Solitaire (Klondike)

Klondike is the solitaire most people simply call "solitaire". The name comes from the Klondike Gold Rush region of Canada, where the game is said to have passed the time in prospector camps, but it was a 1990 software decision that made it ubiquitous: Microsoft bundled it with Windows 3.0 to teach people how to drag and drop with a mouse, and it became one of the most-played computer games in history.

This is the complete game, not a stripped-down demo. You can play Draw 1 or Draw 3, and choose the deal type: an easier shuffle, a normal random deal, a deliberately tough one, or Vegas with its casino-style scoring. There is unlimited undo and redo, an animated hint that highlights a playable card, and an auto-complete that sweeps everything to the foundations once the endgame is decided. A timer, move counter and score run during play, and your best score is saved on your device.

Good Klondike is mostly about information: every face-down card you flip expands your options, so prefer moves that reveal cards — especially from the tallest buried columns — over moves that merely look tidy. Keep empty columns for kings, and do not reflexively send every card to the foundations; a low card parked up there can strand cards of the opposite colour that still need somewhere to sit in the tableau.