Gameplay in Brief:
Rook uses a 57-card deck (four suits, 1-14, plus one special Rook card). Any number of rule sets have been developed over the years, and the game itself comes with several variants, but the basic game is a four-player partnership bidding game.
Basics:
For 2 to 6 players, ages 8 and up. About 45 minutes per game.
Designer:
Rook was designed by George S. Parker.
Publisher:
Rook was originally published by Parker Brothers, now owned by Hasbro, in 1906.
Related Game:
In 1992, Parker Brothers published Rook Plus: The Wild Bird Game, a sort of cross between Rook and 4x4 Tic Tac Toe.
Why Rook is Part of the Games Timeline:
Rook was one of the first proprietary card games, and it remains in print today. Here are the other games I believe are the most culturally and historically significant games published since 1800.
