Christmas Lights

Christmas Lights A Card Game - Includes rules for 12 games

It's Christmas and time to decorate the house, inside and out, and put up the tree. But before we can start, we have to untangle all those lights and replace the broken bulbs. And you get to help! Christmas Lights A Card Game includes instructions for 12 games. It's going to be a merry Christmas!

The nostalgic graphics on the box front, the fact that new Christmas games have been hard to find in the past few years, and the fact that there are rules for 12 games in one box drew me to Christmas Lights A Card Game. I found it interesting that Christmas Lights A Card Game was actually launched using Kickstarter.

The game consists of 100 cards and, did I mention, instructions for 12 games?! If you play card games, you will be able to use this one from Thanksgiving to Christmas without ever playing the same game twice with the same person. The images on the cards are whimsical, colorful and Christmas related. The cards measure 2.5" x 3.5". Although they are not plastic-coated, I think they should hold up for a long time. Below is a graphic that shows the different cards included:

This graphic says 10 games total but there are actually 12.

The instructions for the original game are below. Here are descriptions of the remaining 11 games:

• Untangle - Untangle your strands of lights from the knot by finding the sequence on your pattern card.
• Festival of Lights - Collect the most sets of the various bulb colors
• Jingle Bell Run - Quickly collect bulbs and move your way across the strands of light
• Lights On - Collect 3 plugs and win, collect 3 broken bulbs and lose (Kemps)
• Mrs. Claus - Don't be left holding the Mrs. Claus card (Old Maid)
• Looney Lights - Be the first to discard all your cards (Crazy Eights)
• Reindeer's Nose - Be the first to receive your 3rd pattern card and all other players win, you alone lose (Pig)
• Where's That Bulb? - Make the most matches by finding sets of 2 until all cards are matched (Memory)
• Check the Box - Place sets of two matching cards on the table, ask a player for a card on each turn, be the first to play all your cards (Go Fish)
• Solo Lights - Fix all the broken bulbs in the strands of lights before Santa shows up
• Deck the Yard - Claim eight cards while decorating your yard with lights and inflatable characters

The original game

Object:

Be the first to complete your two pattern light cards.

Set up:

Shuffle the Event, Pattern and Bulb decks and place them face-down in separate piles on the table. The bulb deck includes colored bulb cards, plug cards, broken bulb cards and event marker cards. Deal five bulb cards and two pattern cards to each player.  

Players look at their pattern cards but keep them secret and face-down on the table next to them. Players will secretly choose which of their pattern cards they want to build first. Each pattern card has five bulbs. Bulbs must be played in the order that they appear on the card (you cannot play the first bulb, then the fourth, then the second, etc.). After completing one string of lights, players must show the pattern card to the other players and play a plug card at the end of the string before they can start their next string of lights. 

Players pick up their bulb cards and, without looking at them, fan them and hold them so that their cards face their opponents. Each player only sees the back of his own cards but the fronts of everyone else's cards. Take the Santa card and random character cards so that the total matches the number of people playing. Shuffle these cards and deal one to each player. The one who receives the Santa card starts the game. 

Play:

Players take turns. During a turn, a player may take any one of four actions. Each player will get a card that lists these four actions that they can refer to during play. These four actions are:

• Swap - Swap one of your cards for any card in an opponent's hand. Put the card you receive into your hand and remember where and what it is. Both players are allowed to see both cards. (Remember you can only see the backs of your cards while you are holding them.)
• Play - Play one card from your hand into your set. If the card matches the next bulb on your pattern card, it stays. If it does not, it is immediately discarded (with the exception of broken bulbs and event cards - see below).
• Sale - Take one card from the deck and one from your hand. Place them both face-up on the table. Choose one to play immediately into your set or trade one to an opponent for information about your hand. The information will be a question that your opponent can answer with one word, such as "Are there any yellow cards in my hand?' or "Do I have a plug in my hand?'.
• Hand refill - Refill your hand up to five cards from the bulb deck.

Additional cards:

• Broken Bulbs - When broken bulbs are played they are not discarded. Playing a broken bulb on your set allows you to advance further into your set without needing that exact color bulb at the moment. When you get the correct color bulb that goes where the broken bulb is, play it on top of the broken bulb card.
• Draw One Event Card - Draw a card from the event deck and follow the instructions immediately.
• Event Cards - When an Event card or a Draw One Event Card is played during a Play or Sale phase, draw a card from the Event deck and apply its effect immediately.
  
• Bubble Lights - This is a wild card that can be used as any colored bulb, but not as a plug.
• Light Switch - All players pass their hand to the player on the left.
• Power Outage - All players discard the cards in their hand and redraw that many cards from the bulb deck.
• Lump of Coal - The player must turn the pattern card he is working on face-up for all players to see.
• Power Surge - The active player stops their turn immediately and the next person plays.
• Boxing Day - The player draws one card from the bulb deck and places it face up on the table, to be used on his next sale phase.
• Christmas Eve - All players get to look at one card in their hand, then place it back in the hand as normal.

Play until someone builds their two sets of lights and wins the game. 

If you are interested in reading my other posts about Christmas games, click here.

Try this:

• Use the non-dominant hand to hold the deck, push the top card off with the thumb and grab it with the dominant hand for dealing.
• Practice fanning cards before playing if necessary. This game will require it so that your opponents can see all your cards at all times.
• Use a card holder if the individual cannot fan their cards. Click here to see one that I like and use.
• Work on visual discrimination, visual closure, spatial relations, sequencing, manual dexterity, coordinated use of both hands, shuffling/dealing/fanning cards, in-hand manipulation, executive functioning skills, process skills, socialization skills, play and leisure exploration and participation

In the box: 100 cards and (once more) rules for 12 games

If you are interested in purchasing this game or just want more information, click on the image below.