OBJECTIVE OF DOS: The first player to earn 200 points or more wins the game.
NUMBER OF PLAYERS: 2 – 4 players
NUMBER OF CARDS: 108 cards
TYPE OF GAME: Hand shedding
AUDIENCE: Kids, Adults
INTRODUCTION OF DOS
DOS is a hand shedding card game published by Mattel in 2017. It is considered a more challenging follow up to UNO. Players are still trying to be the first to empty their hand, but rather than playing a single card to one discard pile, players are making matches to multiple cards in the center of the playing space. Players can make matches with one or two cards; matching by number is required. Color match bonuses are also possible and allow the player to shed more cards from their hand. As the number of cards in the center increases, more possible matches become available.
MATERIALS
The DOS deck is made up of 108 cards: 24 Blue, 24 Green, 24 Red, 24 Yellow, and 12 Wild DOS cards.
WILD # CARD
The Wild # card can be played as any number in the card’s color. The number must be announced when the card is played.
WILD DOS CARD
The Wild DOS card counts as a 2 of any color. The player decides the color when they play the card. If the Wild Dos card is in the Center Row, the player decides what color it is as they match to it.
SETUP
Draw cards to determine who is the first dealer. The player who drew the highest card deals first. All non-number cards are worth zero. Shuffle and dole out 7 cards to each player.
Place the rest of the deck face down in the center of the playing space. Turn up two cards beside each other. This forms the Center Row (CR). A discard pile will be formed on the opposite side of the draw pile.
The deal passes left each round.
THE PLAY
During the game, players are trying to shed cards from their hand by making matches with the cards that are in the CR. There are a few ways to do this.
NUMBER MATCHES
Single Match: One card is played to the CR that matches by number.
Double Match: Two cards are played with numbers that when added together equal the value of one of the CR cards.
A player can match each card in the CR one time.
COLOR MATCHES
If the card or cards played also match in color to the CR card, players earn a Color Match Bonus. The bonus is earned for every single match.
Single Color Match: When the card played to the CR matches in number and color, the player may place another card from their hand face side up in the CR. This increases the number of cards locat in the CR.
Double Color Match: If a Double Match is made that adds up to the number, and both cards match the color of the CR card, the other players are penalized by drawing one card from the draw pile. Also, the player who made the Double Color Match puts one card from their hand face side up in the CR.
DRAWING
If a player cannot or does not want to play any cards, they draw a card from the draw pile. If that card is able to be matched to the CR, the player may do so. If a player draws and is unable to make a match, they add one card face up to the CR.
ENDING THE TURN
At the end of a player’s turn, they collect any matching cards they played to the CR along with the CR cards the matches were played upon. Those cards go onto the discard pile. When there are fewer than two CR cards, refill it back to two from the draw pile. If the player earned any Color Match Bonuses, they should add their cards to the CR as well. It is possible for the CR to contain more than two cards.
Remember, a player can match to as many cards as possible in the CR one time.
ENDING THE ROUND
The round ends once a player gets rid of all the cards from their hand. That player will earn points for the remaining cards in everyone else’s hands. If the player that goes out earns a Double Color Match bonus, everyone else must draw before the score is tallied up for the round.
Continue playing rounds until the endgame condition is met.
SCORING
The player who emptied their hand earns points for the cards still in their opponents’ possession.
Number cards = the value of the number on the card
Wild DOS = 20 points each
Wild # = 40 points each
WINNING
The first player to reach 200 points or more is the winner.
- TRIPLE SNAKES - February 15, 2021