Timeline Twist

To set up the game, shuffle all 100 cards thoroughly. From this shuffled deck, draw the first 36 cards and return the remaining cards to the game box, as they will not be used in this game. Each player then draws 4 cards and places them face-up (white side up) in front of them. Finally, draw one more card from the deck and place it face-down (black side up) in the center of the table. This card serves as the starting point for the timeline.

In cooperative mode, the team's objective is to work together to play as many cards as possible into a single timeline. Players must communicate and coordinate their actions to find the best strategy to play all the cards in the game. In competitive mode, the objective is to be the only player who runs out of cards at the end of a round.

In cooperative mode, on your turn, you have two possible actions: either play one or two cards from your hand into the timeline, or discard one card. If you play a card, you turn it face-down (black side up) and place it to the left or right of the existing timeline cards, or above and between two cards in a 'secondary timeline' if its year falls between them. If you cannot place a card in the secondary timeline because one is already there, you must discard it. If you haven't played any card, you must attempt to play one. If you successfully play your first card, you can choose to end your turn or play a second card. If you successfully play a second card, your turn ends immediately. If you fail to play your second card, you can choose to end your turn or continue trying to play a second card. In competitive mode, the youngest player starts. Players take turns placing one card from their hand either to the left of the starting card (if its year is smaller) or to the right (if its year is larger). If a player places a card correctly, they keep it in the timeline. If incorrect, they return it to the box and draw a new card. If a player chooses a card with a year already present in the timeline, they can place it on either side of that existing card.

In cooperative mode, after the game ends, calculate the team's score. Each card successfully placed in the main timeline is worth 2 points. Each card placed in the secondary timeline is worth 1 point. However, each card remaining in the discard pile, the draw pile, and in players' hands at the end of the game counts as -1 point.

In cooperative mode, the game concludes when all players have successfully played all their cards, or when a player is unable to play any card during their turn. In competitive mode, if a player is the only one to correctly place their last card during a round, they are immediately declared the winner. If multiple players correctly place their last card in the same round, those players remain in the game, and all others are eliminated. The remaining players each draw one new card from the deck and continue playing until only one player remains, who is then declared the winner.