Concentration
Concentration (also known as Memory, and, in the UK, as Pelmanism), is a simple game of memory. It is also a game with no luck involved; the only way to win a game of Concentration is through the skill of memorizing the layout.
Object of Concentration
The object of Concentration is to be the player to match the most pairs by remembering the locations of cards in the layout.
Setup
Concentration uses one standard 52-card pack. While Denexa 100% Plastic Playing Cards won’t necessarily help you remember the cards better, they do look rather nice, in our opinion, at least.
Shuffle thoroughly and spread the deck face-down on the table. Separate the cards so they do not overlap. If you wish, you may arrange the cards into some sort of tidy pattern, like a grid, but this is not necessary.
Game play
The player to the left of the dealer goes first. They flip any card, face up, then a second, trying to find a card of the same rank as the first. If they successfully find a match, they remove the two cards from the layout, keeping them in a personal discard pile, and then play again. If the two cards revealed do not match, they are turned face down and the turn passes to the next player to the left.
Game play continues until the entire layout has been paired off in this way. The winner of the game is the player with the most pairs.
Variations
The game may be played with two or more decks shuffled together. This allows for more players and makes finding matches more difficult (as well as making the game longer).
If more difficulty in finding matches is desired, you may require each card only be matched with the card of the same rank and color as the first card revealed. Note that no matter how difficult you make matching, it will gradually become easier as the layout is cleared.
