Hacker News Reader

Fun fact about Hanafuda - you can still buy Hanafuda cards from a specific Japanese manufacturer who has been printing them for over 100 years and the more fun part is that that manufacturer is Nintendo! They still print traditional decks along with ones using newer IP like Mario and Kirby themes.

I own one of the original style decks and it's beautiful. Koi-Koi, played with a Hanafuda deck, is a great poker-style game that makes you feel very smart for knowing how to play even though the rules are pretty simple.

FYI, koi-koi is not a poker style game. Koi-koi is like a melding or fishing game, while Poker is a hand-comparison game.

Also: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German-suited_playing_cards

Playing cards in some parts of Europe have alternate suit symbols. Spain and Portugal use clubs, swords, coins and cups. My favorite aspect of this deck is that the clubs symbol is an actual club weapon instead of the usual clover.

Interesting! I've seen the equivalent of the Hanafuda on a recent trip to Korea.