Game Spot It! Original Card Game: Can you Spot the Symbol?

This game offers 5 ways of playing or five different games but the object of the game is always the same - to spot the common symbol between the cards and make sure you say the matching symbol first in order to collect the cards. The symbols on the cards are different images that come from everyday life and are known and recognized by kids for example a ladybird, dolphin, car, zebra, key, the Sun, clock, etc. So, although there are some slight differences between the playing of the five mini games still the general rules are more or less the same. This game can be played by minimum of 2 and maximum of 8 players and every single player starts the game with only one of the cards that he or she draws from a pile that is in the middle or between the players. Each of the player has to look carefully and compare his or her card with the one on the top of the pile in order to notice the symbol that is common for both cards. The first player who spots and shouts the symbol takes the card from the pile and keeps it for himself/herself. The playing continues until all the cards are gone and the winner is the one who collected the biggest number of cards since this player was the quickest and with the sharpest eye.
If there is a tie between two players then they should play a quick round between them and in case where there is a tie between more players than the winner is decided with playing of one of the games called “Hot Potato”.

On the cover of the tinned box it is labelled that this card game is recommended for kids who are older than 6 that is 7 and above. However, because the rules of playing this game are really simple and on the cards there are only symbols with nothing to read on, many of the users recommend this game for kids older than 4 years old. It is a great game for kids who can practice their visionary skills and language skills through playing the game. Kids will love playing the game because it is simple to play and yet it is challenging and dynamic as the manufacturer states that the game lasts approximately about 15 minutes so the kids will not be bored within this time and 15 minutes is really a good time for the attention span of kids at this age. It is also an interesting game for adult members of the family because it does not involve a lot of preparation and explanation of the rules to the younger members, it is a competitive game where anyone can win and the age and experience is not the decisive factor. Besides this original game there are also other packs of games that are more intended for adults and they come under a name of activities that are more related to the adults such as Fishing and Camping.

You can choose between 5 games that you can play with this deck of cards. Although much similar still players like when they can choose between games because it introduces variety in the play. All the five games have interesting names and the rules and the instructions on how to play the games can be found in the tinned box but also online in pdf form in case you lose the original ones.The first game is called the “Tower” and it is actually the major game and most often played one. It basically follows the same rules as we already explained as general rules, so after the cards are shuffled each player gets a card that he or she places face-down and at the same time all the players should flip the card and try to find the matching symbol with the card that is on the top of the pile that actually represents the tower. When the player who first spots the common symbol takes this card from the pile he/she uses this new card for continuing the play. The game is over once there are no longer cards in the tower.
The second game is named “The Well” and it is a slight variation from the first game. It differs in the way the cards are dealt as there is only one card placed in the middle and all the other cards are dealt to the players. The cards are faced-down from obvious reasons and are flipped at the same time to provide equal time for spotting the symbol. The person who spots it first this time places the card in the middle and the point is to get rid of all the cards that are dealt to you. The winner in this game is the person who gets rid of all the card first. The third game is usually used to determine the winner when there is a tie between players but of course it can be played at any other time if you decide so. Players in this game can decide about the number of rounds they want to play and unlike the other two mentioned games in this one, there is no pile of cards but each of the player receives one card that they have to hold and on a signal all the player show the card in their hands to all the other players so the first player who notices common symbol with one other card shouts the symbol and gives the card to the other player. The similarity between this game called “Hot Potato” and “ The Well” is that the point is to get rid of the cards and thus the winner is the one who has the least number of cards in possession.

The last two games are more challenging ones because they involve matching of the symbols of more than one card.Very similar to the first game “Tower” is the fourth game just this one is more challenging and asks for even greater attention to detail and sharp eye since the point is to attempt to find a common symbol in your card with the card of the opponents and the card that is on the top of the pile. This game is called “The Poisoned Gift” because the player who manages to find the symbol that matches the opponent’s card and the card from the pile first, gives this card as a “gift” to the player who did not manage to spot the symbol or did that but much later than the other, and of course it is “poisonous” because the point of the game is to give the cards to other players and thus the winner is the player who has the smallest number of cards. This game is more advanced and it requires bigger focus and concentration and it is more intended for older kids and adults.
The final game although again with the same idea of play -symbol matching is quite different from the other four because of its different layout. In this game you have to make a grid with total of nine cards and they are dealt in 3 x 3 layout. If you want to be the winner in this game you have to collect more cards and you can do this if you are the first one to find the symbol that matches your card with 3 other cards from the grid. The play continues until there are cards that can be dealt in the grid.

Although a simple game, it is quite challenging and involving game that engages the players and makes them focus on the game if they want to be competitive and get a chance to win the game. It is a game that does not require any knowledge from the players but still it puts on test how quick are their reflexes and skills for noticing and observing. The players also practice the skills of scanning and they should be quick on reactions. By naming the symbols kids also practice their language skills. The cards are just the right size for the hands and younger kids by holding, flipping up and down the cards can improve their fine-motor skills. This card game is also great for practicing memorization and matching as this is actually the basic concept behind this game. Although not recommended for young players still these cards can be used also for teaching different vocabulary and just working on the visual perception of the younger kids by putting two cards next to each other and asking questions in order to find the same image on both of the cards or maybe just asking questions like Where is some item so the kids can point to it. It is important to mention also that the symbol is the same but the size and maybe sometimes the orientation can be different so you can use this for talking about sizes and introducing the concept of big and small, long as opposed to short and related, of course when we talk about younger kids.

Overall this inexpensive card game that comes in even more interesting and unusual package - a tinned box would be a great tool for spending quality family time since it is a game that is intended for the whole family. The original Spot It! game has also developed a few other versions of play that feature different cards with thematic symbols on it and some of them although intended for adults like the pack for Fishing, still can be used by all age groups. The pack consists of 55 cards and although based on the same basic principle of play there are even 5 varieties of games that have very simple rules and can be easily understood by all players. Besides being a game that is simple to play, dynamic, fast and engaging for the players, it is a game with many benefits for the players, too. It enhances their visionary skills, it improves the focus and practices concentration and it is usually adored because of the speed of playing. As a summary we can say that this is a fun, family game that is worth having at home.