HUES AND CUES
LET'S PLAY
Hues and Cues is a vibrant and deceptively tricky party game where players test their ability to describe and identify colors. It’s easy to learn but surprisingly challenging—especially when your friend describes a shade of green as “mossy” and you realize they’ve never seen moss in their life.
Object
Be the player with the highest score after two full rounds.
What You Need
HUES and CUES :
-
Game board featuring 480 different colors
-
100 color cards, each with four colors
-
30 player pieces (three per player) in ten colors
-
Scoring frame
Set Up
-
Each player picks three tokens of the same color. One starts at zero on the score track; the other two are for guessing.
-
Shuffle the color cards into a draw pile.
-
Assemble the scoring frame with the outer part showing 1s and the inner part showing 2s.
-
The most colorfully dressed player goes first as the cue giver. (This is an official rule, so come prepared.)
Points are earned by correctly guessing a specific color on the board and by giving good clues when it’s your turn to be the Cue Giver.
Watch the step by step guide here!
Gameplay
1. The Cue Giver Draws a Card
The cue giver secretly selects one of the four colors on the card.
Each color has grid coordinates (e.g., C12) indicating where it is on the board
They DO NOT show the card to anyone else.
2. Give a One-Word Clue
Describe the color with a single word.
You cannot use these basic color names:
Purple, blue, green, red, pink, yellow, orange, brown, white, black, or gray.
You can use color-inspired words like “coral”, “salmon”, or “sunset”.
No using objects in the room or grid references.
3. Players Guess
(First Guess)
Clockwise from the cue giver, each player places one guessing piece on a color square.
No stacking pieces—each square can hold only one guess.
4. Give a Two-Word Clue
(Optional)
The cue giver now gives a two-word clue (e.g., “Sunset Glow”).
Same restrictions as before. No saying “lighter,” “darker,” or giving directional hints.
The cue giver can skip this step if they think the guesses are good enough.
5. Players Guess Again
(Second Guess)
Now, going counterclockwise, players place their second guessing piece. We switch direction of play to give the last player a better advantage this phase.
They can place it anywhere on an empty square—it doesn’t have to be near their first guess.
Scoring
The cue giver places the scoring frame over the correct color on the board.
Players score based on where their pieces are relative to the correct color:
-
Exact Match (Center of Frame): 3 points
-
Inside the Frame: 2 points
-
Adjacent to the Frame (including diagonals): 1 point
-
Anywhere Else: 0 points (Oof, better luck next time.)
Cue Giver Scores:
-
They get 1 point per piece inside the frame. Any pieces outside of the frame, even adjacent ones, don't count for the Cue Giver.
Players get 3 points for exact guess, 2 for any of the 8 spaces adjacent to the exact square, 1 point for any square just outside of that and 0 points for any other selection.
The Cue Giver gets 3 points, one for each piece within the scoring frame. 0 points for any piece outside of the frame.
Move pieces the correct amount of spaces on the score tracker.
Pass Play to the Next Cue Giver
The player to the left of the previous Cue Giver is the new Cue Giver.
They take a new color card and give their first Cue.
All previous steps are repeated and Scoring is the same.
This process repeats with the next Clockwise Player becoming the following Cue Giver.
In a 3 - 6 Player game each Player is the Cue Giver twice.
In a 7 - 10 Player game each Player is the Cue Giver just once.
Winning the Game
Highest score wins!
2 full rounds for 3 - 6 Player games
1 full round for 7 - 10 Player games)
Tiebreaker: Play an extra round to settle it.
Final Thoughts
Hues and Cues is a game where you learn that your friends’ understanding of colors is, at best, questionable. You’ll hear someone describe mustard yellow as “Banana”, and you’ll start questioning their entire worldview. It’s a fantastic party game, easy to pick up, and perfect for any group size.
Now, go forth and describe colors terribly.