Sorry! (game) facts for kids
A 1950s edition of the game
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| Publisher(s) | W H Storey & Co Parker Brothers Waddingtons Winning Moves Games USA |
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| Publication date | 1929 |
| Players | 2–4 |
| Setup time | 1–5 minutes |
| Random chance | High (Cards) |
| Skill(s) required | Counting, Tactics, Strategy, Probability |
Sorry! is a fun board game for two to four players. It's based on an old Indian game called Pachisi. In Sorry!, players move their game pieces around the board. The main goal is to get all your pieces "home" before anyone else does. The game was first made in England in 1929. Today, Hasbro makes it. The name "Sorry!" comes from how often you might send another player's piece back to their start, and then say "Sorry!"
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How to Play Sorry!
The main goal of Sorry! is to be the first player to move all four of your colored pawns. You start them from your "Start" area. Then, you move them all the way around the game board. Finally, you need to get them into your "Home" space. Pawns usually move forward, following the path. But sometimes, a card might tell you to move backward. You move your pawns by drawing cards from a special deck.
The game board is shaped like a square. Each side has 16 spaces. Every player has their own colored "Start" and "Home" areas. These are set closer to the center of the board. There are also four special paths, one for each color. These paths have five spaces and lead to a player's "Home." These are called "Safety Zones."
On each side of the board, you'll find two "Slides." These are groups of four or five spaces. If your pawn lands on a slide, it will move quickly to the end of it. Older versions of the game had a "diamond space" near the start. This space and its rule are not in newer versions.
Basic Rules of Sorry!
First, each player picks four pawns of one color. Place them in your "Start" area. Then, one player is chosen to go first.
On your turn, you draw one card from the deck. You must follow the instructions on the card. At the start of the game, all your pawns are in "Start." You can only move a pawn out onto the main board if you draw a 1 or a 2 card. A 1 or 2 card lets you place a pawn on the space right outside your "Start." A 2 card does not let you move a second space right away.
Your pawn can jump over any other pawn during its move. However, two pawns cannot be on the same square. If your pawn lands on a square where another player's pawn is, you "bump" that pawn. The bumped pawn must go back to its own "Start" area. You cannot bump your own pawns. If moving would make you bump your own pawn, you lose your turn. Your pawns stay where they are.
If a pawn lands on the start of a slide, it immediately "slides" to the end. This happens unless it's a slide of its own color. If you land on a slide, all pawns on that slide are sent back to their "Start." This includes your own pawns if they were on the slide.
The last five squares before your "Home" are called "Safety Zones." These spaces are colored to match your pawns. Only pawns of the same color can enter their own "Safety Zone." Pawns in the "Safety Zone" are safe. Opponents cannot bump them. They also cannot be switched with an opponent's pawn. But if a card like a 10 or 4 makes a pawn move backward out of the "Safety Zone," it is no longer safe. It can then be bumped or switched again.
Sorry! Cards and What They Do
The modern game deck has 45 cards. There are five "1" cards. There are four of each of the other cards: "Sorry!", 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 10, 11, and 12. The numbers 6 and 9 are not used to avoid confusion. An older version had 44 cards. An extra "1" card was added later to make the game faster.
Here's what each card does:
| 1 | Move a pawn from "Start" to the board. Or, move a pawn one space forward. |
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| 2 | Move a pawn from "Start" to the board. Or, move a pawn two spaces forward. If you draw a 2, you get to draw another card at the end of your turn. |
| 3 | Move a pawn three spaces forward. |
| 4 | Move a pawn four spaces backward. |
| 5 | Move a pawn five spaces forward. |
| 7 | Move one pawn seven spaces forward. Or, you can split the seven spaces between two pawns. For example, move one pawn four spaces and another three spaces. You cannot use a 7 to move a pawn out of "Start." You must use all seven spaces, or you lose your turn. You cannot move a pawn backward with a split 7. |
| 8 | Move a pawn eight spaces forward. |
| 10 | Move a pawn ten spaces forward. Or, move one pawn one space backward. If you cannot move any pawn forward 10 spaces, you must move one pawn back one space. |
| 11 | Move eleven spaces forward. Or, switch places with one of your pawns and an opponent's pawn. If you cannot move 11 spaces, you don't have to switch. You can lose your turn instead. You cannot switch a pawn that is in a "Safety Zone." |
| 12 | Move a pawn twelve spaces forward. |
| Sorry! card | Take any one pawn from your "Start" area. Move it directly to a square occupied by an opponent's pawn. This sends their pawn back to their "Start." You cannot use a "Sorry!" card on an opponent's pawn in a "Safety Zone." If you have no pawns in "Start," or no opponent's pawns to land on, you lose your turn. |
Game Strategies
Players can use different strategies to win Sorry!. If you have a pawn that hasn't moved far, and you draw a card that lets you move backward, you can use it. Moving that pawn backward might get it closer to "Home" quickly.
The 7 card is very useful because you can split its movement. You might split it so one pawn lands on a slide. This makes the 7 card even more powerful. It also helps get pawns "Home" if you have another pawn to use the remaining spaces.
It's usually not a good idea to leave your pawn right in front of an opponent's "Start" square. Many cards allow opponents to move pawns out of "Start." Some players also think it's bad to leave a pawn on the space right outside your own "Start." This is because new pawns cannot enter the game if that spot is blocked.
One common strategy is to keep your last pawn in the "Start" square. You move your other pawns around the board. You wait for a "Sorry!" card. This lets you send an opponent's pawn back to their "Start."
The 11 (switching places), 4 (moving backward), and "Sorry!" cards can change the game fast. A player who is far behind can quickly catch up. This means you are rarely completely out of the game. Keep this in mind when you play a "Sorry!" or an 11 card.
Sometimes, slowing down the game can be a good move. If you can switch with or hit the player who is winning, do it. Even if it doesn't help you move forward much, it keeps the leader out of their "Safety Zone" and "Home."
Different Ways to Play Sorry!
Point-Scoring Sorry!
The 1939 version of Sorry! included a way to score points. In this game, players get a hand of five cards at the start. On your turn, you play one card to move. Then, you draw a new card to replace it. If you can't play any of your cards, you can throw one away and draw a new one.
At the end of the game, you score points for each pawn you got "Home." The winner also gets points for every pawn their opponents got "Home." There's also a bonus if opponents didn't get many pawns "Home."
Team Play
You can also play Sorry! in teams of two. The teams are usually colors on opposite sides of the board, like Red and Yellow against Blue and Green. It's like each team has eight pawns. For example, the yellow player can move a red pawn if it's a legal move. A 7 card can be split between a yellow pawn and a red pawn. But you still can't split it among more than two pieces. Be careful, though! You can still bump your teammate's pawns. If a yellow player draws a "Sorry!" card and only red pawns are on the board, they might have to bump their teammate.
Once one partner gets all their pieces "Home," they keep drawing cards. They play for their partner if they can. The first team to get all eight pieces "Home" wins the game.
Sorry! with Fire and Ice Power-Ups
In the 2013 version of Sorry!, some rules changed. Two new items, "Fire" and "Ice," were added. When you draw certain cards, you can place these on pawns. "Fire" lets a pawn move quickly before your turn. "Ice" stops a pawn from moving or being removed from the game.
Also, in this version, each player only has three pawns. You can move a pawn out from "Start" with any positive number card. A "Sorry!" card also gives you the choice to move forward 4 spaces instead. The 2 card no longer lets you draw an extra card.
Sorry! Video Games
A computer game version of Sorry! came out in 1998. There was also a handheld version released in 1996.
In the Hoyle Table Games computer collection, there's a game called Bump 'Em. It's very similar to Sorry!. The pawns look like bumper cars. The game board is shaped like a cloverleaf highway instead of a square. You cannot play in teams in Bump 'Em.
Sorry! Express
Parker Brothers made a travel version of Sorry! called Sorry! Express. This game has three dice, four home bases, a start base, and sixteen pawns. There are four pawns of each color. Up to four players can play. To start, each player takes a home base and sets it to a different color. All the pawns go on the start base.
The first player rolls all three dice. Each die can show one of four things:
- Color Pawn: You take a pawn of that color from the start base. If it matches your home base color, you put it in your home section. If not, it goes into your waiting area. If there are no more pawns of a color in the start base, and you roll that color, you can take that pawn from another player's waiting area. You cannot take it from their home section.
- Sorry!: Take a pawn from another player's home section and keep it.
- Wild Pawn: You can take any color pawn from the start base or waiting areas. You cannot take it from another player's home section.
- Slide: You can change the color of your own home section or someone else's home section.
The first person to get four pawns of the same color in their home section wins!
Images for kids
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The U.S. patent drawings for the Sorry! board game.
See also
In Spanish: Sorry! para niños
