Overview
At a glance
Is this game right for my group?
ABG editorial scores on a 1–5 scale.
Harder to teach
High replayability
Highly interactive
Scales well
Deep strategy
How it plays
How does it play?
Parlay is a card game that challenges players to make the best poker hand and the best word that they can from their cards. Parlay uses an artistically enhanced 52 card deck of familiar playing cards, with the addition of a letter and point value on each card.
Read the full game description
Parlay is a card game that challenges players to make the best poker hand and the best word that they can from their cards. Parlay uses an artistically enhanced 52 card deck of familiar playing cards, with the addition of a letter and point value on each card. Players decide which cards to hold and which to exchange in an attempt to improve their word, their poker hand, and hopefully both. Like traditional poker, players can enjoy a variety of games like the favorites 'Texas Hold'em' and 'Five Card Draw', or original games like 'Unlucky 7's' and 'Wild I's'. Unlike traditional poker, Parlay involves no betting or wagering. However, players are faced with an element of poker-style risk, where every hand they must decide whether to 'FOLD' for guaranteed points, or risk their points and 'STAY' in an attempt to win out over opponents for big point bonuses. Parlay also introduces 'Wordbluffing', where players are invited to play oddly spelled words to trick their opponents into calling their bluff to knock them out of the hand. Players can also try to get away with fake or misspelled words, hoping their bluff won't be called. Wordbluffing usually results in lots of laughs. Parlay comes with a deck of 52 casino quality playing cards, 2 jokers, 1 info card, 6 stay/fold game chips, 80 sheet score pad, and an instruction booklet. Players 2-6, Ages 9 and up.