I want to make your favourites into video games
I've been asked to create a tutorial around a particular video card game from the 1980s, and in talking to the editor we realised there is opportunity to use the graphics etc for a whole series of games.
One problem. I don't know many card games, and certainly not many card game winning algorithms ...
So I need your help! What card games do you love, and especially how would the computer play well enough to make them fun?
As an example, 21 (and whatever people call it) is not too bad as the logic is straightforward
Draw until the player sticks or goes over 21
Computer/dealer draws
If the dealer total is 16 or under then they draw another card
Closest to 21 wins and in a tie the dealer wins
Back when I worked for a college I recall we really got into playing "Hearts" on Windows 3.11 when that came out. I can't even remember the rules now!
What would you suggest?
I don't play cards much these days. With the family we used to play crib/cribbage and gin rummy that can be a bit strategic. We do have a tradition of playing one called Newmarket at Christmas. These all tend to need several players, so I'm not sure how they translate to computer. I've played various type of patience too.
Cribbage is a good game. I haven't played much, but I know families that play it regularly at any gatherings.
I spent dozens of hours playing Solitaire. Euchre is always fun, though a bit of a regional specialty I think. I've played my fair share of hours at that game too. Spades is fun or even something as simple as war. Klondike gets a bit more involved and I don't really remember the rules for it. Much like Hearts!
I need to search for all of those. I do remember playing solitaire, that is about matching columns of cards by suit or something?
Depends on how complicated you want it to be. You can have it just be ascending or you can have it ascending by suit. I think there are different variations on it. Windows might still have solitaire built in somewhere.
Are you looking for playing card games with the standard deck of 52, or other games as well?
Rook uses a custom deck with 57 cards, four colored suits of 1-14 plus a wild Rook, but versions using it are fairly similar to many traditional acts games with standard playing cards.
Phase 10 is a rummy-like game with a deck of 4 colored suits from 1-12, 2 copies of each number for 96 total cards, plus 8 wild cards and 4 skip cards.
Pinochle might be a challenging game to program since it has more complex points and tracking systems while still using standard cards. No new art required.
Great, thanks! Yeah the main constraint is art because I filled the 64 available characters in the extended colour mode already so different number of cards is fine so long as I don't have to draw tarot/pokymenz :D
The easiest card game ever...War! Or at least that's what we called the game where each of two players got half the deck, each draws a card, highest card wins, rinse and repeat....
The only other card games I remember playing are spades, hearts, and rummy, none of which I really remember how to play at the moment...
That war game tickles a memory but I can't quite recall.