- Set-up
- Under a minute
- Reading
- Little
The quick verdict
Full verdict ↓Great for Children from 8 who like quick, noisy card games
Think twice if You want a calm, turn-by-turn game; this one rewards quick hands
How we rate it
Learning curve. One higher or one lower is all you need to know, plus what the spoon and pup cards do. It sits with UNO at 1 on our scale.
Luck & skill. The cards you draw are luck, but spotting a play before anyone else and timing your spoon cards are skill.
Interaction. Everyone plays onto the same two piles, so every card someone puts down changes what you can play next.
Set-up. Shuffle, give everyone five cards and turn two cards face up in the middle.
Reading. From Skillmatics' pictures the cards show numbers, pups and spoons; only the rules leaflet needs reading.
Learning curve: 1 = UNO or Connect 4; 3 = Catan; 5 = a heavy strategy game. These describe the experience, not an overall score.
Is Pups in a Soup right for you?
Great if
- Children from 8 who like quick, noisy card games
- Families who enjoy UNO and want something faster
- Number practice that doesn't feel like homework
- Game nights with three to five players
Skip it if
- You want a calm, turn-by-turn game; this one rewards quick hands
- You often play with six or more: the box says 2 to 5 players
- Your youngest players are still unsure of their numbers and would be left behind by faster ones
How Pups in a Soup plays
Set-up: shuffle the 200 cards. Each player draws a hand of five, and two cards are turned face up in the middle to start two piles.
- Time to teach: about 5 minutes.
- Reading and language: From Skillmatics' pictures, the cards show numbers, pups and spoons, so there is little to read once someone has explained the special cards. The rules leaflet is in English, and the game is easy to teach in Hindi or any home language.
Pups in a Soup | Hilarious Card Game | Ages 8+ | Skillmatics · Skillmatics · Official
If this creator doesn’t allow embedded playback, watch on YouTube ↗.
A turn, step by step
- 1Play
Put down a card one number higher or lower than either centre card.
- 2Rescue
Draw back up to five cards, and use spoon cards to scoop your pups out of the soup.
- 3Win
The first player to save all their pups wins.
The full explanation: how a game of Pups in a Soup goes
Play: put down a card that is one number higher or lower than either centre card, a 5 on a 6 or a 9 on an 8, then draw back up to five cards. The box back describes everyone slapping cards down at once and grabbing the spoons to save the pups, so expect a race rather than polite turns.
Pups and spoons: you are trying to rescue your own pups from the soup, and spoon cards are how you scoop them out. Skillmatics says the spoon cards and pup cards add twists to each round, but its pages don't say exactly how each works, so read the leaflet in the box.
How you win: the first player to scoop all their pups out of the soup shouts 'All out!' and wins.
Skillmatics' product page describes the start in two ways (deal out all the cards, or draw a hand of five) and mentions turns, while the box back describes everyone playing at once, so check the manual before your first game and agree on the rules as a family.
What's in the box
- 200Game cards
number cards plus special pup and spoon cards - 1Instruction manual
Box: 15 × 14.6 × 5 cm, 0.46 kg. Handy to know for gifting and travel.
Contents are from Skillmatics India's product page for this box (item SKILL981PIS): 200 game cards and an instruction manual; the Amazon.in listing facts agree. How many of the 200 are pup and spoon cards isn't stated. There is only one edition.
Where to buy
How to make sure you get a genuine copyEditions and the details worth checking.
What reviewers and players say
Pups in a Soup reached Skillmatics' Indian shop in October 2024, and we found no independent written reviews, videos or forum threads about it. On paper it takes a simple 'one higher or one lower' card race and adds a silly story, pups to rescue from a pot of soup, with spoon cards as the way out. That makes it an easy step up from UNO for children who like quick, noisy games. The box back describes a free-for-all race, while Skillmatics' product page also mentions taking turns, so read the leaflet first.
What people love
- Quick to learn: one number higher or lower
- Fast and noisy, with little waiting about
- A silly pups-and-soup theme
- 200 cards in a small box that travels well
Common complaints
- No independent reviews yet, so it is hard to say how well it lasts
- Skillmatics' online rules are brief, especially on the spoon and pup cards
- Speed games can leave the youngest player behind
Based on 4 reviews and discussions
- Reference Pups in a Soup | Hilarious Fast Paced Card Game (ages 8+) (Skillmatics India, October 2024) · Skillmatics India
- Reference Pups in a Soup product data (Skillmatics India, item SKILL981PIS) · Skillmatics India
- Reference Card and board games collection (Skillmatics India) · Skillmatics India
- Reference Pups in a Soup | Hilarious Card Game | Ages 8+ | Skillmatics (Skillmatics, March 2025) · YouTube
Summarised in our own words from the sources above. We don't use Amazon reviews or ratings.
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|---|---|---|---|---|
| Why consider it | This game Play numbers fast and scoop your pups out of the soup | A different fit Skillmatics' other everyone-at-once card race: empty your hand by linking pictures and categories | A different fit Another loud, fast card game for ages 8 and up, with slapping | A different fit A calmer number-order card game: build shared piles from 1 to 12 |
| Players | 2–5 | 2–8 | 2–8 | 2–6 |
| Best with | 3-4 | 4-8 | 4-8 | 2-4 |
| Play time | 10 min | 5–10 min | 10–15 min | 20–45 min |
| Age | 8+ | 7+ | 8+ | 7+ |
| Rules | Easy | Easy | Easy | Easy |
| Indian edition | Available | Available | Imported | Available |
| On this page | Explore Crossover | Explore Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza | Explore Skip-Bo |
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Questions people ask about Pups in a Soup
How do you play Pups in a Soup?
Players race to put down cards that are one number higher or lower than either of two cards in the middle, drawing back up to five each time. Spoon cards let you scoop your pups out of the soup, and the first player to save all their pups wins.
How many players and what age is Pups in a Soup for?
Skillmatics' box says 2 to 5 players, ages 8 to 99. Because it is a speed game, it works best when players are fairly close in age, or when the grown-ups slow down a little for the youngest.
Is Pups in a Soup made in India?
Skillmatics' product page gives India as the country of origin and names Grasper Global Private Limited, Mumbai, as the manufacturer.
What is in the Pups in a Soup box?
200 game cards and an instruction manual. From Skillmatics' pictures, the deck mixes number cards with special pup and spoon cards.
Can children under 8 play Pups in a Soup?
Children a little younger who are confident with numbers can join in, especially on a team with an older cousin. The speed is the hard part, not the rules.
Game facts
- Publisher
- Skillmatics (Grasper Global Pvt Ltd, Mumbai, India)
- In India
- Skillmatics (Grasper Global Private Limited, Mumbai), which makes the game
- First published
- 2024
- Players
- 2–5
- Barcode
- 8904279507456
- Language
- Little reading – From Skillmatics' pictures, the cards show numbers, pups and spoons, so there is little to read once someone has explained the special cards. The rules leaflet is in English, and the game is easy to teach in Hindi or any home language.
- Box size and weight
- 15 × 14.6 × 5 cm, 0.46 kg
Sources & photo creditsThe references behind this guide.
Facts on this page come from the publisher, the Indian maker or distributor, and the sources below. Photos are credited under each one.
- Pups in a Soup | Hilarious Fast Paced Card Game (ages 8+) (Skillmatics India product page)
- Pups in a Soup product data (Skillmatics India store, item SKILL981PIS)
- Card and board games (Skillmatics India collection page)
- Pups in a Soup | Hilarious Card Game | Ages 8+ | Skillmatics (Skillmatics, YouTube, March 2025)