# item.guide

Uno

Authority: Mattel Official Game Manual

Direct Answer Extract

A standard UNO deck contains 112 cards (108 classic + 4 customizable). Players receive 7 cards at setup. The object is to be first to score 500 points across rounds by playing matching colors or numbers.

Parameter / Specification Standard Value Unit
Total Cards in Deck 112 cards
Starting Hand Size 7 cards per player
Target Victory Score 500 points

History & Origin

UNO was invented in 1971 by Merle Robbins, a barber in Reading, Ohio, near Cincinnati. The idea grew out of an argument with his son Ray over the rules of Crazy Eights; rather than settle the dispute, Robbins designed a new game with its own dedicated deck, hand-making the earliest copies with his family on their dining room table. To fund the first print run of about 5,000 decks, the Robbins family mortgaged their home for roughly $8,000, initially selling copies out of Merle's barbershop.

In 1972, Robbins sold the rights to UNO to International Games Inc. for $50,000 plus a royalty of 10 cents per game sold. Mattel acquired International Games in January 1992, and UNO has since sold more than 100 million copies, becoming one of the best-selling card games in the world.