How to play Hues and Cues, a game of colourful clues!
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Read the Rules
The aim of the game
In Hues and Cues, you’ll be giving clues and guessing colours, trying to place your pieces as close as to the exact square on a spectrum.
To set up
- Layout the board.
- Shuffle the deck and place it face down.
- Give each player 3 coloured markers, put one of each on the start of the score track and the other 2 in front of you.
- Build the scoring square, with the number 2 sides facing inwards and number 1 sides facing outwards and set it aside.
To play the game
The most colourfully dressed player begins. They draw a card, choose one of the four coloured swatches on it in secret and give a one word clue, aiming to make everyone else place their marker as close to its location on the board as possible.
- Your clue cannot be the primary colour such as ‘blue’ or ‘red’.
- Abstract colour names such as ‘lavender’ or ‘rose’ are allowed.
- You cannot refer to the location, letters or numbers on the board.
- And you can’t repeat a clue used earlier in the game.
Now, in a clockwise order, all other players take it in turns to place one of their markers on the square they think best matches. If a square is already occupied, you must pick a different one.
After guessing, the clue giver can decide whether to give another clue. If their first clue was successful, they might decide not to, denying other players a chance for a second guess.
Second clues can be up to 2 words long and must follow the previous rules.
- You cannot include words such as ‘lighter’ or ‘darker’
- or suggest locations relative to pieces on the board.
If a second clue is given, everyone guesses again, this time counter clockwise, placing their second piece onto the board.
When guessing is complete, scoring begins. The clue giver reveals the colour, by placing the scoring square over it, using the coordinates to make sure it's centred.
- The clue giver scores 2 points per piece in the frame in a three player game and 1 point per piece in a four or more player game.
- If a player guesses a colour exactly they get 3 points.
- Each other piece of their colour within the scoring frame earns the guesser 2 points.
- Pieces on the spaces directly outside the square, including on the corners, score 1 point.
For example in this 4 player game, yellow scores 3 points for guessing the colour and 1 for being just outside the square, red receives 4 points as both their pieces are within the frame, green scores nothing, and the clue giver scores 6 as 3 pieces are in their square.
Players move their markers along the score track, remove their pieces from the board and a new round begins, with the person clockwise from the clue giver becoming the new one.
Game end
The game ends when everyone has given glues twice in a 3-6 player game or once in a 7-10 player game.
In the case of a tie, play another round, with tied players guessing, keep doing so until one player is ahead.
Whoever has the most points wins!
That’s Hues and Cues, a vivid little guessing game.
Enjoy!