←Spades
Spades game artwork
Classic Card Game

Spades

Bid a team contract, follow suit when possible, and use spades as trump in a four-player hand.

Ready to playBid your team's expected tricks, then follow suit when possible.
WeightPlay Original Game Guide

Spades

Spades is a four-player, two-team trick-taking hand. Choose a bid from 0 to 13, follow the led suit when you can, and use spades as the permanent trump suit to meet your team's combined contract.

Four-player trick-takingTeam contract biddingSpades as trump
GameplayClassic Trump Trick-Taking
GenreCard · Family · Strategy
DifficultyEasy to Challenging
Estimated Play Time5-15 minutes

The four-player table

One 52-card deck is dealt evenly: thirteen cards to each of four seats. You and the AI partner across the table form one team; the other two AI seats are your opponents.

The AI controls the other three seats, including your partner. Your bid and your partner's bid combine to set your team's target.

How the Systems Work

Every player receives thirteen cards. You choose your bid from 0 through 13, while the three AI seats receive their own bids. Your contract is your bid plus your partner's bid; the opponent contract is calculated the same way.

When a trick has a lead suit, play that suit if your hand contains one. If you cannot follow, any card is legal. The highest card in the led suit wins unless a spade appears; the highest spade then wins, and the winner leads the next trick.

After thirteen tricks, a team that reaches its combined bid scores ten points per bid trick plus one point for each overtrick. A team that misses its contract loses ten points per bid trick. The Result view reports both team totals and the next-hand target.

The round is local and self-contained. Restart resets the current hand, while New Game deals a fresh hand; browser-local preferences or records do not create an account, cloud save, or persistent campaign.

How to Play

  1. Start the hand and read the three AI bids before choosing your own 0–13 bid. Count likely winners, safe low cards, and the strength of your spade holding.
  2. On each turn, select a card from your hand. Match the lead suit when possible; if you are void in that suit, discard a card or play a spade to take the trick.
  3. Watch the live trick cue and the team trick count. A spade can rescue a contract, but spending one early may leave your team without a trump answer later.
  4. Continue until all thirteen tricks are settled, then compare the team score with the combined contract on Result.
  5. Use Restart to replay the same format or New Game to begin another complete hand.

Strategy Tips

  • Bid the tricks your two-seat team can actually support, not every trick your own hand might win. Your partner's bid is part of the same contract.
  • Keep track of suits where you are already short. A void lets you play a spade or discard a card when an opponent leads that suit.
  • Do not spend every high spade on the first available trick. Save a trump for a contract-critical trick, especially when the lead suit is one your partner may be losing.
  • When your team is already ahead of its bid, avoid unnecessary overtricks unless they are the safest legal card; the extra point is less important than keeping control of the next lead.
  • Read the settled-trick cue and the progress line after each hand of cards. It shows whether the team is behind, on contract, or carrying overtricks before you choose the next card.

Campaign and Difficulty Growth

There is no invented level ladder or reward economy. Each complete thirteen-trick hand is a fresh tactical problem, and replay value comes from a new deal, a different bid, changed suit shortages, and better timing of spades.

The difficulty moves through decisions rather than hidden stat increases: first estimate a contract, then manage legal follow-suit choices, and finally protect the score when the remaining tricks are known.

Developer Design Note

Spades keeps the card state visible: the bid range, team trick counts, lead suit, winning card, contract progress, and Result totals are all surfaced in the same browser flow. The shared engine supports touch, mouse, and keyboard-friendly card selection while the rules remain the same on every device.

Player and Save Information

Spades is a free General browser game with no account or purchase required. The current hand is not a cloud campaign; local preferences and play records may stay in this browser, and clearing site data or changing browsers can remove them.

FAQ

How many cards and tricks are in a hand?
A 52-card deck is dealt to four players, thirteen cards each. The hand ends after thirteen tricks.
What is a legal card?
If you hold a card in the led suit, you must follow that suit. If you are void in it, you may play any card, including a spade.
How does a spade win a trick?
The highest spade wins whenever a spade is played. If no spade appears, the highest card in the led suit wins.
How is the contract scored?
Your team combines your bid and your partner's bid. Meeting it scores 10 points per bid trick plus one per overtrick; missing it loses 10 points per bid trick.
Can I bid zero?
Yes. Every bid from 0 through 13 is selectable, so a zero bid asks your team to avoid winning tricks rather than promising a target.
Is progress saved?
There is no account or cloud save. Local preferences or play records may remain in this browser, while Restart and New Game reset the current hand flow.
What should I play next?
Try Gin Rummy for meld and discard planning, or Go Fish for a lighter rank-collection round.

Related Games

Gin RummyBuild sets and suited runs while reducing unmatched Deadwood before the opponent knocks.Go FishAsk another player for a rank you hold.