How to Play Ninety-Nine (99)
Ninety-Nine is a fast, addictive card game where players take turns adding to a running total. Hit a milestone exactly to penalize opponents — but go over and you lose tokens yourself. Last player with tokens wins.
What you need
- A standard 52-card deck
- 2 to 6 players
- 9 tokens per player (the app tracks these for you)
- About 15–30 minutes
Goal of the game
Be the last player with tokens remaining. You start with 9 tokens; you lose them by busting the pile, and you make opponents lose tokens by hitting milestones exactly.
The deal
Each player is dealt 3 cards. The remaining cards form the draw pile.
Play starts with the player to the left of the dealer and proceeds clockwise.
How a turn works
- Play one card from your hand onto the central pile.
- The card's value is added to the running total (with some exceptions — see Special Cards below).
- Draw one card from the draw pile to refill your hand back to 3.
- Play passes to the next player.
Card values
| Card | Effect |
|---|---|
| 2 | Doubles or halves the running total (you choose) |
| 3 | +3 to the total |
| 4 | +4 to the total, and reverses the direction of play |
| 5 | +5 to the total |
| 6 | +6 to the total |
| 7 | +7 to the total |
| 8 | +8 to the total |
| 9 | Worth 0 — the total stays the same. Used to "pass" your turn safely. |
| 10 | Plus or minus 10 (you choose) |
| Jack | Skip the next player; total unchanged |
| Queen | +12 to the total |
| King | +13 to the total |
| Ace | Plus 1 or plus 11 (you choose) |
Milestones — the key to winning
Three milestone totals trigger penalties: 33, 66, and 99.
Hit a milestone exactly
- 33 or 66 exactly: Every other player loses 1 token.
- 99 exactly: Every other player loses 2 tokens. You win the round.
Bust (go over a milestone)
- Go over 33 or 66: You lose 1 token. The total continues from where it landed.
- Go over 99: You lose 2 tokens. The round ends.
After a round ends, all hands are reshuffled and a new round begins with the running total reset to 0. Play continues until only one player has tokens remaining.
Strategy tips
- Hold a 9 in reserve. The "0 card" is your safest escape when the total is dangerously close to a milestone.
- Aces and 10s are flexible. Save them for when you need to land exactly on 33, 66, or 99.
- Watch the math. If the total is at 28 and you can play a 5, you hit 33 — opponents all lose a token!
- Use Jacks defensively. If you're about to be forced into a bust, skipping the next player buys time.
- Reverse (4) is sneaky. Use it to send the bust-pressure back to the player on your other side.
- Halving with a 2 can rescue you from a high total — but only if it lands on a safe number.
Variants supported in the app
- Starting token count: 3, 6, 9, or 12 tokens per player (default 9 — longer games use more)
- Player count: 2–6 players (online), 1 v bot (offline)
- Bot difficulty: Easy / Medium / Hard, each with different strategy depth
Tips for screen reader users
- Before you play, the game announces the current running total and your turn.
- Each card button reads its name and what it does (e.g. "Five of Hearts, plus 5").
- For Ace, 10, and 2 — which have a choice of value — the app asks you which option to play after you select the card.
- Milestone events are clearly announced ("33! Every player loses one token", "Boom! 99! You won the round!").
- Token count after each event is spoken automatically.
Ready to play?
Open Baazi Club → Ninety-Nine → tap Play Offline (against bots) or Play Online (with friends).