How to play Tamalou
The card game of memory where the lowest total wins. 2 to 5 players, a game lasts 5 to 10 minutes.
In your browser, on a computer or a phone, with nothing to install and no account. No ads. Coming soon as an app for iPhone and iPad.
In short
- Everyone has 4 cards face down and sees only 2 of them, for 5 seconds, at the start.
- On your turn, draw a card, then keep it in the place of one of yours, or throw it away.
- A Jack plays again, a Queen swaps a card with an opponent, a King peeks at one of your own cards.
- Even when it is not your turn, throw a card of the same rank as the top of the discard pile: that is doubling.
- Think you hold 5 points or less? Call "Tamalou!": the others play one last turn, then the lowest total wins.
The goal
Have the lowest total when the game ends. 2 to 5 players, one ordinary deck of 52 cards, no jokers. A game is a single round.
What the cards are worth
| Card | Points |
|---|---|
| Ace | 1 point |
| 2 to 9 | their number |
| 10 | 0 points: the best card in the game |
| Jack, Queen, King | 10 points each |
Suits (hearts, diamonds, clubs, spades) never matter. Example: Ace, 10, 3 and King make 1 + 0 + 3 + 10 = 14 points.
Setup
- Every player gets 4 cards face down, in a row in front of them. The rest of the deck is the draw pile; the discard pile is empty at the start.
- For 5 seconds, everyone sees two of their own cards: the first and the last of their row. Memorise them: they are then hidden.
- From then on you play from memory: you no longer see your own cards.
- The first player is drawn at random, then everyone plays in turn.
A turn
- Draw the top card of the draw pile, or the top card of the discard pile. A Jack, a Queen or a King cannot be taken from the discard pile.
- Keep it or not. Put it in the place of one of your cards, which goes face up onto the discard pile. Or throw the card you just drew straight onto the discard pile.
- Power. If the card that has just landed on the discard pile is a Jack, a Queen or a King, you may use its power, or pass.
Then the next player plays. The card you keep goes face down: you saw it when you drew it, so remember it.
The time. Each turn lasts 45 seconds. When less than 15 are left, a fuse burns across the table; when it burns out, your turn is played for you. Let a whole turn go by without playing and your next one is short, until you play.
The special cards: Jack, Queen, King
The power comes from the card that lands on the discard pile during your turn: the card you just drew and threw away, or the card of your row that you replace. Replacing a King of your row gives you the King's power.
- Jack: play again. You take another turn at once. On that turn you draw from the draw pile, not from the discard pile.
- Queen: swap. Exchange one of your cards with a card of an opponent, without looking: neither of you sees the swapped cards. Everyone sees which places changed.
- King: peek. Look at one of your own cards for 2 seconds.
Passed-on power. When a player has just used a Queen or a King, the next player may use that same power once, instead of drawing. A power that was passed is not handed on, and a Jack never is.
A card thrown by doubling gives no power.
Doubling
- Even when it is not your turn: if the top card of the discard pile has the same rank as one of your cards (two 7s, two Kings…), tap your card to throw it on the pile. One card fewer for you.
- It must be the same rank, not just the same points: a Jack on a King is a miss, even though both are worth 10 points. Suits do not matter.
- You can double with a card you do not see: that is where your memory pays off.
- One double per card: only the first player to double on a card succeeds.
- Wrong card, or too late: your card goes back into your row, after everyone has seen it fly by, and you draw a penalty card.
- Misses add up: the first one locks nothing, then your doubles are locked for 5 seconds, then 20 seconds, then 1 minute, then for the rest of the game. A successful double wipes it all out, and each start of your turn while you are not locked wipes out one.
- A double that leaves you with no card at all ends the game at once.
Calling "Tamalou!"
- At the start of your turn, before you draw: if you think your cards add up to 5 points or less, call Tamalou! The call takes your turn: you do not draw.
- You are right: your cards are turned face up for everyone. You no longer play, you can no longer double, and nobody can swap a card with you any more. Each other player plays one last turn, then the game ends. Nobody else can call Tamalou.
- You are wrong (more than 5 points): everyone sees your cards for 5 seconds, then they are hidden again. You draw a penalty card, the turn passes to the next player and the game goes on. You can call again later.
With two players, after a successful Tamalou, a Queen has no power any more: the only opponent can no longer be targeted.
Scoring
- At the end, all the cards are turned over and counted, penalty cards included. A player with no card left scores 0.
- The lowest total wins. Calling Tamalou is not enough: if another player ends lower, they win.
- A tie? The player with fewer cards is ahead. Still tied? The player who called Tamalou. Otherwise the tied players share the place.
The end of the game
The game ends:
- after the last turn that follows a successful Tamalou, then a 5-second countdown during which the other players can still double;
- at once when a double leaves a player with no card;
- when every clock but one has run out;
- or, very rarely, when there is no card left to draw.
When the draw pile is empty, the discard pile is shuffled into a new one, except its top card.
Play Tamalou online
On tamalou.fun, Tamalou is played with exactly these rules: quick games against other players, ranked games, or a private room with friends. The game deals, counts the points and referees the doubles.
With friends: on the home screen, tap Private Room, then send the room code or the invite link. Your friends open the link, or type the code on their home screen.
The same game under other names
Tamalou is one of the names this game goes by in France. It belongs to a family of card games where you keep your cards face down, play from memory, and the lowest total wins. Depending on the country and the group of friends, it is also called Cambio, Cabo, Dutch, Cactus or Kaboo, and that name is often what you call out to end the game.
House rules vary from table to table: what some cards are worth, which cards have a power and what it does, how many cards you look at to start, the threshold to call, what a wrong call costs, or playing over several rounds. If you know the game under another name, read the card values, the powers and the call again before your first game: the rules of this page are the ones tamalou.fun plays by.
What about Golf?
Six-card Golf is a cousin, not the same game: each player has six cards in two rows of three, which end up face up as the round goes on, and two cards of the same rank in one column score nothing. It is played over several rounds, the "holes". In Tamalou your four cards stay hidden: it all comes down to memory, face-card powers and doubles.
Frequently asked questions
How many players can play Tamalou?
2 to 5 players, with an ordinary deck of 52 cards and no jokers.
What is a 10 worth in Tamalou?
0 points: it is the best card in the game. An Ace is worth 1 point, cards 2 to 9 their number, and a Jack, Queen or King 10 points.
When can you double?
Almost all the time, on your turn and on everybody else's. Not during the 5 seconds at the start, not during the 2 seconds when a Queen's swap is shown, and not on your own turn while you hold the card you drew or while you pick a card for a power. The player who called Tamalou can no longer double.
What if two players double at the same time?
The first double to arrive succeeds. The other one is too late: that card goes back into its owner's row and they draw a penalty card.
Can you take a Jack, Queen or King from the discard pile?
No. From the discard pile you can only take a card without a power, from Ace to 10.
Can you call Tamalou on your first turn?
Yes, at the start of any of your turns, if you think you hold 5 points or less. On your first turn you have only seen two of your four cards: it is a gamble.
Do you need the lowest total to call Tamalou?
No: 5 points or less is enough. If another player ends with a lower total, they win, and your call costs you nothing more.
Do you see your penalty card?
No. It arrives face down at the end of your row, and you do not see it.
How do you play Tamalou with friends?
On tamalou.fun, tap Private Room on the home screen, then send the room code or the invite link. Your friends open the link, or type the code on their home screen.
Do you need to install anything or create an account?
No. The game opens in your browser, on a computer or a phone, and you can play at once as a guest. An account (a pseudo and a password) keeps your rating on all your devices. There are no ads.