Vesper Hearts

Six card rooms along the river light up at dusk, from a boathouse with oars on the rafters to an observatory under a brass dome. Each room keeps three regulars with habits you learn to read, and every table you win opens the next door.

Hearts against three computer players: passing, shooting the moon, jack of diamonds and queen of hearts rules, a six-room ladder and a daily deal.

Four players get 13 cards each and play moves to the left. Before each hand everyone passes three cards: left, right, across, then a hand with no pass. Tap three cards and press the pass button. Whoever holds the two of clubs leads it. Follow the suit led if you can; with none of it, play any card. The highest card of the suit led wins the trick, and there are no trumps. Each heart you take costs 1 point and the queen of spades 13, so you want to lose tricks that carry them. Hearts cannot be led until a heart has been played, and no points may fall on the first trick unless the table allows it. Take every heart and the queen in one hand and you shoot the moon: everyone else takes 26 instead, or at some tables you choose to take 26 off your own score. The match ends when someone reaches the target, usually 100, and the lowest total wins. The ladder has six rooms, each with three regulars and one more table rule: points on the first trick, the jack of diamonds worth minus 10, the moon choice, the queen of hearts worth 13, and a final room with the strongest players. The friendly table lets you pick the level, the length and every house rule; the daily deal gives everyone the same four hands. Keys: Tab and the arrow keys move between cards and buttons, Enter plays.