How to play
Color Clash is a shedding game: the first player to get rid of every card wins the hand. Win the set number of hands (1, 3 or 5) to win the match.
The deck. 112 cards in four colors, each with its own shape so you can tell them apart without relying on color: Ember (circle), Lagoon (diamond), Citrus (triangle) and Orchid (star). Each color has one 0, two of every number from 1 to 9, two Freeze, two Flip, two Surge +2 and one Mirror. On top of that there are four Prism and four Storm +4 wild cards.
Your turn. Everyone starts with 7 cards and the first face-up card is always a number. On your turn, play one card that matches the color in play or the symbol on top of the pile (the same number, or the same kind of action card). Prism and Storm can be played on anything; you then choose the next color. Tap a glowing card to play it.
Drawing. If you can’t or don’t want to play, tap the draw pile. If the card you draw fits, you may play it straight away; otherwise keep it and pass. When the draw pile runs out, the discard pile (except the top card) is shuffled into a new one.
Action cards.
- Freeze: the next player is skipped.
- Flip: the turn order reverses. With two players, Flip works like Freeze.
- Surge +2 / Storm +4: a penalty starts building. The next player either answers with another Surge, Storm or Mirror, or takes every card in the penalty and loses the turn. Penalties stack, so a Surge followed by a Storm means +6.
- Mirror: when a penalty is aimed at you, play a Mirror of any color to send the whole stack back to the player who added the last penalty card. They can mirror it again if they hold one. With no penalty waiting, Mirror is a plain card of its color.
Clash! If you play the exact twin of the number on top of the pile (same color and same number, like a Lagoon 4 on a Lagoon 4), you get another turn right away.
There is no “last card” call to remember: the table marks any player who is down to one card.
Two players on one device. Choose 2 players, 1 device in the menu. When the turn passes from one person to the other, a hand-over screen appears and both hands stay face down until the next player taps show my cards. Your hand flips face down again as soon as your turn ends. You can add one or two computer players to the table as well.
Strategy
- Hold a Mirror for the big moment. A Mirror is worth far more as an answer to Storm +4 than as an ordinary card. Bouncing a +6 back is the biggest swing in the game.
- Twins are tempo. Two copies of every number from 1 to 9 exist in each color. If you hold both, wait until one of them is on top of the pile and chain them for a free turn.
- Watch the next seat. When the player after you is down to one or two cards, that is the time for Freeze, Surge or Storm. Earlier, they are usually better saved.
- Keep your strongest color. Prefer cards that leave the color you hold most in play; when you play a wild, name that color.
- Spend Prism late. A Prism fits anywhere, which makes it the perfect last card. Playing it while you still have a matching colored card wastes it.
If you prefer a quieter card game with classic cards, try Pis Yedili, where eights change the suit, or line up tiles in Dominoes against up to three computer players.
