THE MIND



OBJECTIVE OF THE MIND: Complete all twelve levels of the game without losing all the Life cards.

NUMBER OF PLAYERS: 2 to 4 players

MATERIALS OF THE MIND: 100 Number Cards, 12 Level Cards, 5 Live Cards, and 3 Throwing Star Cards

TYPE OF GAME: Cooperative Card Game

AUDIENCE: 8+


OVERVIEW OF THE MIND

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The mind is a cooperative game in which all players must be in synch in order to win. Their minds must become one and the same if they are to win. Players must take the cards they have been dealt and place them in order of lowest to highest. 

The catch is players are not able to signal or communicate to one another what cards they have in their hands. Players must take their time, synchronize with their team, and make it through twelve levels of gameplay in order to win. If a card is misplaced, then lives are lost. When five Life cards are lost, the team loses.

SETUP FOR THE MIND

Shuffle the deck then deal each player one card for the first round, two cards for the second round, and so on so forth until level twelve has been reached. Players may not share what cards they have. The additional cards may be placed face down in a stack. 

Based on the number of players, the team is given a specific number of Life cards and Throwing Stars, which are placed face up in the center of the group. For two players, the team is given two Life cards and one Throwing Star. For three players, the team is given three Life cards and one Throwing Star. For four players, the team is given four Life cards and one Throwing Star.

HOW TO PLAY THE MIND

To begin, each player must get into the groove of the game. Each player who is ready to attempt the current level places one of their hands on the table. Once everyone is ready, the game begins. Players ask all players to refocus their concentration at any point throughout the game by saying “stop” and placing their hands on the table.

Each player will place a card down with all of them in ascending order. The player with the lowest numbered card places their card face up, and each player will place cards increasing in number. None of the players are able to discuss their cards, neither openly nor secretly. You complete a level once all the cards are down. 

If a player puts down a card and another player has a lower card, the gameplay stops immediately. The group then loses a Life for a misplaced card. All cards held by players that are lower than the misplaced card are then set aside and the gameplay continues as normal.

Gameplay continues like this, with each level getting increasingly more difficult as the number of cards increases. If the group completes all the levels successfully, the team wins the game! The team loses the game if they lose all of the Life cards.

END OF GAME

The game ends when the team has completed all twelve levels, which makes them the winners! It can also end when the players have lost their last Life Card, which makes them the losers!

Looking for other super fun card games? Check out our list of funny card games to play with friends and family!

Amber Crook
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