In Cabanga!, players try to get rid of their hand of cards as quickly as possible -- but ideally without picking up penalties along the way. After the row cards and starting cards in all four colors have been placed in the middle of the table and players each have a hand of eight cards, the round begins. Players then take turns placing one card next to the matching row card in the middle, ideally with as small a difference as possible because the larger the number gap, the greater the chance that the other players will call out "Cabanga!" and throw cards with the values between the two number cards to the active player.

These thrown-in cards are placed on the discard pile, then the active player must draw the same number of cards from the penalty pile. When a player has no more cards in hand, the round ends and all players count the points on their cards. As soon as a player has collected 18 points, the game ends and the player with the fewest points wins!