Swish Jr. is loads of fun and it's a great game for developing visual and spatial thinking skills. Learn to move the cards in your mind and you'll be an expert at making Swishes!
Components
- 42 Transparent Swish Jr. Cards
- Game-Go Bag
- Instructions
Object of the Game
Collect cards by making Swishes. Collect the most cards to win the game.
What is a Swish
A Swish is made when two cards (or more) are stacked on top of each other so that the solid shapes fill in the matching shape and color outlines.
In order to make a Swish, the cards may be rotated and flipped, but must lay on top of each other in the same direction so that the blue borders on the cards line up.
When a correct Swish is made, every solid shape will fit into an outline of the same shape and color. No solid shapes or outlines will be left on their own.
Examples of a correct swish:
Examples Of An Incorrect Swish:
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The green leaf is missing an outline and the purple circle outline is missing a solid purple circle.
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Because these two cards match exactly, the solid shapes do not fill in the matching shape and color outline. They do not create a Swish.
Setup
Select a flat playing area that is in full view of all players. The game works best when played on a light-colored surface.
The player with a birthday closest to the current date is the dealer. The dealer shuffles the deck and lays out 12 cards in three rows of four. This is the "board".
The dealer leaves the remaining cards in a stack. This stack is the "draw pile".
Game Play
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The dealer calls out "Go!" to begin the game
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Players look at the board to find a Swish. Touching the cards is not allowed while searching for a Swish.
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A player calls "Swish" as soon as he/she can identify a Swish. When this happens, all players must pause (stop looking
for Swishes).
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The player that called Swish selects the card and layers them on top of one another. The other players should look at the layered cards to confirm that a Swish has been made.
If the Swish is valid, the player collects the cards that make up the Swish into his or her own "score pile".
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Using cards from the draw pile, the player that found the Swish now replaces the cards that are missing from the board.
(As long as there are enough cards in the draw pile, there should always be 12 cards on the board).
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The game now resumes and all players continue to look for Swishes.
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When the draw pile is empty, and no more Swishes can be made with the cards on the board, the game is over.
Losing a Card
Don't be too hasty when calling out Swishes, or you might lose a card! In all three of the instances below, a player must give up 1 card from his or her score pile, and put it back in the draw pile. If a player has not collected any cards this rule does not apply.
Players lose a card for:
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Touching the cards before calling out "Swish"!
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Taking time to search for a Swish after calling "Swish". Once a player calls "Swish" he/she must identify the cards that make the Swish immediately.
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Selecting cards that don't make a Swish.
(In this case the player must put the cards back on the board and the game resumes).
Stuck?
If at any time all players feel that no Swish exists, the dealer may replace 4 out of the 12 cards on the board with new cards from the draw pile. The 4 old cards should be reshuffled into the draw pile. However, this happens rarely, so look carefully!
Helpful Hint
The shapes and colors are arranged on the cards so that they will always be in the same place:
The starburst, and the starburst outlines, will always be ORANGE, and they will always appear in the four corners of the card.
The circles, and the circle outlines, will always be PURPLE, and they will always appear at the top and bottom center of the card.
The leaf, and the leaf outlines, will always be GREEN, and they will always appear on the sides of the card, in the middle.
The arrow, and the arrow outlines, will always be BLUE, and they will always appear in the middle of the card.
End of the Game
Players count the cards in their own score piles. Each card is worth a point, so the player with the most cards is the winner!
Advanced Play
Did you know that up to nine-card Swishes are possible? These higher-card Swishes are worth more points since making them will add more cards to your score pile.
Once you've mastered finding two-card
Swishes, try playing the game where only three-card Swishes are allowed...then see if you can play finding only four-card Swishes. With practice, players can easily learn to spot Swishes using more and more cards.
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