This game is a variation of the Canasta card game where you play with 3 computerized players (one of which is your partner). There are no standard rules for Hand and Foot Canasta, so read through this carefully so you know how this might differ from other variations of the game. This version of the game is adapted to play on an Android-based tablet. Screens smaller than 7" size are not recommended.
Dragging a card means to touch it, move your finger (or stylus) without lifting it from the screen, and then drop it by removing your finger (or stylus) at the new location for the card. If the drop location is not valid, the card will be restored to your hand.
Tapping a card, deck, or pile means a brief tap with the finger or stylus. If no tapping action is valid at that time, it will be ignored or you may get a pop-up message.
Swiping across the screen from left-to-right or right-to-left will sort your cards. The swipe must start somewhere in open space on the table (to distinguish it from selecting a card in your hand). The cards will be sorted with higher point value cards on the left and lower point value cards to the right.
Your area to play cards on the table is the lighter green area immediately above your hand. Lay down a card by dragging it into the light green area. Wild cards must be dragged and dropped onto a specific pile.
There is always text in the lower left corner of the screen to let you know what is happening. If the program is not letting you do something, check the text so you know what it's expecting you to do.
Sounds are provided to help you be aware of the actions as they occur. You can control the volume of the sounds (or turn them off completely) with the volume control buttons on your tablet.
If you make an error while playing cards, hit the "ReDo" button and the cards will return to the position they had just after you drew a card (or picked up the pile).
General information about the game (like scores, number of cards in the deck, etc.) can be viewed at any time by tapping the "i" info button. Tap the pop-up to make the information go away.
These rules can be viewed by tapping the "Rules" button. Tap the "Done" button to return to the game.
Four players use 5 decks of standard playing cards with jokers. Wild cards are 2's and jokers. With the exception of 3's, the suit of a card has no meaning in this game -- only the card's value.
| Card | Points | |
|---|---|---|
| Red 3's | 100 | (against you when in your hand or foot) |
| Black 3's, 4, 5, 6, 7 | 5 | |
| 8, 9, 10, J, Q, K | 10 | |
| 2 (Wild), A | 20 | |
| Joker (Wild) | 50 |
Tap the deck to shuffle and deal 11 cards to each of the players for their hand, and another pile of 11 cards (face down) to each of the players for their foot. You will see your own cards, but you don't see your foot or any cards of the other players.
You have the first turn for the first hand when you launch the game. After that, the player to the left goes first on the next hand and so forth around the table in clockwise rotation.
To take your turn, tap the deck to draw 2 cards or tape the discard pile to pick up the top 8 cards. If you draw from the deck, the 2 cards will be added to your hand on the very right side of your hand. If you take the pile, it will be set to the left side of your hand with only the top card showing until the top card is properly played. The top card may be used to make your initial meld.
You may play as many legal melds as you wish from the cards in your hand. A turn ends when you discard one card from your hand to the discard pile (drag and drop it to the discard pile).
You and your partner keep a common set of melds (in the light green area above your hand) and your opponents keep a common set of melds higher up on the screen. You can only play on your set of melds. A legal meld consists of at least three cards of the same rank. Suits are irrelevant except for 3's as described below. Wild cards (2's and jokers) can be used as any rank except for threes. 3's may never be melded -- they must be used as discards.
A meld must consist of at least two natural cards and can never have more than three wild cards. There must be more natural cards than wild cards. A canasta is a meld of at least seven cards. A "clean" canasta has no wild cards. A "dirty" canasta has one or more wild cards. Wild cards cannot be added after there are 7 cards in the meld. Additional natural cards may be added to a canasta.
When you first put down some cards, you must put down at least some minimum number of points depending on your team's score:
| Hand | Minimum Initial Meld |
|---|---|
| 1 | 50 |
| 2 | 75 |
| 3 | 100 |
| 4 | 125 |
| 5 | 150 |
At the beginning of their turn, a player may pick up the top 8 cards from the discard pile instead of drawing 2 cards from the deck. They may only pick up the discard pile if they have at least two other cards of the same value in their hand.
You cannot pick up from the discard pile if it contains fewer than 8 cards. You cannot pick up from the discard pile if the top card is a 3 or a wild card.
In addition, the player/team must meet the initial meld requirement using the top card of the discard pile in order to pick up the pile. Only the top card is relevant for the player/team to pick up the rest of the discard pile.
After the top card of the taken discard pile is properly played, the other cards taken will be merged into the player's hand and my be played as desired.
When a player uses all the cards in their hand (by playing them in melds or discarding them), the player takes their foot and uses that as their hand for further play. If the last card from the player's initial hand is discarded, they wait until their next turn to continue playing from their foot. If the last card from the player's hand is played into a meld, then they pick up their foot and continue their play without waiting.
In order for a player to "go out", several conditions must be met:
Note that when asked by a partner if it's OK to go out, you must answer "NO" if you have any 3's in your hand. Players in may not make a play which would leave them with no cards in their hand at the end of their turn. The hand ends immediately when any player goes out.
If the deck is completely depleted when a player is required to draw a card, the hand ends immediately, that is, neither team gets the going out bonus.
At the end of each hand, the score for each team is calculated as follows:
The total value of all cards melded by that player/team, including cards in canastas minus the total value of all cards remaining in the team member's hand and foot, plus any bonuses:
| Going Out | 200 |
| Each dirty canasta | 300 |
| Each clean canasta | 500 |
The game is over when 5 hands have been played.