outer four cards to determine which should be the 2nd card. Once the 2nd card is found, only look at the remaining three cards (NOT the starter or 2nd) and so on.You may not touch or block the cards except to slap and claim the 5th card.
When you find the correct 5th card, slap it. If the other players agree that it is the correct card, remove it from the playing area and place it face down in front of you.
Move the starter card to the spot where the 5th card was, then draw the top card of the deck and place it in the center to start the next round.
Each round follows the same pattern. The top card from the deck is placed into the center of the four cards, all players simultaneously try to identify the correct 5th card, a player slaps the card, and so on.
Example:
Turn over the top card of the deck into the center - this is the starter card. The ball on the starter card determines which of the four outer cards is next, becoming the 2nd card.
The ball on the starter card is large and blue, so find the LARGEST value on the BLUE bumpers. (Remember, the bumpers on the starter card don't count). The largest blue bumper number on the outer four cards is the 30 (on the left card).
The ball on the 2nd card now determines which card will become the 3rd card. The ball on the 2nd is small and yellow - so look for the SMALLEST number on a YELLOW bumper (excluding the starter and 2nd cards, since they have already been used).
The smallest number on the remaining yellow bumpers is the 40 (the bottom card).
The ball on the 3rd card determines which card will become the 4th card. The ball shown is small and blue - look for the smallest number on the two remaining blue bumpers (the starter, 2nd and 3rd cards are not considered).
The smallest number on the remaining blue bumper is the 3 (the card on top). There is now only one card remaining (the card on the right) - this is the 5th card. Quickly, slap this card with your hand.
Take the 5th card (on the right) and place it face down in front of you. Move the starter card from the center into the open spot on the right.
Slip Slaps
If you slap the wrong card, you must forfeit a card that you have already won by placing it at the bottom of the deck, and are excluded for the rest of the round until somebody slaps the correct card.
Ties
If more than one player slaps the 5th card at exactly the same time, then a tiebreaker round is played between just those players. The starter card is returned to the bottom of the deck. A new card is revealed from the deck, and the tied players compete with the new starter card.
End of the Game
The first player to collect six cards is the winner. (You can choose to play for more or fewer cards, as long as all players agree on the winning number before the game begins).
"Full Tilt" Variation (for experts)
Instead of four cards at the start (in a cross shape), put five cards in a circle, and slap the 6th card in the sequence to win a round.
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