Casey's Solitaire Help

Casey's Solitaire is based on a card game known as "Sir Tommy". It is a difficult game to win, since much of the play depends on the chance order of the deal, but we've added a few options to help you out with that.

If you have never played cards with a parrot, you're going to want to read these instructions.

Main Controls

There are four buttons at the bottom of the screen. From left to right they are:

Info: View this Help information.
Settings: Change the game options and whether Casey gets involved.
Undo: Revert the last move.
New: Start a new game.

Game Rules

There are two ways to play the game: with and without Casey's help. Here are the general instructions. Scroll down to "Letting Casey Help" for variations on playing with a parrot.

How To Play

The object of the game is to move all cards onto the four foundations at the top of the table. Foundations are built from low to high (ace to king). The game is won when there are no cards left in the deck or in any of the four lower "talon" piles.

Cards played on a foundation can be of any suit, as long as the number sequence is correct. Suit is irrelevant in this game.

Once a card is placed onto a talon pile, it cannot be moved. Unlike the popular "Klondike" solitaire, you can't move a card from the top of one talon to another talon. The only way to access underlying cards is to play the top card in its proper order on one of the foundations.

To move cards, you can either drag them where they should go or simply tap them. If there is a playable location, a single tap will automatically move the card there.

Changing your mind

Casey's Solitaire allows unlimited "undo" until the game is played out, so you can usually backtrack as much as you like. Tap the reverse arrow under the talon piles to undo the last move. However, if Casey is helping there is one case when "undo" will not work.

Scoring

Your cumulative score is shown at the upper right of the table. A new game starts at -52 points (with one exception, when you're cheating.) Every card placed onto a foundation increases your score by 5 points. When you finish a game, the number of unplayed cards remaining is also displayed. If you win, Casey will congratulate you.

There is no penalty for re-dealing the cards if you haven't made any plays yet, your score is only logged if you have made at least one move. You can increase your percentage of won games if you don't try to play obviously unwinnable hands. For example, a game is not winnable unless at least one talon pile is dealt a king at the beginning of the game.

You can see your game score history by tapping the gear icon at the lower left of the table and then selecting "Show Score History".

Letting Casey Help

Casey is the author's sun conure. Suns are known for their intelligent and playful personalities and are one of the most affectionate parrots. They are, unfortunately, also one of the loudest.

Casey does not play cards—Casey plays with cards. Casey's Solitaire was developed so that the author could always be assured of having an undamaged deck around, and so that each card, once placed, would remain on the table. If you've ever known a parrot you'll understand.

Playing with Casey

The game Settings (tap the gear icon) allow you to let Casey out of his cage. If you have ever wondered whether you could live with a parrot, this option may help you decide.

When Casey is out, he will want to help you play solitaire. He isn't much good at actual game play, but he is very skilled at pulling cards out of their piles. This is a lot of fun for him (though you will have to decide if it is a lot of fun for you.) And while Casey is usually well toilet-trained, playing solitaire can be so exciting that he may lose control. You will want to watch out for that.

The rules change a bit if you have let Casey out of his cage:

Moving cards

When Casey pulls a random card from the middle of a pile, you can push it back in and continue the game if you catch it in time. Tap on the moving card while at least some of it is still under the pile. This will push the card back, and because its position in the pile is unchanged there is no harm done.

If you don't push a moving card back before it separates from the pile completely, then its position in the pile is lost. If the pile is a foundation, it is still possible to continue the game and you will only lose a few points from your score for being inattentive.

But if the card came from a talon pile, the talon is no longer accurate and it becomes unplayable. And if you continue to ignore the moving card after it separates from its pile, Casey will pull it off the table entirely, which not only wraps up any chances of winning the game but lowers your score by 20 points besides. Once a talon's order is ruined, the top card is turned over to indicate the pile is inactive. You can continue to play out the game as far as it will go if you like, but you won't be able to use the inactive pile.

Bird poop

Throughout the game, Casey may leave droppings on the cards. If you place another card on top of a dirty one, the two cards will stick together.

This isn't too crucial if the offense is on a foundation, because you can still continue to play when the cards are stuck together. If you play on top of a dirty foundation card, you will lose 3 points but you can still finish and even win the game.

But if you play on top of a dirty talon pile, you will never be able to place that card on a foundation because it will be stuck to the one below it.

If an apparently valid move doesn't work, check whether another card is stuck to it. You can see the edge of the second card under the one you are dragging. You can't play dirty cards.

Like most parrot owners, however, you have a box of tissues handy for just this kind of emergency. If you clean off the card before placing another one on top of it, all will be well. Touch the box to pick up a tissue, drag it to the offending spot, and tap to clean it off. Once you've done that, you can continue the game without penalty.

Keep an eye out. Droppings can be hard to see, especially on face cards.

Be decisive

One last thing: there is no "undo" available if you play on top of a dirty card. The card can't be put back if it's stuck to the one below it.

The real truth

Casey has allowed the author to stretch reality a little bit in the name of artistic license. But in real life, Casey is toilet trained and only eliminates on his play perch or in his cage. While it isn't well known, most parrots can be taught fairly easily not to bomb the world indiscriminately.

Settings

Casey's Solitaire is a hard game to win, so we've given you some options to make it easier.

Lay out all four aces during deal: If this option is selected, all four aces will be dealt to the foundations during the initial card deal. This is actually a legal variant of the original game, so don't feel too bad if you use it. It makes the game easier to win.
Start talons with face cards only: This option deals four random face cards at the bottom of each talon pile, which improves your odds of winning by quite a bit. This is not a legal variant, so you can't feel as smug if you win this way, but it does provide a more satisfying game.
Deal all face cards first (20 point penalty): This option is definitely cheating, but it almost guarantees an easy win. Not only will the first four cards on the talons be face cards, but all the other face cards will be placed (in random order) at the top of the deck as well. As you play off the deck, all the high face cards will be pulled off first and end up at the bottom of the talon piles. If you play the remaining cards carefully you can usually win. Because this is cheating, scoring starts at 20 points lower than usual. Everything has its price.
Use Sounds: Use this to turn the sound effects on or off. Some people would give a ransom for a switch like this on their bird.
Let Casey help: If you select this option, Casey will play the game with you. This is a good way to find out whether you would enjoy living with a parrot. See the section above on "Letting Casey Help" to find out how the rules change when Casey is a participant.

Tips For Game Play

It may seem like Casey's Solitaire is all luck and no skill, but there are actually some things you can do to improve your odds of winning.

Play off piles first: If you have a choice between playing a card off the deck or playing off a talon, always play off the talon.
Remember where you put things: If you have to cover a lower-numbered card with a higher-numbered card, remember which talon the buried card is in and always play off that talon first whenever possible. You can often move the higher card onto a foundation eventually, uncovering the lower one underneath.
Peek!: Take advantage of the ability to peek at a card by moving the top card away a short distance and then letting it snap back into place. This can show where low-numbered cards are located so you know which talon to play from. It's handy near the end of a game when there are only a few cards left that you need to play in the right order.
Lay out all aces: Set the preference that lays out all the aces during the deal. It isn't cheating and it improves your odds. If you also set the preference that deals out all face cards first, you can improve your odds of winning to about 33%, which makes a very satisfying game in spite of the point penalty.
No King, no win: If at least one King is not dealt to the bottom of a talon pile initially, the game is not winnable. There is no scoring penalty for re-dealing the cards if you haven't played any yet, so reshuffle the deck to get a good, playable hand without affecting your score history.
Royalty pile-up: It sometimes (but not always) helps to designate one or two talon piles as "face card piles" and put as many face cards as possible onto those. Separating out the high cards into separate piles means they won't have to be played on top of a lower card somewhere else.
Let Casey show you: If you've forgotten where a card is located and you're playing with Casey, sometimes he will reveal it. Casey only plays with cards while you do, and if you stop moving so does he. Encourage him to tug more cards out by repeatedly jiggling the top card of one of the piles (you don't have to actually play the card, just move it and let it snap back.) The more you do that, the more cards he tugs out, and he just may reveal one you were looking for. Be sure to push it back into the pile before it goes too far.

About HyperActive Software

Casey's Solitaire was written by Jacqueline Landman Gay of HyperActive Software. HyperActive Software develops custom software solutions for Mac, Windows, iOS, and Android, primarily for business and educational markets. Once in a while though, something like Casey's Solitaire slips through.

For questions or comments, contact us at: dev@hyperactivesw.com with "Casey" somewhere in the subject of your email.
Or visit us at: http://www.hyperactivesw.com