Hearts is a card game with a long history, not least because it has many variations depending on the culture or country in which it is played. Nevertheless, it managed to keep its nature and main rules intact, to the point that an international version is still well-known and widely played by many, despite local peculiarities.
That is the version that you find here.
Following the classic card game, the goal in this online version is to avoid catching any Hearts and the Queen of Spades, as these are the only cards that grant points. One of the interesting and funny features of this game is that the players must avoid getting a high score at all costs, unlike the great majority of games.
The more points a player has, the closer he or she is to bursting. The only safe person is the one at the bottom of the scoring board, which makes them the winners!
How to play Hearts online
Hearts is a game of avoidance played with a standard 52-card deck. The goal in this game is to avoid cards of the Hearts suit and the Queen of Spades. Each card of Hearts is worth 1 point while the Queen alone is worth 13.
At the beginning of the game, each player receives 13 cards. Then they must pick 3 to pass it on to an opponent. First, they will pass to the player on their right, then on their left, and then to the player in front of them. In every fourth round, the players keep the cards as they were dealt.
The player with the 2 of Clubs opens the game with any Clubs card. The players must always follow the suit opening the trick. When they cannot follow, they may play a different suit. However, the highest-ranking card of the opening suit is always the one taking the trick.
The suit of Hearts can only enter the game as a replacement when a player cannot follow the leading suit on the table. Once the first card has been played, the restrictions end.
Calculating the score
In a game of Hearts, each card of this suit is worth 1 point while the Queen of Spades is worth 13. The points of each player are counted at the end of the game and added to the total sum.
However, there is an exception to this rule. If a player collects all the card points, that is, the complete suit of Hearts plus the Queen of Spades, then he or she receives 0 points while all the other players get 26 points each added to their score.
When a player reaches 100 points, the game ends. The player with the lowest score at that moment is crowned the winner.
Quick tips and tricks to win at Hearts
1. Never void Spades when passing cards. If an opponent then passes you the Queen, you will be forced to play it when Spades leads a trick, increasing the chances of you catching it in the end.
2. Don’t pass the Ace of Clubs. This card ensures that you will win the first trick and will be able to choose the suit that will lead the second one.
3. Pay attention to your opponents’ moves. Keep tabs on the suits and card values they are playing to determine their strategy. For example, if they keep playing the same suits, they might be trying to build a void; but if they are playing their lowest ranking cards from the beginning they might be trying to save the highest ones to get all the tricks with penalty cards.
4. Go high, when you can’t go low. If you are forced to take a trick, play the highest card of the leading suit that you have. That way, you can keep the lowest-valued ones and perhaps avoid being forced to take another trick led by the same suit again.
5. Void Clubs and Diamonds as soon as possible. This will allow you to focus on shedding the Queen of Spades if you have it, as well as high-valued Hearts, without risking winning a trick by accident.
Playing Hearts is an excellent way to have fun while also putting your strategic skills to the test. Playing to “lose” is counterintuitive for most people, which makes this card game also challenging by nature.
Put your gaming skills to the test against computer-controlled opponents or join the multiplayer lobby to challenge real players from all over the world.
