Jungle Speed Rules
Jungle Speed Rules explained simply: setup, how to play, scoring and popular variants, plus beginner tips for your first games.
Updated on January 21, 2026
📋 Sommaire
Jungle Speed was created by Tom & Yako (Thomas Vuarchex and Pierric Yakovenko), published and distributed by Asmodée éditions, and manufactured in Belgium by Carta Mundi. The rulebook describes it as a "tribal" game that suits groups best: it plays with 2 to 80 players, and the experience can start from age 7.
It is a game of speed and observation, with no board and no score: everything happens around a totem placed in the middle of the table, and around symbols that look far more alike than they first appear.
Objective
The goal is to get rid of all your cards as fast as possible. There is nothing to collect: every round you lose makes you pick up more cards instead, pushing you further from victory.
Components and setup
The game contains 80 cards and one totem. An expansion with 80 additional cards also exists for experienced players.
- Place the totem in the middle of the players.
- Deal out the 80 cards as evenly as possible, face down. Players do not look at their cards.
Two handling rules apply throughout the game: you play with one hand only, the other must never intervene; and cards must be flipped away from you, towards the other players.
How to play
Players reveal one card in front of them, one at a time, clockwise, then cover it on their next turn — so each player builds a face-up pile in front of them. Players only flip at the same time when the special "arrows pointing outward" card appears.
The duel
When two players have revealed the same symbol, whatever its colour, the first of the two to grab the totem wins the round.
The loser picks up their opponent's face-up cards, along with their own and the cards of the "pot" if there are any. They place them under their deck, and it is then their turn to start playing again.
As a very general rule, colours are ignored and only shapes matter — except while the special "colour arrows" card is active.
Mistakes
A player who grabs or knocks over the totem when there was no reason to picks up every face-up card on the table: those of all the players and those of the pot. The same applies to a player who interferes in a duel that does not concern them.
The Arrow cards
There are two card types: symbol cards, whose shapes appear in 4 different colours, and Arrow cards. There are three kinds of Arrows; they never cause duels, but they change how the game unfolds.
- Arrows pointing outward: everyone flips a card simultaneously (counting "1, 2, 3" helps at first). The cards are then compared; if nothing happens, the player seated after the one who played this card starts playing again.
- Arrows pointing inward: all players, including the one who revealed it, must grab the totem as fast as possible. Whoever wins the totem puts their face-up pile into the "pot" under the totem; that pot will go to the next player who loses a round. They then start playing again.
- Colour arrows: in 3-player games these cards are removed; instead, when all 3 players have same-coloured cards face up in front of them, it produces the same effect as an "arrows pointing inward" card. In games with 4 players or more, when a player reveals this card, the players holding same-coloured face-up cards must grab the totem, whatever the shape of the symbol. The round is resolved like a normal duel. The card is cancelled as soon as an action occurs — the totem falls or is grabbed, or a different Arrow card appears — and while it is active, symbol duels are cancelled.
Special cases
- Two "arrows pointing outward" in a row: the second one is only resolved if no other situation is present.
- An "arrows pointing inward" card appearing at the same time as a duel: the fastest player decides which situation is resolved.
- Two duels at once: whoever got the totem beats their opponent, and the second duel is cancelled.
- Three or more players with the same card: the losers share the winner's cards, or the winner decides how to split their cards (and the pot) among them.
Scoring and end of the game
There is no scoring in Jungle Speed.
When a player reveals their last card, it stays in play while the others keep going: they have not won until they have also got rid of their face-up pile. The game ends when only two players are left in contention.
Three special cases concern that last card:
- If it is an "arrows pointing inward" card and they fail to grab the totem, they pick up all the cards in play and start again.
- If it is an "arrows pointing outward" card, they have won: they put the card in the pot under the totem, and the others carry on without them.
- If it is a "colour arrows" card, they pick up all the cards in play and start again.
Common variant
To chain shorter games, the rulebook allows you to end the game as soon as one player has got rid of all their cards, instead of waiting until only two players remain in contention.
A fun fact
The rulebook opens on a deliberately tall tale: Jungle Speed was supposedly invented some 3000 years ago by the men of the Aboulou tribe in subtropical Spidopotamia, who used eucalyptus leaves as cards — which ended badly, since every leaf looked the same. In the same tone, the authors warn that a game played too politely can turn out completely bland, but that the faster and more in sync the players are, the fewer disputes there are.
Where to get the game
Beginner mistakes to avoid
- Playing with two hands: the rules require one hand only, the other must never intervene.
- Flipping your card towards yourself: it must be revealed towards the other players.
- Diving for the totem in a duel that does not involve you: this counts as a mistake and you pick up every face-up card on the table.
- Taking colours into account in a symbol duel: only shapes matter, unless a "colour arrows" card is active.
- Believing you have won on your last revealed card: you still have to get rid of your face-up pile.
FAQ
How many players can play Jungle Speed?
From 2 to 80 players according to the rulebook, from age 7. The game is described as suiting groups best.
Does the colour of the symbols matter?
No. As a very general rule only shapes count. Colour only becomes decisive while the "colour arrows" card is active.
What happens if I grab the totem by mistake?
You pick up every face-up card on the table: those of all the players and those of the pot. The same penalty applies if you interfere in a duel that does not concern you.
What is the "pot" for?
The pot is the pile of cards placed under the totem, fed in particular by the "arrows pointing inward" card. It goes to the next player who loses a round.
How does the game end?
It ends when only two players are left in contention. For shorter games, you can agree to stop as soon as one player has got rid of all their cards.
Is there an expansion?
Yes, the rulebook mentions an expansion of 80 new cards aimed at experienced players.
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