Go Fish Strategy: How to Remember, Ask and Win More

People often say Go Fish is pure luck. It isn't. The pond is luck, but every question asked at the table is free information, and the player who listens best wins far more often. In our own testing, a computer player that remembers every question beats one that forgets about six games in ten head to head. Here is how to be the player who remembers.

1. Every Question Is a Confession

You may only ask for a rank you already hold. So when West asks East for 8s, West has just told the whole table: "I have at least one 8." That is the single most useful fact in the game.

Keep a simple mental list: who asked for what. When you later pick up an 8, from the pond or from someone else, ask West for 8s first. West can't hide it; they must hand them over.

In our game the list is kept for you. Under each player's name you'll see "Asked for 8s, Kings": the ranks they asked for and are still known to hold. If they give those cards away or a book is made, the reminder disappears.

2. Track Where Cards Go

When East asks West for Queens and West hands over two, you learn three things at once: East has at least three Queens, West now has none, and only one Queen is still unaccounted for. If you hold that last Queen, guard it, because East will soon be asking around for it. If you don't, it's in the pond or in someone else's hand.

3. "Go Fish" Is News Too

When someone says "Go fish!" they've told you they have none of that rank. Don't ask them for it on your next turn. That knowledge fades, though: every time they draw from the pond, they might have picked one up. A "Go fish" from this round is reliable; one from ten turns ago much less so.

4. Choosing What to Ask For

When you have no memory to go on, it helps to think about what you hold:

• Holding three of a rank? Ask for it. One success makes a book, and a book can never be taken. Three of a kind sitting in your hand is also your biggest risk: if someone asks you for that rank, they take all three and probably the book.
• Holding two? Still a good ask. Two more are out there.
• Holding one? Three more are out there, so there's a good chance someone has one, but asking tells everyone you hold it.

Our testing found that working on your biggest group first wins more games than spreading your questions around, because it turns your most valuable cards into safe books before anyone else can take them.

5. Choosing Whom to Ask

• Someone who asked for it. Always first.
• Someone who took it from someone else. They have even more of it now.
• The player with the most cards when you have nothing else to go on. More cards, more chances.
• Not someone who just said "Go fish" for that rank, unless they've drawn since.

6. Think About What You Give Away

When you ask, you reveal. Sometimes it pays to ask for a rank the table already knows you hold, because asking again gives nothing new away. And when you are told to go fish, the card you draw stays secret unless it's a lucky catch, which is one reason the pond is so useful to the player who is behind.

7. The Endgame

Once the pond is empty, the game becomes almost a puzzle. Every card is in somebody's hand, and with good memory you can often work out exactly who holds what. Count the books on the table: any rank not yet booked has all four of its cards in players' hands. If you hold two 5s and West asked for 5s earlier, the other two are split between West and whoever else has never mentioned them.

Players who run out of cards with an empty pond are out, so near the end, don't worry about being emptied out by others: your books still count.

8. Using the Help in Our Game

• Hint suggests a question and says why, for example: "Ask East for 5s. East asked for 5s earlier and hasn't given them away."
• Why? beside a computer's move shows its thinking: "I asked East for 5s because East asked for 5s two turns ago." It's a good way to learn what to listen for.
• Difficulty changes only memory. Easy computers forget, Normal ones remember the last few rounds, and Hard ones remember the whole game, just as a sharp human player would. None of them can see your cards.
• The move list spells out every exchange, like "West asked you for Kings. You gave 2 Kings." Glance at it whenever you lose track.

A Quick Example

You hold 3, 5, 5, 9, J. Last round East asked North for 9s and was told to go fish, and North asked West for Jacks and was told to go fish too. Now it's your turn. You know East holds a 9 and North holds a Jack, so you have two good questions. Ask East for 9s first; if East hands one over, you go again and can ask North for Jacks. Only when those are used up should you fall back on your biggest group, the 5s, asked of the player with the most cards. And don't ask North for 9s: North just said go fish to that.

Ready to try it? Head back to the Go Fish game, or read the full rules and the house rules. For another game where remembering played cards pays off, try Hearts or Spades.