Jeopardy! Card Game
Jeopardy! Card Game Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Setup
Unfold the play mat and place it in the center of the table.
Shuffle the CATEGORY CARDS. Next, place one card face up above each of the six spaces on the play mat. These will be the categories for the first round of play. Set the rest of the CATEGORY CARDS aside.
Shuffle the GAME CARDS and deal six cards to each player (NOTE: You will only play five cards in any round, but you get six cards in order to give you some flexibility when choosing categories).
Shuffle the CLUE CARDS and place them face down to form the CLUE DECK.
Each player should have a piece of paper and a pencil for writing their Final Jeopardy! responses and to record their winnings.
Let's Play
The youngest player goes first.
On your turn you will attempt to respond to a Jeopardy! clue. You may only respond to a clue from a category whose color corresponds to a color on one of your GAME CARDS. For example, if you want to respond to a clue from the "HISTORY" category, and "HISTORY" is above the YELLOW color on the play mat, you MUST have a YELLOW GAME CARD. If you do NOT have a YELLOW GAME CARD in your hand, you may not choose "HISTORY" as your category.
When you have chosen which category you want, place the corresponding color-coded GAME CARD below that category on the play mat.
The player to your right draws a CLUE CARD from the CLUE DECK and reads the clue from your chosen category (NOTE: The correct response to the clue is written on the reverse side of the card, so be careful to keep it hidden).
Remember to phrase your response in the form of a question!
If you respond correctly, you earn $100 for every GAME CARD that has been played in that category. For example, if the GAME CARD you laid down is the only one there, you get $100, if your card is the second card, you earn $200, if it's the third, you earn $300 and so on (NOTE: There is no limit on how many cards may be played under any category).
There is no penalty for responding to a clue incorrectly.
After responding to your clue, correct or not, your turn ends and play passes to the player on your left.
Game Cards
There are three types of cards in the deck: STANDARD, DAILY DOUBLE and BONUS.
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STANDARD CARDS – These cards show a category color only and function as mentioned above.
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DAILY DOUBLE CARDS – When you play a DAILY DOUBLE card, it works like a STANDARD CARD, but it also doubles the total value of the clue (so a $500 clue will be worth $1,000 instead). Only one DAILY DOUBLE can be awarded in the first round and only two DAILY DOUBLES can be awarded in the second round. After the DAILY DOUBLE limit has been reached in each round, all other DAILY DOUBLE cards played in that round count as STANDARD CARDS. (NOTE: DAILY DOUBLE cards must match the category color.)
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BONUS CARDS – These cards count as two STANDARD CARDS for scoring purposes. For example, if there is one STANDARD CARD and one BONUS CARD played under a certain category, you would score it as if you had three cards instead of only two because the BONUS CARD counts as two cards. You may play a BONUS CARD whenever you are able, even if there are other BONUS CARDS or a DAILY DOUBLE already in the category.
Ending the First Round
- The round ends after each player has played five cards (NOTE: The last card in your hand is never used).
- When the round is over, take up the six used CATEGORY CARDS, set them aside, then deal six new CATEGORY CARDS and place them above the play mat.
- Next, gather up all of the GAME CARDS, shuffle them up, and deal a new hand of six cards to each player.
Second Round – Double Jeopardy!
The second round is played just like the first except you get $200 for each STANDARD CARD below the category. BONUS CARDS then are worth $400 each.
At the end of the second round, proceed directly to Final Jeopardy!.
Final Jeopardy!
For Final Jeopardy! you will answer just one clue.
Deal one CATEGORY CARD face up to the center of the table to reveal the category for the Final Jeopardy! clue. Each player will respond to the same clue.
Each player chooses to wager between $0 and the total of his or her winnings so far. Write down your wager on your piece of paper (NOTE: Keep your wager hidden from the other players).
After all wagers have been recorded, draw a CLUE CARD and read the clue matching the Final Jeopardy! category.
Players write down their responses on their piece of paper. Once all responses have been recorded, read the correct response on the back of the CLUE CARD. Each player who responded correctly gains the value of their wager. Any players who responded incorrectly loses the value of his or her wager.
Winning
The player with the most "money" is the winner.
Scoring Samples
A. Two STANDARD CARDS: $100 + $100 = $200
B. One STANDARD CARD + One BONUS CARD: $100 + $200 = $300
C. One STANDARD CARD + One BONUS CARD + One DAILY DOUBLE CARD: ($100 + $200 + $100) x 2 = $800
Advanced Play
For a more strategic game, try these advanced rules that allow players more control over the categories in each round and even lets them adjust the GAME CARDS in their hand before the round begins.
Choosing Categories
Before the first round, instead of dealing six random CATEGORY CARDS to the play mat, deal a certain number of CATEGORY CARDS to each player. From those cards, players choose the categories they'd like to be included in that round.
- In a two-player game deal each player four CATEGORY CARDS. Each player chooses three CATEGORY CARDS to keep and discards the rest.
- In a three-player game deal each player three CATEGORY CARDS. Each player chooses two CATEGORY CARDS to keep and discards the rest.
- In a four-player game deal each player two CATEGORY CARDS. Each player chooses one CATEGORY CARD to keep and discards the rest.
Collect the CATEGORY CARDS each player chose to keep and place them face up in each of the six spaces on the category play mat (NOTE: In a four-player game, fill in the two empty spaces with random cards from the category deck). Return the discarded CATEGORY CARDS to the category deck. Repeat this process at the beginning of the Double Jeopardy! round also, except do not return the discarded CATEGORY CARDS to the deck. Instead, shuffle them face down and set them aside for Final Jeopardy!.
Final Jeopardy! (Advanced)
When drawing a category for the Final Jeopardy! round, draw one of the cards discarded at the beginning of the Double Jeopardy! round instead of from the category deck.
Hand Selection
After you are dealt your hand of six GAME CARDS, select just one of those cards that you'd like to keep for the upcoming round and place it face down in front of you. Pass the remaining five cards to the player on your left. All players do this simultaneously. Choose a second card from the five handed to you by the player on your right and place it face down in front of you. Continue in this manner until all players have six cards face down in front of them. This is your starting hand of cards. Do this at the beginning of both rounds of play.