It is a card game. There are several ways to score and you use a board that totals 120 points. There is quite a bit of strategy involved because you have to discard cards to the other player's "crib" which is an extra hand and and to your own when you have it. Dealer gets the extra crib hand. Six cards are dealt in two person play. Four cards are kept, two thrown away to form that third four card hand. The non-dealer then cuts the deck and the dealer turns the top card. That card becomes the fifth card in all three hands. But, before counting points in the hands you play a back and forth round laying down cards trying to form pairs, runs, totals of 15, totals of 31, or the last card that can be played without going over 31 using your opponent's play. This is called pegging. Hands score off of combinations that total 15, pairs, runs, and all of one suit. You can also get one point if the turn card is the same suit as a Jack in your hand. Any point missed counting by your opponent you can claim for your own.

I learned how to read what other players had and how they played, much like poker. It can be a gambling game, as well, with a fixed amount per point which can add up especially if you get "skunked" (beat by 30 or more points counts double) or "double skunked" (60 or more).