Types of Traditional Rummy
Traditional cash rummy games have always been one of the most popular card games in India. But these card games are no longer stuck to offline modes. Now, most of these traditional cash rummy games are now available online on websites and various rummy apps. If you have a smartphone in your hands, you can now easily play rummy online.
Previously, traditional rummy only had these four types of games, namely, 13 Card Rummy, 21 Card Rummy, Gin, and Contract Rummy. Read on to find out as we simplify these different types of Rummy games for your better understanding.
Cash rummy is now one of the most popular global games; hence there are some updates in types of traditional rummy games. All the cultural variations worldwide have given rise to some of the new variations of this traditional card game. A passionate player needs to be aware about these various types of games to stay on top.
13 Card Rummy
This is one of the most commonly played rummy games in India. Popularly there are three different variations to this game. Each game in this category has one common rule, 13 cards are dealt to each player. The basic rule after this is that one pure sequence and one impure sequence have to be grouped for a player to make a valid declaration and win.
• Deals Rummy
When this game begins, all the players are given an equal number of chips. When each round ends, the winner gets chips from all the losing players. At the end of the game, whichever player has the highest number of chips is declared the winner.
- Points Rummy
Each player is given 13 cards, and they play for Points. To win a Points rummy game, the winner has to make a valid declaration before others. Once a player declares, the opponents have to group their cards into sets and sequences and declare within a set period of time. The winning amount depends on the total points of the ungrouped cards of the opponents. Every point has a pre-decided rupee value.
- Pool Rummy
Pool Rummy is played in rounds; hence, it takes longer to finish than the previous two variants. Depending on the upper ceiling of elimination, there can be three variants of this type of Indian rummy – 61 Pool, 101 Pool, and 201 Pool. In this game, once a player makes a declaration, one must arrange their hand in the most optimum way. The value of each ungrouped card is added to the player’s tally.
21 Card Rummy
Players are all dealt 21 cards in this particular game, and the basic rule is that they need to make at least 3 pure sequences. This game also has a penalty system, making it a little more complicated than other rummy games. If a player chooses to drop out of the game before playing a single hand, they are charged with a 30-point penalty. If you drop out after playing one or more hands, the penalty is a whopping 75 points.
In this game, there is a unique use of Jokers. This game has upper and lower jokers. Now, if the wild joker is 4♦, then the upper joker is 5♦, and the lower joker is 3♦.
Gin Rummy
Gin rummy is quite different from all the other rummy games we have talked about. This game is played in groups of 2 or 4. Each player is dealt ten cards instead of the regular 13 or 21-card hands. One of the major differences here is that the “A card” can also be used as the first card of the series, followed by the regular 2 and 3.
Gin Rummy is one game where a player can win without having a full valid set. If a player’s point value is somewhere below 10, they can “knock” to win. Then the points are calculated by counting the difference between the deadwood points of the victor and the opponent’s deadwood. These rules make this game a little too complicated; hence it is played less often in comparison.
Canasta
Canasta is a rummy game that originally came from Spain. This game is quite simple and almost follows all the rules like a regular rummy game. The only difference here is that the Joker and all 2s are considered wild cards.
Oklahoma Rummy
Oklahoma Rummy is a close variation of the Gin Rummy game. In this game, instead of dealing 10 cards each for players, they are dealt 7 cards. In this game, all the players are allowed to use Jokers to make impure sets and win.
Rummikubh
This rummy game is a unique new addition. This is a weird but interesting mixture of rummy and mahjong. This game is played with 104 tiles (which is equivalent to two decks of cards). Each player is given 14 tiles, and they have to make sets and lay down their tiles to finish the game.
Final Thoughts
Most of the traditional cash rummy games are now available in the form of online rummy apps. Explore the world of online rummy with RummyTime. Download the app now.