KonKan is a 2–4 player game where your goal is to create melds — referred to as pairs — by forming sets of 3–4 cards of the same rank but with different suits (7♥ 7♠ 7♦ 7♣) or 3 or more consecutive cards of the same suit (J♣ Q♣ K♣). A hand is won once a player has formed pairs using all of their cards with one remaining discard card.

The game uses two 52-card decks plus 2 jokers. Each player is dealt 14 cards, except the dealer who gets 15 and starts the game by discarding one unneeded card into the center discard pile. Play runs counter-clockwise: each player in turn draws a card from the draw pile and discards an unneeded card to the center pile. A player may instead pick up the card that was just discarded — but to do so they must come down with pairs worth at least 51 points, and the picked-up card can be used as part of those pairs.

All face cards are worth 10 and number cards carry their face value. Aces may be played low or high but always count as 10. Jokers are wild and can represent any card; once placed in a pair, a joker carries the value of the card it represents. Once your pairs are down, any other player who is also down may add cards to those pairs on their turn. After you are down, you may pick up any discarded card on future turns without laying down additional pairs.

Any multi-suit pair that ends up holding all 4 suits is burned and placed in the discard pile. A joker that is down in a pair can be swapped for the actual card it represents by any player on their turn — provided that player has already come down with the required 51 points — after which the freed joker returns to that player’s hand to be used as a wild again. If the draw pile runs out, the discard pile is shuffled and becomes the new draw pile.

To win the hand you must have pairs down totaling a minimum of 51 points, lay down all your pairs, play every hit card in your hand, and be left with a single card — discard that last card and you’ve won the hand. The winner of a hand becomes the dealer for the next hand.

Create pairs — or play cards onto pairs already down — to eliminate all of the cards in your hand, leaving exactly one card to discard.

Use two 52-card decks plus 2 jokers. Deal two cards at a time, counter-clockwise, to each player until everyone holds 14 cards. The dealer takes one additional card at the very end of the deal, for a total of 15.

The dealer opens the hand by discarding one unneeded card into the discard pile.

On your turn, draw either the top card from the draw pile or pick up the card that was just discarded. Bring your pairs down if you’re able, play any hit cards, then discard one card to the discard pile.

Each player’s turn starts when they draw a card and ends when they discard a card.

Organize your cards into pairs totaling a minimum of 51 points, then place them face-up into the playing area. Once you have placed pairs worth 51 points, you may — on later turns — add any new pairs you form to the playing area to shed points from your hand, regardless of what those additional pairs are worth.

“Pair” is the term for a meld. A pair is either 3–4 cards of the same rank in different suits, or 3 or more consecutive cards of the same suit.

These are all terms for a card played onto a pair that is already down. You may only play a card onto a pair when it is your turn.

To win the hand/round you must have pairs down totaling a minimum of 51 points, lay down all of your pairs, and play every hit card (if any) in your hand — leaving exactly one card. Discard that last card and you’ve won the hand.

The objective is to finish with the fewest points. The winner of a hand earns a bonus; everyone else is penalized for the cards still in their hand. Whoever — player or team — has the lowest total at the end of the set wins.

A set is the number of hands you agree to play to decide a winner. Sets are typically 6–8 hands/rounds, fixed before the game begins.

After you have placed your pairs down and before you discard, you may choose to announce that you are holding 1 or 2 jokers. A wild joker is an advantage, and announcing signals to the table that you may be close to winning — which may prompt opponents to lay down extra pairs of their own to shed points.

If you still lose the hand, an announced joker counts as only 2 points against you, whereas an unannounced joker counts as 25 points. Jokers picked up from downed pairs never need to be announced and always count as 2 points.