How to Play Happy Families Exploring Ireland

A unique game to explore the magic of Ireland 2 to 5 players ages 5 to 99

St Patrick’s Day is a big deal here at Family Game Shelf. You can tell by the amount of Irish theme games we have – Whacky Putt St Patrick’s Day, Fe Fi Fo Fum and Irish Snap, just to name a few. So when Moya of Happy Clan contacted me about her card game Happy Families Exploring Ireland it sounded like a game we wanted to try.

Note: I was sent a copy of Happy Families Exploring Ireland at no charge to review but be assured that I’m reviewing this game as I would any other game.

We will tell you how to play, what we liked, what we didn’t like and if you should add it to your family game shelf.

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Setting Up Happy Families Exploring Ireland

First, one of the main objectives of this game is to teach about Ireland and some of its history. This is done by having families of cards. There are six families made up of Cities, Landmarks, Food, Traditions, Music, Mythology and Symbols.

In the rule booklet there is a description of each of the cards telling us a little about each card and it’s part of Ireland.

In each family there are six cards. The aim of the game is to collect the most families.

To start, the cards are shuffled and six cards are dealt to each player.

Playing Happy Families Exploring Ireland

Once the cards are dealt out, the first player has an opportunity to ask any other player for a card. The player who is asking must have at least one card from the family that they are asking about. For example, if she is going to ask for a city, then she must have at least one city in her hand.

The asking player can choose any other player to ask and needs to ask for a specific card. For example, if she has the city of Derry she can ask someone if they have the city of Cork.

If the player does indeed have the asked for card, they hand it over and she gets to ask another player. This new asked for card can be in any family and does not have to be in the first asked for family.

On the other hand, if the player doesn’t have the card she asked for that player says “dig” and she takes the top card from the draw pile. If that card is the card she asked for she gets to take another turn in asking for a card. If the card isn’t the asked for card, she adds it to her hand and play moves to the next player.

When a player collects all six cards of a family, he calls out “family” and sets the cards on the table in front of him. He then takes another turn.

If ever a player runs out of cards, then on her next turn, she takes a card from another player and plays as before.

Winning Happy Families Exploring Ireland

When all the families have been collect, the player with the most families wins the game.

Rule Variation

To make the game more challenging, you can install the rule that a player can’t ask for the same card twice in a row.

What We Liked

First, we like that this is a very easy to learn and play game. It feels very familiar to the classic card game Go Fish but it has a twist that makes it more challenging and interesting.

Next, we have to talk about the quality. The cards are sturdy and the box is fantastic with a snug magnetic close. (Almost too good as I struggled to get it open J) We will never have to worry about the box flying open and loosing cards. The box is also very sturdy and meant to last. (As you might know poor quality boxes are a pet peeve of mine.)

Next is the art work. I have to say these are beautiful cards. The illustrations are truly gorgeous.

The learning about Ireland aspect is cool too. We like that the booklet give a little back story to all the cards. Also, on the cards there is the pronunciation of some of the more Irish words. These make it so we did learn about Ireland.

Another nice touch is that the game comes with a pack of stickers that match the artwork on the card.

What We Didn’t Like

First, the card size threw us off a little. These are large 2.75 x 4.75” cards. After a little research, this seems to be a standard card size in Europe and other places. It took a little adjusting to get use to them and they did make for a handful when we were mid game when we had a lot of cards to hold on to. (On the other hand, the large size makes for a great space for the artwork.)

Next, we didn’t like it as a two player game. First, our hand sizes were too large and hand to hold on to and sift through. And it felt more like a luck only game when it came down to the last few cards.

Is Happy Families Exploring Ireland Worth Adding to your Family Game Shelf?

As our family has long since outgrown Go Fish and we were thinking that this game wouldn’t hold our interest, Happy Families Exploring Ireland had enough of a twist that we liked playing. You need good memory skills and a little luck to win. We found ourselves getting competitive in an unexpected way.

So is it worth it? I would say yes, It’s a nice light card game that is prefect for exploring the world and prefect for St Patrick’s Day fun. It’s competitive enough for older players and simple enough that younger players will enjoy and dare I say excel at. It makes a great family card game.

Happy Families Exploring Ireland isn’t yet sold on Amazon so you have to visit the Happy Clan website here. I have to say that our game came surprisingly fast and in perfect condition. Check it out  and explore Ireland for yourself.

Rating:

Pros: quality, easy to learn, players of all ages
Cons: little repetitive, card size
Mom: observation skills, memory skills, educational