Play Cruel Solitaire Online for Free

Play unlimited games of Cruel Solitaire. Undo moves to help you win the game.

What is Cruel Solitaire?

Cruel Solitaire is similar to Lucky Thirteen, but has 12 tableau piles, and you begin the game with aces already in the foundation piles. The game is played with 52 cards.

How to Play

Objective

The aim of the game is to build the foundations from Ace to King in ascending suit order. For example, a foundation pile may begin with the Ace of Diamonds and finish with the King of Diamonds.

The Setup and Play Area

Foundation piles: These are the empty piles at the top of the game. You’ll order cards here from Ace to King by suit.

Tableau piles: There are two areas for the tableau. Each has 6 columns of 4 face-up cards, totaling 48 cards. Cards can be moved between two tableau areas.

Similar to FreeCell, there are no stock or waste piles in the game.

Available moves

• Foundations must be built up in suit, increasing in rank starting from Ace and going to King.
• Cards are sequenced in descending order by suit.
• Only the bottom card of the tableau column is playable, and cards cannot be moved in groups.
• You cannot place cards in empty tableau columns. Once a tableau column is empty, it can’t be refilled.
• You win when all cards are placed in the foundation.

Strategy

• Immediately move Aces to the foundation.
• Don’t build down a suit with a lower-ranking card underneath. Doing this may cause the card to become stuck, preventing you from building the foundations and ultimately causing you to lose the game.
• If you notice a King at the bottom of the tableau column, then the game is likely unwinnable. If this happens, it’s usually best to start a new game.
• Try to free up lower-rankings cards so they can be moved to the foundation when possible.
• The first visible sequence may not always be the best one. Plan out your moves to remove as many cards as possible from the tableau.
• You don’t always need to move a card to the foundation piles just because it can be moved. Instead, it’s sometimes useful to hold onto a card to free up other moves.

What are other popular Solitaire games to try?

Try these popular games:

• Solitaire
• Spider Solitaire
• Yukon Solitaire
• TriPeaks Solitaire
• Pyramid Solitaire
• Scorpion Solitaire
• Golf Solitaire