Play Hearts online, free, against the computer

How this Hearts works

It's you against three computer players, with 13 cards each. Before each hand, pass three cards: to the left on hand one, to the right on hand two, across on hand three, and none on hand four, then repeat. The player with the two of clubs leads. You must follow suit if you can, no hearts or the queen of spades are allowed on the first trick, and hearts can't be led until one has been played.

Each heart scores a point against you and the queen of spades costs 13. The game ends when someone reaches 100 and the lowest score wins. If one player captures every heart and the queen of spades, they "shoot the moon": they score nothing and everyone else takes 26. Your legal cards glow, a hint points at a safe play and a speed setting controls how fast the computers move.

Passing is the whole game

Most hands are decided before the first card is played. Pass your most dangerous cards: high spades (the queen especially, and the ace and king that could force it out of you), and high hearts. If you hold a lot of low cards in one suit, keep them: they let you duck tricks. A hand with only one or two cards in a suit gives you the chance to void it and dump dangerous cards on others.

During play

• Lead low. You want to lose tricks that have points in them.
• Watch the queen of spades. Know who might be holding it and avoid leading spades from above it.
• Use a void. When you can't follow suit, throw the queen or your highest heart.
• Count the hearts. If one player is collecting, stop them or let them go all the way.

Shooting the moon

It looks glamorous and usually fails. You need nearly every high card and a lot of control. If you're collecting hearts early and everyone else has noticed, your one lost trick is a disaster. Try it only when you hold a long run of the top spades or hearts.

Built from a prompt

The brief, including the passing pattern and the scoring, is on the Hearts game page.