In or Out
In or Out Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Components
432 cards Start Player card & base 48 chips: 18 Green, 12 Red, 18 Gold
Object of the Game
In Or Out is a "Quiz Show" type party game where knowing what is not the answer is as important as knowing what is! Players have to decide whether certain items fit in the given category or not. Each category card has 12 words or phrases: names of people, places, or things that do or do not fit into the named category. Each player, in turn, selects one card from the cards on the table and states whether the choice is or is not in the category. Correct answers are rewarded, incorrect answers receive penalties.
Set-Up
- Arrange the seating so that all players have a similar vantage point from one or two sides of the table.
- Put the chips in a pile and assign one player to hand them out as necessary.
- Pull the card shoe box out of the game box.
- Choose a starting player randomly or let the youngest player go first. Give them the Start Player card.
How to Play
Slide 12 cards from the bottom of the card shoe onto the table making sure to not show the underside of the cards. Be careful not to look at the underside of the cards as that reveals the answers! Each category is numbered and has 12 cards per set. All the cards in the card shoe are ordered by category number and color. So the first time you play, you will see category 1, Blue. Display the cards vertically, overlapping each other to make it easy for everyone to see.
The first player looks at the 12 displayed cards and picks any one, saying either "IN" – the person, place or thing fits in the category shown – or "OUT" – it does not fit into the category.
For example, let's say the category is "Famous men of the 20th century." A player may pick the name "Bill Gates" given as one of the choices and say, "Bill Gates: IN" (Bill Gates fits into the category), or the player may pick another name, say, George Washington, and declare, "George Washington – OUT" (Washington was not in the 20th century so he does not fit into the category). In both cases, the player would be correct.
The answer is immediately revealed by flipping the card over. Give the player a green chip if correct, and a red chip if incorrect. Red chips cancel green chips. Players with a red chip and a green chip immediately return both to the supply.
The card is then placed into the top slot of the card shoe. IMPORTANT! MAKE SURE TO SLIDE IT IN CORRECTLY! The answer side should be facing down, and the first color going in is the color of the category you are playing. This makes it so that when the deck runs out, you immediately start drawing the opposite side of the cards (the red categories).
The turn then passes to the next player clockwise, and play continues in the same manner.
Play continues in clockwise rotation, with each player, in turn, choosing one of the remaining cards in the category. The cycle repeats itself until a player takes the final card in that category. Scoring then occurs. Anyone with red chips puts them back in the supply. Among the players with green chips remaining, the player(s) with the highest total of green chips exchanges them for one gold chip.
Now pass the Start player token to the player to the left of the player who just finished the round. Dispense the 12 new category cards from the card shoe and display them. The game continues now in the same rotation starting with the new Start player.
Ending and Winning the Game
The game ends when a round is finished and one or more players have collected three gold tokens. (For a longer game, you can play first to 5 gold tokens.)
If there is a tie, then the tied players play a final round(s) with a new category set. This is sudden death so a player who gives a wrong answer, is immediately out. Last player standing wins!
Errata
Card that says "George Washington Ferris, 1893" on answer side, Category #9 in blue, should be FINB.