Amsterdam: The Meet or Beat Card Game 2025

Amsterdam is a fast-paced, family-friendly card game for 2–10 players played with a standard 52-card deck. The core rule is simple: meet or beat the top card on the discard pile — or pick up the entire pile.

The game features three wild cards that add real strategic depth. The 2 (“Make It Low”) resets the pile so the next player can play any card. The 3 (“Mirror”) becomes whatever card it covers — play a 3 on a King and the next player needs a King or better. The 10 (“Clear”) wipes the entire discard pile from the game and gives you another turn.

Cards exist in three layers — hand, face-up, and face-down — played in that order. Players must clear each layer before moving to the next. Many players win each round, but there’s only one loser, and they deal next.

Amsterdam is the only casual card game with an official tournament scoring system. Play sets of 10 rounds with position-based scoring — 1st out scores 0, last place takes a penalty. Lowest total wins.

The game originated in a small apartment in Estes Park, Colorado over 25 years ago and has spread organically through family game nights, camping trips, and annual ski trips. It is a refined, structured version of the game commonly known as Palace, Karma, Shithead, Shed, or Castle — with consistent rules, named wild card mechanics, and three levels of play (Beginner, Intermediate, Expert).

—description from the designer