DURAK: A Game of Fools

A tiny game of cards and fools.

Podkidnoy Durak, played with a 36-card deck. Attack, defend, throw in extra cards, and try not to be the last one holding any. That player is the durak. Sometimes the only way out of a bad hand is to pick the whole table up and try again.

Five opponents, and each plays it differently: their own habits, their own nerve, and something to say about how it went, generously or otherwise.

Two players can share one device: when the turn changes hands the screen covers itself, so nobody sees anything they shouldn't. One tune, arranged five ways, plays underneath all of it.

Features

• Five opponents, each with their own table and personality
• Four-match tournament runs, the line-up shuffled every time
• Two-player hot-seat play
• Five card backs to collect, and records that persist
• Original soundtrack: one motif, arranged five ways

Controls

⬅️ ➡️ choose a card · ⬆️ step into the table · ⬇️ back to the hand
🅾️ / ❎: the plaque always shows what they'll do
⬅️ on the title: toggle music

Two buttons and a d-pad the whole way through. Built for a handheld.

Playing

Runs right here in the browser. Touch controls appear on phones. Prefer the real thing? Download the cartridge below and run it in PICO-8, or on a handheld that plays PICO-8 carts.

Credits

A Durdom Soft game.

Built with AI-assisted development.

v1.0.0
Somebody has to be the durak.