In Keepsakes, players create a line of memories, competing to select, arrange, and recall those memories in order to gain the most Keepsakes, representing the player's score.
Players start with two Keepsakes and may gain or lose more as they complete challenges and recite the line of memories, represented by various face-up and face-down cards.
Players take turns by drawing a new memory card, adding it to the line of memories, defining the memory, and reciting the line of memories in order, starting with the first one played. Players may then call out if the person seems to have done something incorrectly, with Keepsakes trading hands accordingly.
Each memory card is different; they may require players to say something only they know, something they can see, something that they prefer, etc. Sometimes tasks appear, requiring players to complicate their turns, or players can opt for available challenges to increase their Keepsake collection. Some memory cards may reorder the memory line or be turned face-down, forcing players to reorient themselves or risk losing Keepsakes.
Play ends when any player has zero Keepsakes remaining, or the memory deck runs out, and whoever has the most Keepsakes wins (ties permitted). With that in mind, players can opt to play cooperatively instead to attempt to gather the most Keepsakes collectively.