Card game

Japanese card games blend imported ideas with distinctly local forms. Playing cards arrived with Portuguese traders in the sixteenth century; after Edo-period bans on foreign cards, uniquely Japanese decks emerged. Hanafuda (flower cards) tied each suit to a month and a flower—and in 1889 Nintendo was founded to make them. Karuta turned poetry into sport: Hyakunin Isshu Karuta, with its hundred classical poems and split-second recognition, became a competitive discipline and later the subject of the hit manga and anime Chihayafuru. Climbing games like Daifugō (Big Rich Man) use a standard 52-card deck but add ranking, card exchange, and regional house rules that make every prefecture feel different. From Oicho-Kabu—the game behind the folk etymology of "yakuza"—to trick-taking games like Two-Ten-Jack, Japanese card games remain a living, social, and often fiercely competitive tradition. Kabufuda (numerical decks) and hanafuda serve different games; Karuta requires a yomi-fuda (reading) and tori-fuda (playing) set. Many of these games are New Year rituals, played in families and at gatherings. Competitive Karuta has Queen and Master titles; Daifugō is the go-to casual card game for students and office workers. Each entry in this category includes rules, history, and where to buy or play. Decks are sold in Japan and internationally; Nintendo still produces hanafuda. Board Game Arena hosts Two-Ten-Jack and other Japanese card games for online play.