This game requires a small deck made up of a number of cards equal to the number of players in the game. The makeup of most of this deck is irrelevant, however several specific cards should be added to represent the aforementioned cops and robbers of the games name. A Jack represents the Robber and an Ace represents the Cop. The remainder of the cards represent civilians and any other card in the deck can be used for this. Thus, the small deck to be used for the game would include one Ace, One Jack, and a number of cards of any other denominations such that the deck to be used will consist of the same number of cards as the number of players in the game.
The cards that will comprise the deck to be used for the game should then be thoroughly shuffled. The dealer then deals one face-down card to each player, starting with the player to his immediate left and taking the last card for himself. Each player should then look at his card which determine his role. A player should never reveal his role during the play of the game. Receiving the Ace indicates the player is the Cop, the Jack indicates he plays the part of a Robber and any other card signifies a civilian.
Once the cards have been dealt and each player has looked at his card to identify his role, the players should then begin looking at each other around the table. During this time, the Robber will wink at another player, attempting to ensure no other player but the played winked at, witnesses the wink. The player who was winked at should then say "The deal has been made.". If the robber, however, winks at the cop, the cop will instantly display his card (the Ace) and wins the hand. The cop also collects two points when doing so, while the robber loses two points.
After the statement has been made the cop then immediately shows his card (to prove his identity as the cop) and he will then attempt to determine the identify of the robber. He begins by then making a guess as to who he thinks the robber might be. The player he indicates must then show his card. If he is, in fact, the robber the hand ends and the cop earns two points for making the correct guess. However, for each incorrect guess he makes, he loses one point. The robber earns one point for each incorrect guess the cop makes.
The game can be played for a set number of hands, with the player who has the highest number of points at the end of the game declared the winner. Some players simply prefer to play each hand as a full game, with no cumulative scores recorded.
Once the players have each viewed his card (and thus his role for the hand) the players should then all begin looking at each other. The robbers will then attempt to wink at the other players, attempting to avoid winking at a Cop, as that will instantly reveal that he is a robber. When a civilian is winked at by a robber he must say "I have bee robbed" and then is considered to be eliminated from the game. This player should then take no more participation in the current game, and not speak during the remainder of the game. If a Cop notices a robber winking (either at himself or at another player) he may then attempt to make an arrest. He must then point at the player who he believes is the robber and indicate he intends to arrest that player. If the accused player is, in fact a Robber that player must then expose his card face-up on the table for all active players to see. The Cop player must also expose his own card face-up on the table. If the arrested player is not a robber, he must still show his card, but may elect to only show the card to the Cop. The Cop must also show his own card to that player. If a robber winks at another robber, the other robber should say nothing at all, with the original robber then knowing that player is another robber. Alternatively, the second robber may wink back in response to the first robber, but this can be risky to ensure the Cop does not spot the exchange of facial gestures. If a Cop incorrectly attempts to arrest two players who are not robbers, that player is also eliminated from the game, taking no further part in the game.