How to Play Spades Against the Computer
While the precise origin of spades is unknown, bridge author George Coffin says the card game as we know it probably began in Cincinnati, sometime between 1937 and 1939, according to Mind Sports Worldwide. The site says spades is the most popular partnership card game in the country today. If finding a partner as well as two other live players is daunting, you can go online to any number of gaming websites and find computer players to fill out your table.
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Instructions
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Setting Up a Table
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Go to a website that offers free card games, such as the Microsoft Internet Gaming Zone, which has an average of more than 5,000 spades players on a given night. Yahoo and Pogo are among the other popular sites that offer spades for free.
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2
Click on the "Games" link at the top of the home screen. You will be taken to a games screen, where you'll need to click on "Card" at the top.
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3
Scroll down and click on "Spades." This will take you to a "Spades Quick Start" screen. Click "Play Now" at the top of the screen.
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Type in the confirmation code that appears on the screen. If you have trouble seeing the code, you can click "See another code" or "Use the audio code."
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Click on "Create Table" on the screen that appears.
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Click on "Standard" in the small window that appears, if it is not already checked, then click "Start."
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Click any of the four "Sit" buttons that appear on the next screen to seat yourself at the table.
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Click on the down arrow next to the word "Public" at the left of the screen and click on "Private." This will prevent live players from joining your game.
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Click "Play Robot" at the top left of the screen. This will fill the other seats with computer players.
Playing the Game
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Click on either "Show" or "Double Nil" next to your player. "Show" means you want to see your cards before you bid, while "Double Nil" means you are betting you and your partner can go the whole hand without taking a trick. Your cards will be revealed after you press either button.
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Click on the number of tricks you think you can take if you pressed "Show" in the previous step. Your can choose anywhere from no tricks, or "Nil," to all 13 possible tricks. Your bid does not include your partner's bid. Your partner is a computerized hand across the table from you.
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Play a card to start the hand by double-clicking on it.
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Play the rest of the hand, either leading if you took the last trick or following the player to your left if you did not.
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Continue until the hand is over, and continue playing new hands until either you and your computer partner or the other two computer players score 500 points to win. You can keep track of the score by clicking the "Score" button at left at any time.
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Tips & Warnings
Click on "Help" at the bottom left of the screen to learn more about options or aspects of the game. Clicking "Help" will not affect the game in progress.
References
Resources
- Photo Credit deck of cards image by timur1970 from Fotolia.com
