Hitster: 100% NL
Hitster: 100% NL Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Getting Started
- SCAN The DJ scans the top card of the deck with the HITSTER app and a song starts playing.
- PLACE On your turn, take the card and place it face down on your timeline, guessing whether it belongs before, after or between the cards already in front of you.
- FLIP Turn the card over and check whether the year matches the position. Is the position correct? Then keep the card. If not, it goes on the discard pile. If the year is the same as that of another card on your timeline, you place it directly before or after it. Now the next player's turn begins.
Original Version
Game Setup
- Decide whether to play in teams or individually.
- Place a stack of cards on the table with the QR codes face up.
- Give each player (or team) 1 music card. Place the card face up in front of you (so the year is visible) to start your timeline.
- Use the tokens for an extra challenge. [See "The HITSTER Tokens" below.]
- Open the HITSTER app on your phone.
- Appoint one player as DJ. The DJ scans the cards and plays along with everyone else. Keep the same DJ throughout the game or take turns; you decide!
- Take a random card from the stack to determine who starts. The player with the card with the oldest music starts; play then continues clockwise. Put these cards back into the deck and start the game.
Note: players who are the DJ may not wear a smartwatch (e.g. Apple Watch) during the game, because information about the songs may appear on it.
Music Settings
The way the songs are played depends on the streaming platform you use and the type of account you have.
If you play without an account or with a free account
You only hear a short fragment of the song. In the SETTINGS menu of the app you can choose one of two playback options:
- Gyro sensor The song starts playing as soon as you put your phone face down.
- Countdown The song starts playing after a 3-second countdown. Make sure you put your phone face down before the countdown ends.
If you play with a paid account
In addition to the playback options above, you can also choose how you want to listen to the songs:
- Full tracks Listen to the whole song, from the beginning. Ideal for a complete experience.
- Previews Quick mode! Turn your phone over to start playback and listen to a short fragment.
Who Wins?
The first player (or team) to correctly place 10 cards on their timeline wins!
The HITSTER Tokens
For the full HITSTER experience, each player or team starts with 2 HITSTER tokens and 1 music card.
- It's your turn Don't know the song? Spend 1 HITSTER token to skip the current song and take a new card.
- During an opponent's turn Do you think someone has placed their card wrongly? Call "HITSTER" and place 1 of your tokens on your opponent's timeline where you think the card belongs. Are you right? Then you may take the card and place it on your own timeline. Used tokens go back in the box.
- Whenever you want Trade 3 HITSTER tokens for a card from the stack and place it directly on your timeline, without having to guess. You don't have to wait for your turn to do this.
- Earning more HITSTER tokens During your turn you can earn 1 HITSTER token by correctly naming the song and the artist. The token is yours, even if you don't place the card correctly on your timeline. Players may never have more than 5 tokens at the same time.
Notes:
- If you challenge an opponent but they were right, your challenge lapses and your opponent keeps the card. Also if you placed your token on another valid spot on their timeline (for example if both cards have the same year), the player whose turn it is keeps the card and the challenger loses their token.
- The player who calls "HITSTER" first may place their token first. If another player has also called "HITSTER", they can choose a different position on the opponent's timeline to try to steal the card. Two tokens may never be placed on the same spot of an opponent's timeline.
Advanced Versions
To keep the game fair, each player or team chooses their own difficulty level:
- PRO To win or steal a card, you must not only place the card correctly on your timeline, but also name the artist and the title. PRO players start with 5 tokens and cannot earn extra tokens during the game.
- EXPERT To win or steal a card, you must not only place the card correctly on your timeline, but also name the artist, the title and the year in which it was released. EXPERT players start with 3 tokens and cannot earn extra tokens during the game.
- COOPERATIVE PLAY Start with 5 tokens and 1 music card to begin your timeline. Work as one team to place new cards in the right spot; if you make a mistake, you lose a token. The goal is to place 10 cards correctly before you run out of HITSTER tokens.
Other Ways to Play
To make it more exciting, you can reduce the number of HITSTER tokens. Or make it more challenging by increasing the number of cards needed to complete your timeline.
Frequently Asked Questions
How can I play the music?
When opening the app, follow the on-screen instructions to connect to your favourite music streaming service, or choose to play without an account. If you play without an account, the song starts playing as soon as you turn your phone face down ("Gyro sensor") or after a 3-second countdown ("Countdown"). If you play with a paid account, you can listen to the whole song from the beginning ("Full tracks") or to a fragment ("Previews"). See the rules for more information on how to play the music.
Can I play HITSTER without the card game?
No, you need the HITSTER card game to play. For more information, visit our where-to-buy page.