War
Simplest card game there is — split the deck, flip cards, higher card wins. Ties go to 'war'.
🌤indoor
What is War?
War is a pure-luck two-player card game usually the first anyone learns. The deck is dealt evenly, each player keeps their pile face-down, and both players flip their top card simultaneously. Higher card wins both; ties trigger a 'war' where each player deals three face-down then one face-up, higher wins the pile. Continue until one player has all 52 cards.
Quick facts
Category
Card Games
Type
Individual
Players
2–2
Where played
indoor
Country of origin
🇫🇷 France
Estimated origin
Traditional European children's game (~1800s)
Olympic
No
Popularity
global
Sources & provenance
Last verified 2026-08-24.verified