Each player is randomly dealt a set of "Curios" of categories: Vintage, Games, Etc, Electronics, Sports and Collectibles. Once you win an auction of the items that match each of your Curio cards you win the game. Item cards represent the items you can find for sale on the eBay website. During the game Item Cards are auctioned off to the highest bidder. There are 2 types of Bidding Cards: Money Cards and Action Cards.

First the Curio Cards are dealt according to the number of players ... 3 or 4 players = 5 Curio Cards each ... 5 or 6 = 4 Curio Cards each. Second the Item Cards are dealt face up in a row ... 3 or 4 players = 4 Item Cards each ... 5 or 6 = 5 Item Cards each. Third, each player is dealt 5 Bidding Cards. One D6 die is then placed on each Item Card matching the number showing on the die to the Number of Rounds field on the item. Finally, each player rolls a die. The highest roll receives the "Starter" Card and goes first.

One complete round of play consists of one turn per player and an Auction Update Phase. During each player's turn, they may perform any or all of the following actions in any order: 1) Draw hand back up to 5 Bidding Cards, 2) Discard one Item Card won on a previous turn to draw 3 Bidding Cards, 3) Either 3a) Play 1 Action Card and/or place 1 bid on an item, 3b) In lieu of placing a bid and/or playing an Action Card, you may discard as many Bidding Cards as you like. You redraw at the beginning of your next turn.

When each player has taken a turn, The "Starter" Card passes to the left. After this, starting with the first Item Card, the die on each Item Card is lowered by one. When a die reaches zero, the auction is finished and all bids are revealed. Players may, at this point, play Action Cards which are allowed during this phase.

Action cards: Know Your Enemy, Bad Money Order, Tastes Change, Mass Amnesia, Offshore Financing, Lost Connection

Cards played during Auction Update Phase: Expensive Shipping, Reserve Price, Bad Feedback

You can change the length of the game by adding or subtracting the number of Curio Cards available.

(Most of the above was taken directly out of the rules sheet that comes with the game. Personal note: Some of the Item Card titles and flavor text is pretty funny and some are just plain "cute".)

Shanghai