If you are looking for an entertaining brain exercise, try playing a game of Solitaire. This game is a popular classic, and it offers you an opportunity to kill time when things are slow. Most people play Solitaire by themselves, But if you want a bit more competition, you can always invite a friend to play with you.
A Comprehensive Guide to Playing Solitaire With Two Players
A two-person Solitaire game, also known as Double Solitaire (or Double Klondike), follows the same rules as Single Solitaire (Klondike) with just a few variations. This guide will take you through how to play and win in a two-person Solitaire game.
What Tools do You Need?
You only need a table, two standard card decks, and two seats to play Double Solitaire. You and your opponent each take one deck and remove the joker cards.
A good tip would be to use decks with different colored backs to distinguish one from the other. Another suggestion is to sit facing each other.
The Card Setup
The card arrangement of a Double Solitaire game is more or less the same as in regular Klondike. The only difference is that instead of creating one card setup, each player has their own.
Think of a Double Klondike arrangement as two regular Klondike setups, each having seven piles arranged in columns. Each pile should have the topmost card facing up, just like regular Klondike. Here are simple steps for how to deal cards in a two-person Solitaire game:
- Each player begins by shuffling their deck.
- Deal the first card facing up and six cards facing down in a horizontal row.
- Continue this same pattern of dealing one card up and one card down on each ascending column from left to right.
- On the seventh column, deal one card down and one card up to complete the starting arrangement.
Each player remains with 24 cards after building their setup. These cards are known as the stockpile. A player uses the stock when they have no more moves on the table. Players reveal cards from the stockpile in groups of three, and a player should only play the third card.
How to Play
The objective of a two-person Klondike Solitaire game is to be the first one to transfer your card deck from the card setup to the foundation pile. When starting, the foundation pile is empty. Players should build the foundation pile in ascending order beginning with an ace and ending with a king card. Each foundation pile contains one of the four suits in a deck of cards.
The player with the lowest card in their first column is the one to start moving cards. Each player can move cards within the setup by placing differently colored cards in descending order. The idea is to move as many face-up cards as possible to expose the ones facing down. The players should take turns to play, and a turn ends once a player cannot think of any more moves or decides to pass.
To win at Double Klondike, you need to have the most cards in the foundation pile. If both players finish their card setup, the one who completed it first is the winner.
The Bottom Line
Far from a lonely person’s game, Solitaire and the famous Klondike variation outlined in this article is great to play by yourself or with others. You can increase the challenge and excitement by adding a timer or adding more players with additional decks.
If you play Solitaire by yourself, Double Solitaire won’t be very hard to understand. Playing two-person Solitaire is a great way to challenge yourself and see how you stack up against friends.
