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Uno Wild Jackpot is one of those Uno versions that is a combination of both card game and toy. This fun game utilizes a plastic jackpot unit or “machine” that has many special Symbols on its Spinner, which will spin when the lever is pulled. Depending on what Symbol you get, there is an action which players are required to carry out. In addition, a set of Customizable Rule Cards ensures that the fun never stops with this game.

Mattel has put in a fair deal of thought into Uno Wild Jackpot. The plastic jackpot unit itself serves as a convenient storage container for the cards, and on one side of the unit, there are two slots to insert the marker pens (which are supplied with every unit of Uno Wild Jackpot). These erasable-friendly marker pens are meant to be used for writing down custom rules onto the Customizable Rule cards.

As for the game objective, it’s the same as any other Uno game. The cards are also pretty similar. Same objective – get rid of all your cards per round, and be the first to attain 500 points. The addition of the jackpot unit is what adds a lot of new scope to the game. All in all, it’s a nice Uno version with many novel features, and we recommend it.

Starting the Game

First things first, write down your custom rules for the game on the Customizable Rule cards. Each player should get an equal number of cards (although this is not a must) and everyone needs to think of something to write on them. If any blank Customizable Rule cards are left, put them aside.

What should you write for the Custom Rules?

These rules can be as wacky as you want them to be, provided the other players are agreeable to them. Just be a little creative. A few suggestions:

• Give every player a cookie
• Take 3 cards from the Draw pile and hand them out to 3 players
• Play all the Draw 2 cards in your hand at once; the next player must draw all the cards!
• Give away 2 cards to the player with the least cards
• Do 5 sit ups on your next turn

After all the rules are written, gather all the completed Customizable Rule cards, shuffle them, and insert them into the dispenser at the back of the Jackpot unit.

Shuffle the remaining cards in the deck well. Now choose a dealer by having everyone draw a card from the deck, and the one with the highest number shall be the dealer. Count all Action cards as zero.

The dealer then shuffles all the cards and deals out 7 cards to each player. Place the remainder of the deck facedown to create the Draw pile, from which everyone will draw their cards from.

Turn over the top card and place it apart from the Draw pile. This will be the Discard pile, which everyone will put down their cards to. If that first card is an Action card, please refer to the section about Action cards on what to do.

Gameplay

The first player to kick off the game is usually the person to the dealer’s left while the turns go in a clockwise direction. Match the card on the Discard pile either by number, color, or symbol (if it is an Action card). For example, if the Discard pile card is a yellow 3, then you can put down a number 3 card of any color, or a yellow card of any number/symbol. Of course, another yellow 3 card works too. If you have a Wild card, then you can play it as well.

If you don’t have any suitable card to play, then you will have to draw a card from the Draw pile. If that card can be played, then you can play it and then complete your turn. You can also choose not to play it, but either way, your turn will be over after that, and play moves on to the next player in turn.

So in this manner, everyone works towards matching and discarding their cards, while at the same time, hindering their rivals from discarding theirs through the use of Action cards. The round ends when someone becomes the first to discard all their cards.

Action Cards

Let’s take a look at the Action/Symbol cards used in Uno Wild Jackpot.

Draw Two

When this card is played, the next player must draw 2 cards from the Draw pile and miss their turn. This card may only be played on another card of the same color or another Draw Two. If this is the first card turned up at the start of play to form the Discard pile, the first player must draw two cards and miss their turn.

Skip

When played, the next player must miss their turn. This card may only be played on another Skip card, or any card of the same color. If turned up at the start of the game, the first player must skip their turn, while the second player kicks off the game.

Reverse

If played, this card changes the direction of play. If the play is in a clockwise direction, this card changes it to an anti-clockwise direction, and vice versa. It can only be played on another Reverse, or card of the same color. If turned up at the start, the first player to play is the person to the dealer’s right (instead of left).

Wild card

Playing this card enables you to choose any color you want to continue play with, including even the color in play at the moment. This card can be played at any turn, to represent any color. If turned up at the start of the game, the first player should choose what color they want to begin the game with.

Wild Draw 4

Playing this card enables you to choose any color you want to continue play with, but not only that, the next player must draw 4 cards from the Draw pile. But unlike the Wild card, you should only play this card if you do NOT have the color in play. If you do have the color in play and yet put down this card, it’s considered illegal. When it comes to the Wild Draw 4 card, the other player is allowed to challenge you to show your hand to them and prove you do not have any cards of matching color. If guilty, you have to draw 4 cards, not them. But if innocent, they have to draw 6 cards instead! If it’s the first card turned up at the start, put it back into the deck and pick another one.

Jackpot card

When played, this card allows you to pull the Wild Jackpot lever which will spin and end up at one of the symbols (see below). Once that symbol’s action is performed, play resumes with the next player. However, this card can only be played on a card of similar color, or another Jackpot card. If turned up at the start of the game, the first player can choose any player, press the button on the Wild Jackpot unit and dispense a Customizable Rule card. That chosen player then needs to carry out the rules written on it.

Wild Jackpot card

This card is similar in action to the Jackpot card in that it allows you to pull the Wild Jackpot lever and obtain the action shown by the symbol on the Spinner, except that being a Wild card, you can play it on any turn, regardless if you have another playable card or not, and also get to choose the color that will resume play. After the action required by the symbol on the Spinner is performed, play resumes with the next player in turn. If turned up at the beginning of play, the first player chooses another player, presses the dispenser button the Wild Jackpot unit, and gets a Customizable Rule card. That chosen player must then perform the rule written on it.

Meaning of Spinner Symbols

Pulling the lever on the Wild Jackpot unit will spin the spinner and result in any one of 6 different symbols. Most of the symbols involve the use and application of the Customizable Rule cards.

Once the action of the Customizable Rule card is performed, place them in a separate pile behind the Wild Jackpot unit. If you run out of Customizable Rule cards, take this pile, shuffle it, and load it back into the unit.

Below are the meanings of all the 6 different symbols shown on the Spinner:

1) Choose any player (it can even be oneself), and press the button on the Wild Jackpot unit to dispense a Customizable Rule card. The chosen player must carry out the rule written on it.

2) Press the button on the Wild Jackpot unit to dispense a Customizable Rule card. The player on your LEFT must carry out the rule written on it.

3) Press the button on the Wild Jackpot unit to dispense a Customizable Rule card. The player on your RIGHT must carry out the rule written on it.

4) You can discard up to 1 card of each of the FOUR color (including Action cards) onto the Discard pile in any order you prefer. If they are Action cards, each one of them will affect the next player. For example, if you discard 4 Draw Two cards from red, blue, green, and yellow colors, the next player must draw 8 cards in total!

5) Press the button on the Wild Jackpot unit to dispense EVERY player (including oneself) a Customizable Rule card. All the players must perform the rule written on their respective cards.

6) This simply means to draw 4 cards from the Draw pile, and this applies to the unfortunate player who pulled the lever!

Going Out and Winning

When you are down to two cards and about to play your second last card, remember to yell out “Uno” aloud, to inform the others. Failure to do so can result in a penalty of having to draw 2 cards if someone calls you out before the next player in turn has played anything.

The winner of the round is the first player to successfully discard all their cards. If the last card played is a Draw Two or Wild Draw 4 card, the next player must still draw those cards. If for some reason the round keeps on going and the Draw pile is depleted, take the Discard pile, shuffle it, and turn it into a new Draw pile.

Points are added by tallying all the cards left in the hands of the other players as per the scoring below:

• Numbered cards (0-9) – Face value
• Draw Two/Skip/Reverse – 20 points each
• Jackpot – 40 points each
• Wild/Wild Draw Four/Wild Jackpot – 50 points each

The winner is the first player to score 500 points (or more), although this rule is not really set in stone. If you don’t want to play more than a round or two, that is perfectly fine as well.

Alternative Method of Scoring and Winning

Another way to score and win according to Mattel, is to keep a running tally of the points everyone is left with when a round ends. And when someone reaches 500 points, the person who has the least points is the winner instead.