Uno Variation: Hands Down

Overview

Requirements: 1 or more Uno decks (any variety)

Players: 2+

Time: ~10-15 min/round

Rating: 9/10

Rules

This is a simple variation, but it completely changes the strategy of the game. As the name suggests, this variant is played with every person's cards visible on the table.

Advantages

This variation takes away some of the luck inherent in a regular Uno game as it allows players to plan ahead based on others' cards. It is also great for any players who regularly allow other players to inadvertently see their cards. Another advantage is that players can work together to prevent players with one card left from finishing the round.

Disadvantages

While this variation is excellent for advanced players, it is hard for newer players to grasp the strategy and can then become an unbalanced game. Also, the amount of collaboration between players in this version tends to make the game slightly longer than other variations.

Review

The simplicity of this variation makes it easy to implement and the new strategies make it seem like an entirely different game. This variation works especially well with House Rules (with or without the "No Scoring" rule).