Three guided lessons, then a fresh round against Robin and Alex. Learn to replace, peek, swap and call Cambio.
Choose a tutorial or start a shuffled round.
Four cards stay face down. Remember the positions you see.
Follow the visible moves
LOWEST TOTAL WINS · NO SNAP INTERRUPTS
♧ Browser-based practice · No downloadFour-card grids · Private peeks · Lowest score wins
THE IDEA IN ONE MINUTE
Know a little. Remember a lot.
Cambio is a memory game about low totals. You control four positions, but you cannot keep looking at their faces. Replace carefully, use information when you earn it, and choose when the table should finish.
Peek at your bottom two positions once. Hide them and remember what is where.
02
Draw. Replace. Or use a power.
A low draw can improve a position. A fresh action-card discard can grant a peek or swap.
03
Call when you are ready.
Call Cambio before drawing. Opponents take one final turn each, then lowest total wins.
CAMBIO RULES, MADE VISIBLE
A hidden grid. A clearer game.
A guide to the four-card, turn-based version used above. Values, powers and ending rules are stated explicitly because local versions differ.
01
FOUR POSITIONS. TWO FIRST GLIMPSES.
Setting up a game of Cambio.
Our practice uses one 52-card deck without jokers, three players and four cards each. Arrange your four cards face down in a two-by-two grid. Turn one remaining card up to start the discard pile; the other 39 cards form the stock.
Before play, look once at the two cards nearest you: positions 3 and 4 at the bottom of your grid. Keep their values and positions in mind, then hide them. You do not get to look at positions 1 and 2 just because it is your turn.
3♠♠5♥♥
If your bottom-left card is 3♠ and bottom-right is 5♥, remember both the numbers and their places. A later swap can move that knowledge to a different position.
The opening reveal stays visible until you click Hide cards & begin. The computer players each learn their own bottom two cards too. Tutorial three deliberately shows all four of your cards once to explain a prepared ending; normal play does not.
02
IMPROVE A POSITION. NOT YOUR WHOLE HAND.
How a Cambio turn works.
At the start of your turn, either call Cambio or take a card. A visible discard must replace one of your own four positions. A stock draw is private: after seeing it, choose a position to replace or discard the draw.
A replacement is a commitment.
2♦♦Q♦♦
You place 2♦ into an unknown position and discover that you removed Q♦, worth 12. Your grid improves by 10 points. You learn what came out after making the replacement, rather than looking first.
The removed grid card becomes the visible discard. Its power does not trigger. A taken discard also gives no power: you must place it into your grid. Only discarding a fresh stock draw can activate the powers below.
Replacing a card ends the turn. Discarding a plain stock draw ends it too. If a fresh discarded card offers a power, finish that action or choose Skip power before the next player begins.
03
INFORMATION HAS ITS OWN VALUE.
Cambio special cards: peeks and swaps.
These powers are optional and available only when you draw from stock and choose to discard that fresh card. There are no snap interrupts at this table.
7 / 8
Peek at your own card
Choose one position in your own grid. Look privately, remember it, then hide it.
9 / 10
Peek at an opponent
Choose one card in Robin’s or Alex’s grid. Its face is shown privately to you, then hidden.
J / Q
Make a blind swap
Select one of your own positions and one opponent position. Exchange them without revealing either face.
BLACK K
Peek, then choose a swap
First peek at any one grid card. After hiding it, you may exchange one of your positions with one opponent position, or skip the swap.
A red king has no power and is valuable to keep because it scores −1. A black king scores 13 if it stays in your grid. A peek alone does not remove a card or reduce its points.
↳
Track what moved. A blind swap changes two positions without revealing them. If you already remembered one of those cards, you can follow it to its new location. Unknown cards remain unknown.
04
THE POSITION IS PART OF THE INFORMATION.
Remembering hidden cards without free peeks.
Your grid stays face down between legal reveals. The interface does not leave value labels on cards you have previously seen: you must remember them. Position numbers stay visible so replacements and swaps are easy to follow.
A stock replacement is known to the player who saw the private draw, while other players see only which old card was discarded. Taking a public discard makes the incoming card public knowledge. A legal peek is private; another player does not see what you looked at.
Use the move history to review public actions. Your own peek can appear in your private session history, but computer peeks and computer stock draws do not reveal their values. The computer keeps a memory of legal observations and tracks public swaps; it estimates unknown cards instead of reading them.
05
YOUR CALL. THEIR LAST CHANCE.
Calling Cambio and taking the final turns.
Call Cambio at the start of your turn instead of drawing. This ends your own turns. The next two players each complete one final turn, in order, before all grids are revealed and scored. Nobody can make a second call.
Your grid is not frozen by the call: an opponent’s final swap may still change one of your cards. Remember that risk before you call. Lowest total wins after the final actions, rather than at the moment the call is made.
A prepared finish.
A♠♠2♣♣3♥♥4♦♦
Your total is 10. After you call, Robin and Alex each improve a card, finishing on 32 and 30. Your 10 still wins—but the opponents had a real final turn before the comparison.
This version adds no penalty for a caller who fails to finish lowest. Tied lowest scores share the win. The practice is one round at a time, with fresh scores after restart.
If the stock is exhausted: finish the current replacement, power or private peek, then reveal and score. We do not recycle the discard pile in this practice version. The result explains whether a Cambio call or stock exhaustion ended the round.
06
LOW IS GOOD. RED KINGS ARE BETTER.
Cambio card values and scoring.
Add the points of all four cards in your final grid. Aces count 1; 2–10 count their face value; jacks count 11; queens 12; black kings 13; red kings −1. Suits only affect king values here.
A♠♠2♣♣3♥♥4♦♦
1 + 2 + 3 + 4 = 10. Choose another example to compare the two kinds of king.
Matching ranks, pairs and suits do not cancel points in this version. Four cards are always scored individually. The final reveal shows every grid, each card value and the total so the winner is clear.
07
AGREE THE TABLE BEFORE THE CALL.
Our Cambio rules and common version choices.
Cambio is played with different scoring tables and special-card rules. This page teaches the version implemented in the practice table, rather than presenting one local tradition as universal.
DetailThis tableAgree before playing elsewhere
GridFour fixed positions per playerGrid size and opening peeks
Deck52 cards, no jokersAny jokers or extra cards
KingsRed −1; black 13King values differ between groups
Powers7/8 own peek; 9/10 other peek; J/Q blind swap; black K peek then optional swapWhich ranks have which powers
InterruptsNo snapping or matching discardsSpeed-play rules and penalties
CallingBefore drawing; others get one final turnCall timing and caller penalties
TiesLowest tied totals share the winAny tie-break rules
Stock endingFinish current action, reveal and scoreRecycling or another ending
Robin and Alex are learning opponents. They remember legally seen cards, estimate unknown positions, and choose whether to improve their grids or call Cambio. Their decisions do not inspect hidden grids or future stock cards. Prepared lesson actions are scripted to make the teaching outcomes reproducible.
Print this quick reference or save it as a PDF through your browser’s print window.
CAMBIOTHE TABLE-SIDE GUIDE · CARD GAME RULES
The aim: finish with the lowest four-card total.
Start
Four face-down cards each. Study your bottom two once.
Draw
Stock: replace a card or discard the draw. Visible discard: must replace.
7 / 8
Discard a fresh stock draw to peek at one own card.
9 / 10
Peek at one opponent card.
J / Q
Blindly swap one own card with one opponent card.
Black K
Peek at any one card; then optional own/opponent swap.
Values
A = 1; numbers face value; J = 11; Q = 12; black K = 13; red K = −1.
Call
Before drawing. Others get one final turn. Lowest total wins.
Powers only from discarded fresh stock draws. No snap interrupts, jokers, pair cancellation or caller penalty. Tied low scores share the win. Finish the current action and score if stock runs out.
LEARN IT. DEAL IT. ENJOY IT. ♣
GOOD QUESTIONS
A hidden card. A clear answer.
How do you play Cambio for beginners?
Each player has four face-down cards. Study your two bottom cards at the start, then keep them hidden. On a turn draw privately from stock or take the visible discard to replace one of your cards. A fresh stock draw can instead be discarded, sometimes granting a power. Call Cambio before drawing when you think your total is low; the other players finish one final turn each. Lowest total wins.
What are the card values in Cambio?
Our table uses ace = 1, 2–10 = face value, jack = 11, queen = 12, black king = 13 and red king = −1. These values vary between groups, so check the version first.
Can I look at all my cards?
No. Normal play begins with a look at only your bottom two positions. After hiding them, you need a legal peek power to look again. A replacement or public swap changes what is in a position; remember the movement. The final reveal shows everything.
What do sevens, eights, nines and tens do?
Discarding a fresh 7 or 8 from stock lets you peek at one of your own cards. A fresh 9 or 10 lets you peek at one opponent card. The peek is private. Those powers do not trigger just because a card leaves your grid.
What do jacks, queens and kings do?
A freshly drawn and discarded jack or queen allows a blind swap between one of your cards and one opponent card. A black king allows one peek at any grid card, followed by an optional own/opponent swap. A red king has no power here and scores −1.
Can I use a power from the discard pile?
No. A taken discard must replace one of your own grid cards and does not activate its power. Only choosing to discard a fresh stock draw activates an available power.
Can I discard a matching card out of turn?
Not at this practice table. We use a four-card, turn-based version without snap or matching-discard interrupts. Some groups use those extra rules, but they are not implemented here.
What happens when someone calls Cambio?
They call at the start of their turn instead of drawing. Every other player receives one final turn in order. Then all cards are revealed and scored. No second call is allowed, and the caller gets no extra turn. Opponents may still swap cards with the caller.
Is there a penalty if the caller does not win?
Our version adds no caller penalty. Compare the raw grid totals; the lowest wins. If several players share that lowest score, they share the win. Other tables use different calling penalties.
What if the stock runs out?
This single-round practice does not recycle the discard pile. Finish the current draw action, including any power or private peek, then reveal and score when stock is exhausted. The result tells you the stock ended the round.
Does the computer know the hidden cards?
It remembers its own two opening peeks, cards it legally sees, and public card movements. Unknown positions are estimated rather than read. Its choice functions do not inspect hidden grids or future stock cards.
