Happy Salmon is the fast-paced card game that get’s everyone moving and laughing in under two minutes! Only 30 seconds to learn.and two minutes to play! 1) At the same time, everyone calls out the action shown on their top card. 2) When two players have a match, they celebrate by performing that action together, then discard their top card. You will need to provide as many Happy Salmon game sets as you need, according to the number of people you want to play with. With one set, you can play with up to 6 players. You can play with more than one set at a time, provided you mark the cards upfront by drawing a shape (circle, square, cross, ) on the back of the card with a marker.

Happy Salmon is the simple, fast-paced card game packed to the gills with high-fivin', fin-flappin' foolishness. Actions including the classic 'High 5', the unifying 'Pound It', the frantic 'Switcheroo', and the delightful 'Happy Salmon' will leave players doubled over in laughter. Happy Salmon; Fast-paced card game of High-Fiving fun! Encourages quick thinking, communication skills, bonding with family and friends Hilarious fun for everyone in the family! Each player gets a deck of 12 cards in one color - 6 decks included in each set Cards each feature an action - High 5, Pound It, Switcheroo, or Happy Salmon. Happy Salmon is a simple, fast-paced card game that gets everyone moving and laughing in two minutes. Everyone simultaneously calls out the action shown on their top card - 'High 5', 'Pound It', 'Switcheroo', or 'Happy Salmon'. When two players have a match, they celebrate by performing that action together. Then both players discard their top card and call out the action on their.

Happy Salmon Game Review

Sometimes, card games involve a lot of complicated rules and require a long attention span, leaving kids frustrated and anxious. But North Star Games provides fast-paced, active fun in the form of a card game with Happy Salmon. I don’t remember laughing this hard playing a game since we got Pie Face last year. This game leaves players in tears of laughter as they try to quickly high five, pound fists, switch places, or Happy Salmon.

Players start off by separating the different decks of cards by color, and then choose one for themselves. They each hold their deck of cards face down in a pile. At the same time, players flip their decks over and try to find another player in the group with the matching action card. Once they do, both players complete that action, then discard that card and move on to the next. The first player to get rid of all his or her cards wins.

Sound like chaos? It is—but in the best way.

Happy Salmon Game Review

The four action cards are: High 5, Pound It, Switcheroo, and Happy Salmon.

Happy Salmon Game Youtube

When two players have a High 5 card, they High 5:

When two players have a Pound It card, they Pound It:

When two players have a Switcheroo card, they switch places wherever they are standing/sitting:

When two players have a Happy Salmon card, well, they do this:

Honestly, I don’t think I’ve ever laughed harder than I did at the Happy Salmon card. For inexplicable reasons, it is so funny and leaves me near tears every single time it happens.

Once you start playing, your space becomes a whirlwind of yelling, running, and positive-reinforcement-based hand gestures. By the end of the round, everyone is laughing so hard, it’s hard to say that anyone loses. There is also a silent version of the game where players can’t speak (Honestly, it was the most anxiety-filled round of a card game I’ve ever played. Maybe I’m too competitive? Definitely.). Other alternative ways to play include swapping decks of cards instead of physical places when you have a Switcheroo match, which is especially necessary if there is not room or the potential to stand up and switch places.

As you can see above, the cards’ illustrations are really adorable and colorful. The big, fun font makes the actions easy to read, and for younger kids, the salmon on the card also depict the action, so they can act quickly as well. Also, take a gander at that packaging—how cute! All of the cards pack neatly up into the zippered salmon-shaped pouch, making it easy to take along on the go.

The game is called Happy Salmon. You might wonder why this particular salmon is so happy. After all, salmon have a hard life with the, you know, swimming up river and the jumping and the bears and the dying. Could it be so happy because it won a Major Fun award? Or is it because it knows how happy it will make the people who get to play it?

This is one smug salmon. And deservedly so. The game is quick (takes maybe a couple minutes to play). It’s easy to learn. It gets everybody moving. Everybody involved. And, best of all, it makes people laugh.

You could think of it as a card game – that’s because it’s played with a special deck of cards. But it’s really a people game.

It goes like this:

How To Play Happy Salmon

There are six sets of 12 cards, each a different color. First, give one set to each of 3-6 players who are at least six years old. There are four different cards: Happy Salmon, High 5, Switcheroo and Pound It! Each card has an associated action. Your objective is to be the first to get rid of all your cards. You can only do that if you can find someone who’s playing the same kind of card. You can tell, because that person is either trying to get you to High Five or to Fist Bump (Pound) or change places (Switcheroo) or Happy Salmon (put your wrist along the other player’s wrist and wiggle your hand in a salmon-fin-like manner).

You’ll probably play many rounds of the game before you put it back in its neat, salmony zipper pouch. And next time you play, you might want to try the completely silent variation (though it is likely that the laughter will escape you).

Happy Salmon Blue

Luckily, there are two great videos showing the game in action. First, here’s one with kids playing:

And now, one for the growns:

O, the fun! O, the sheer Majorness of the fun!!

Designed by Ken Gruhl and Quentin Weir, from Northstar Games.