Hearts - Outwit your opponents!

Hearts is an exciting card game in which you have to use clever tactics to avoid penalty points.

You may know Hearts, also known as "Black Lady" or "Microsoft Network Hearts", as a card game that is included in many versions of Microsoft Windows. The trick-taking game originated in the USA and is played by four players. In this online version of the game, you compete against three computer-controlled opponents.

This is how the rules of the game work

• Each player is dealt 13 cards.
• Before the start of the round, each player selects three cards, which are then passed to another player.
• The player with the 2 of clubs in their hand begins and places it on the playing field. All other players must place a card of the same color.
• If no card of the same color can be played, a different color may be played.
• Heart cards may only be played if a heart card has already been played in the previous trick or if no other card can be played. If the first heart of the round is played, this is called "breaking a heart".
• After all four players have played a card, the player who played the highest card of the first suit played loses the trick.
• There is a penalty point for each heart card. The queen of spades is worth 13 penalty points.
• If a player manages to get all the heart cards and the queen of spades in one round, he has made a "slam" or "shot in the moon" and the score of all other players increases by 26 penalty points.
• A round lasts until the players have no more cards in their hands and the game ends when a player has collected 100 or more penalty points.
• The player with the lowest score wins the game.

Play your cards wisely

Plan ahead and think carefully about which cards you play and when in order to outdo your fellow players. At the start of the round, try to discard as many cards as possible or the queen of spades. To outwit your opponents, it is also worth playing lots of low spades cards at the start to provoke the queen of spades to be laid and not go to you. Can you manage to end the game without a single penalty point?

More classics for clever card players

If you like Hearts, why not try playing Gin Rummy Plus?

Play your cards skillfully and give your opponents all the heart cards! Play Hearts online for free now on MonkeyGames!