Hearts

Hearts is the trick-taking game you win by losing. Four players, no partners and no trumps: every heart you take is a point against you, the queen of spades is thirteen on her own, and the lowest score when the thirteen tricks are done takes the deal. Before a card is played, each player passes three cards on: left, right or across, rotating with the deal.

The exception that makes the game is shooting the moon: take every heart and the queen yourself and the twenty-six points land on the other three instead. You play against three computer opponents at three strengths, or open a table and send the room code to three friends. Any seat still empty when the countdown ends is filled by the computer.

Passing has a row of its own. Select up to three cards, then hand them over with one button. The direction rotates with the deal: left, then right, then across, then a deal where nobody passes at all. So three deals in every four open with a choice that colours everything after it. A tie for the lowest score counts as neither a win nor a loss, so your record here holds two numbers rather than three. It lives in this browser, with the strength you last chose.