Hoyle Solitaire Review

Hoyle Solitaire is a nicely put together collection of solitaire games for the solitaire fanatic. With 50 fun solitaire games in three categories to choose from, decent graphics and the ability to personalize the game by choosing a player photo, Hoyle Solitaire is sure to capture the solitaire lover's attention and keep them playing for hours.

50 Solitaire Variations

Hoyle Solitaire offers 50 different versions of solitaire for the both solitaire enthusiast and the beginning player, including Klondike (the version that comes with every Windows operating system), Golf, TriPeaks, Free Cell, Yukon and Vegas. Each has different rules and strategies, but for the most part the goal is the same. Generally, you must clear all the cards in the tableau (piles of cards you need to get rid of) by stacking them in some way.

For Klondike, the method is to stack the cards chronologically from Ace up to King, alternating color as you go. For TriPeaks, you must clear all the cards by clicking on cards that either directly above or below the starter card in value, regardless of suit or color. This means that if the starter card is a Jack, you can either clear a 10 or a Queen, and so on.

Help Features Teaches How to Play the Variations

Most players will not have encountered many solitaire games beyond the typical Klondike version. Hoyle Solitaire does a good job of providing a Help feature that instructs you in fairly easy to understand language how to play each game. It explains your goal, the rules, and how to win. The Help window is accessible at any time from the game screen should you forget some of the rules or require further help. This is a great feature and very helpful, especially for newer players. Unfortunately, the audience of Hoyle Solitaire is still pretty limited because of the nature of the game of solitaire.

Not Much to Attract Younger Players

It isn't something younger players would be able to grasp easily or even be entertained by, because there is little that is very visually or aurally stimulating. The graphics are fairly well done, and are relatively sharp and clear. While they are better than most solitaire collections, the graphics will not blow you away by any means. There are no animations other than the cards moving around the screen, and no accompanying music with a few sound effects. The sounds effects don't add anything to the game but don't detract much from gameplay either.

No Incentives or Rewards for Playing

The gameplay is somewhat addicting for the solitaire enthusiast, but casual players will likely find it repetitive and potentially boring, depending on which game they play. Golf is incredibly difficult, while Klondike is fairly easy for a competent player.

The different games all end up feeling pretty similar, however, and there are no rewards or incentives to do particularly well, so playing can feel somewhat pointless unless you enjoy solitaire for itself. This limits the audience and means that most players will not want to play for very long at a time.

Conclusion - A Good Collection For the Right Player

In general, Hoyle Solitaire is a fairly good collection of solitaire games that are fun to play. While the audience is limited by the rules of gameplay, lack of audio-visual stimulation, and repetitive nature of the game of solitaire, the collection itself is fairly well done and will provide hours of fun to the solitaire fanatic. While not the best card game out there, Hoyle Solitaire is a fairly decent solitaire collection. If you love solitaire, give it a try.