What Cuff'd or Curv'd actually is
Cuff'd or Curv'd is a 90-card prompt deck about Black love, dating, family, and identity. It's not a board game. There's no winner. There's no scoreboard. It's a conversation engine. Each card has one prompt, ranging from playful ("what's the petty thing you noticed on a first date that ended it?") to heavy ("what did you watch your parents do that you swore you'd never do?").
The deck was designed in Cincinnati by Mufaro Matose and is intentionally Black-centered — the references, the cultural cues, and the relationship dynamics it surfaces are written by and for Black daters first. You can play it three ways: as a date, as a couple, or as a group on game night.
The deck at a glance
Cuff'd
The warm, "we like you" prompts. Compatibility, values, dreams.
Curv'd
The spicy, "tell the truth" prompts. Past relationships, dealbreakers, ego.
Wildcard
The curveballs. Lighten the table or escalate it — your choice.
Plus one rule card and one opening question card designed to be the first one you ever pull together. No timer. No tokens. No app to download.
How to play on a first or second date
This is the most common way it gets played — we watched it happen 60 times at the last Cincinnati mixer alone. Sit across from each other, drinks help, phones face down.
The opening
Pull the first card (the labeled one). It's the same first card for every player, by design — light, but it tells you something honest right away.
Pull from "Cuff'd"
Alternate pulling cards from the Cuff'd suit. Read aloud, answer first, then they answer. Six cards (three each) is the right number.
Pull one from "Curv'd"
Just one. The truth-tester. Whoever drew it answers first. The deck gives you permission to ask something you wouldn't have asked unprompted.
Pull a "Wildcard"
End on something fun or weird. Wildcards reset the energy and give you a clean exit point.
Time: 25–40 minutes. About one drink each. That's a date.
How to play as an existing couple
Different format, same deck. A lot of couples pull two cards a week as a date-night ritual.
- Pull two cards a week — one Cuff'd, one Curv'd.
- No skipping. If you pull a card you don't want to answer, that's the card you needed to pull.
- Take turns choosing the suit. One week you pick, next week them.
- Save the Wildcards for road trips. They're best when you're moving.
How to play at a group game night
This is the format that turned the deck into a brand. Five to eight people, drinks, food, the deck in the middle. Sit in a circle, pick a "dealer" (rotates each round) who pulls the card and reads it aloud. Everyone answers, going around; everyone gets one follow-up question for the dealer; then the deck passes on.
The trick: at a Cincinnati mixer, the cards do the speed-dating work. A table of 6 strangers becomes 6 people who actually know each other in 45 minutes. We've seen friendships start at the table. We've seen relationships start at the table. We've seen one engagement start at the table. Want to try it live? Come to the next Cincinnati mixer.
The strategy: how to pull the most out of the deck
1. Don't skip cards.
Skipping breaks the trust. The point of the deck is that you don't get to curate the conversation. Whatever you pull, you answer. That's where the chemistry shows up.
2. Answer first.
If you pulled the card, you go first. Whoever pulls the card is opening the door — going first is the invitation.
3. Listen for the ten-second pause.
The best moments are after a card lands and the room goes quiet for ten seconds while people figure out their answer. That pause is the deck working. Don't fill it.
What's on the cards (without spoiling them)
From Cuff'd (warm): "What does a Saturday with someone who really gets you look like?" · "What's a love story in your family that shaped how you see relationships?"
From Curv'd (spicy): "What's a thing your last partner did that's actually a dealbreaker now?" · "When was the last time you felt seen by someone you were dating?"
From Wildcards (curveballs): "If we got married tomorrow, what's the one thing in your life I'd have to handle?" · "Pick a song that should play when we walk into a room together."
There are 90 of these. About a quarter are surprisingly funny; about a quarter will surprise you with how much they get from someone in 30 seconds.
Why we made this
Mufaro Matose started Cuff'd or Curv'd in Cincinnati in 2024. The original list was 30 cards in a Google Doc, played at a dinner party. People kept asking to take the cards home. The doc became a printed deck; the deck became a Cincinnati mixer; the mixer became a sold-out monthly; the recurring conversations became a viral street-interview series on Instagram (@cuffnthestreets); the series became a streaming show on Tubi. It all traces back to one design choice: a deck that makes Black daters in Cincinnati ask better questions of each other. Read more about Black dating in Cincinnati and how it all connects.
Get the deck
$30. 90 cards plus a rule card and the opening question card. Ships from Cincinnati in 2 days. Buy the deck → Or — easier — come to a Cincinnati mixer and play it with 60 people first. And Season 1 of the show is streaming free on Tubi, where real Cincinnati couples and singles play the deck on camera: watch on Tubi →
Cuff'd or Curv'd rules — FAQs
How many cards are in the deck?
90 cards across three suits — Cuff'd (warm), Curv'd (spicy), Wildcard (curveballs) — plus a rule card and the opening question card.
How do you play it on a date?
Sit across from each other, phones down. Pull the labeled opening card, then alternate three Cuff'd cards each, one Curv'd, and end on a Wildcard. Whoever pulls, answers first. About 25–40 minutes.
Is it only for couples?
No — play it as a date, as a couple pulling two cards a week, or as a group of five to eight at game night.
Where can I buy it?
The deck is $30 and ships from Cincinnati in about two business days. You can also play a version online free.
Who made it?
Created in Cincinnati in 2024 by Mufaro Matose. It's intentionally Black-centered — written by and for Black daters first.