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Quick Play

Sort your Happiness Deck. SHARE | LISTEN | CONNECT. Standard and Advanced add scoring when your table wants more.

Players · 2–8 Deck · Suggested 60 Time · 10–20 min Scorekeeping · Count at the end
← How to Play Quick Play Standard Advanced

Quick Play

How to Start Playing Happiness

Sort your Happiness Deck

We suggest sorting to 60 for two to six players of Happiness.

  • 10 Bummers
  • 15 Joycards worth 1 Joypoint
  • 15 Joycards worth 2 Joypoints
  • 15 Joycards worth 3 Joypoints
  • 5 Joycards worth 4 Joypoints

Either randomly select to sort or spend some time customizing your Happiness deck by reviewing each Joycard for each Joypoint category. Once you have your sorted 60 Happiness deck, mix and shuffle. Now, you are ready to play Happiness. Share, listen and connect with Happiness.

  1. Step 1: Start here

    The whole game in one line

    1. SORT
    2. BUILD
    3. SHUFFLE OR SELECT
    4. DEAL

    Then…

    1. PLAY
    2. SHARE
    3. LISTEN
    4. CONNECT
    5. DRAW

    That is enough to start.

    Tell stories. Connect the cards, connect with each other. Collect Joypoints.

    SHARE | LISTEN | CONNECT

  2. Step 2: Set up : Four moves

    Sort first. Then play.

    1. 1. SORT

      4 Joycard stacks (1, 2, 3 and 4 Joypoints) + 1 Bummer stack

    2. 2. BUILD

      The youngest player builds the deck

    3. 3. SHUFFLE OR SELECT

      Shuffle the deck you built, or select the cards to deal

    4. 4. DEAL

      5 cards to each player

    Know your friends

    Some cards touch sensitive topics: loss, accidents, fire, drinking, gambling, water. The builder chooses with the table in mind.

    Suggested first deck: 60 cards

    • 15 of 1Joypoint
    • 15 of 2Joypoints
    • 15 of 3Joypoints
    • 5 of 4Joypoints
    • 10 of Bummercards

    Plays best with 2 to 8. The youngest player goes first.

  3. Step 3: Play : One turn

    Five actions. Repeat.

    1. PLAY

      Put down one card.

    2. SHARE

      Tell the story it sparks.

    3. LISTEN

      Hear the whole story. Nobody cuts in.

    4. CONNECT

      Match the triangles your card touches.

    5. DRAW

      Return your hand to five.

    SILVER LIGHTNING-BOLT TRIANGLE = WILD

    It connects to any color.

    Each color also has a symbol: fire, water, leaf or sun. Match by symbol if colors are hard to tell apart.

    Play. Share. Listen. Connect. Draw. Next player.

  4. Step 4: Special moves : Learn them as they happen

    You do not need these to start.

    Bummer

    In the 5 seconds of silence

    A Bummer can only be played when connecting and within the 5 seconds of silence between turns. Place a Bummer card beside the card or cards just shared and share a bummer story. Then sweep every card the Bummer touches into your pile. One Bummer can clear a whole section.

    If the table empties, play a Joycard anywhere.

    Euphoria

    Surround one card

    When 4 cards surround one card, one on each side, sweep and collect all 5 connected Joycards. Add the total of their Joypoints at the end of the game.

    First game counsel: Start playing. Explain Bummer cards and Euphoria when they come up.

  5. Step 5: Win : Most Joypoints

    Count at the end

    Game over: Sort to 60. The game is over when the deck runs out and no one can play, or whenever your time to play Happiness runs out. Your choice.

    Add up the Joypoints on the cards you collected. The player with the most Joypoints wins.

    Bummer cards score nothing.

    Connect the cards, connect with each other.

The purpose of Happiness® is to Share, Listen & Connect.

Win the game as you Share the best moments of your life to gain Joypoints while occasionally Bummering.

Concentrate while you Listen to the Happiness® story to learn about one another better and Connect.

Happiness® · SHARE | LISTEN | CONNECT

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