Aces Up
Discard the lower of two same-suit cards until only the four Aces stand.
How to play Aces Up
Four cards are dealt across four piles, and Aces rank high, above the King. Whenever two piles show top cards of the SAME suit, tap the LOWER-ranked one to throw it onto the discard. If a pile empties, you may tap any other pile's top card to slide it into that gap. When no more removals or moves help, tap the stock to deal the next four cards. Keep clearing until only the four Aces remain (one on each pile) with the stock empty to win.
A quick, cruel little patience
Aces Up is over fast, one way or the other. Four cards go down in four piles, and whenever two piles show the same suit on top, the lower card gets thrown away. Aces are the catch, because they rank above the King, so an Ace never loses a suit comparison and never gets discarded. Your whole goal is to strip the deck down until only the four Aces are left standing, one on each pile, with the stock used up. The game has been kicking around card tables for ages under harsher names, Idiot's Delight and Firing Squad among them, and both fit. The deal can make you feel a genius or an idiot, and cards do get executed one at a time.
The discard rule is blunt: two spades on top, the smaller one is gone. High cards clog your piles and low cards clear easily, so the real fight is against the Kings, Queens and Jacks that refuse to leave unless a same-suit senior happens to be showing.
The empty pile is the entire game
Discards are forced and obvious. The only real decision you ever make is what to move into an empty pile, so that choice deserves nearly all your thinking time. When a gap opens, don't fill it with the first card you see. Ask what each candidate move reveals underneath. Here's a worked example of the difference. Suppose a 9 of hearts sits on top of the Ace of spades, and the King of spades tops another pile. Move that 9 into the gap and the Ace of spades appears, which immediately lets you discard the King, and possibly the Queen and Jack of spades later on. Move some other card instead and the Ace stays buried, the King stays parked, and the jam quietly hardens. The rule of thumb: prefer the move that uncovers an Ace, and after that, the move that uncovers any card likely to trigger a discard chain.
Pace yourself between moves, too. Every discard and every relocation changes what's showing, so re-scan all four piles after each single action instead of executing a plan three moves long. It's common for one discard to expose a card that enables a second discard you couldn't see a moment ago, and blazing through a memorised sequence walks right past those gifts. The game has no timer. The stock will wait while you look, and in a format where you only get a handful of real decisions per deal, spending five extra seconds on each one is the cheapest improvement available.
Getting the most from every deal
- Empty a pile whenever you reasonably can. A gap is a lifeline, and games are usually lost by players who never manage to open one.
- Make every discard and every useful move before tapping the stock. Each deal buries all four piles under a fresh card you may not have wanted.
- Track which suits still have a hidden Ace, and work to dig toward them. An exposed Ace is a standing threat to every card of its suit.
- Kings only leave when their own Ace is showing, so treat an uncovered Ace as the signal to hunt down that suit's court cards.
Know what you can and can't control
Play well and you'll still lose most deals. Serious estimates put a careful player's win rate at very roughly one game in ten, and that's the honest charm of the format. Sometimes the shuffle buries an Ace under a wall of same-suit high cards and no sequence of moves can save it. Knowing that keeps the losses light. What skill does control is the margin: players who move thoughtfully into gaps and never deal early win noticeably more often than players who tap through on autopilot. A round takes a minute or two, so the sensible attitude is a golfer's one. Play the shot in front of you, accept the bad bounces, and remember that a fresh deal is one tap away the moment the cards betray you. When a deal does come together and the last King finally dies to its Ace, the win feels earned out of all proportion to the two minutes it took.
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Aces Up: frequently asked questions
Which card can I discard?
Only a top card that is outranked by another top card of the same suit. For example, if one pile shows the 5 of spades and another the Jack of spades, the 5 can be discarded. Aces are the highest rank, so they can never be thrown away.
When should I move a card to an empty pile?
Moving a top card into an empty column uncovers the card beneath it, which can expose a new same-suit pair to discard or free a trapped Ace. Use empty piles sparingly and deliberately: you only get four of them.
Is Aces Up usually winnable?
No. It is a famously hard, luck-heavy patience, and most deals cannot be solved. Your score is the number of cards you discard (up to 48), so even a loss rewards good play, and your best is saved.
Why do Aces never get discarded?
Aces rank high, above the King. Since you only ever throw away the lower of two same-suit cards, an Ace always outranks its suitmate and stays put. That is exactly why the four Aces are the last cards standing when you win.
How do I get rid of a stubborn King?
A King is discarded only when the Ace of the same suit is showing on another pile, since the Ace is the one card that outranks it. That is rare, so more often you move a King into an empty pile to reach the cards trapped beneath it.
What can I move into an empty pile?
Any top card from another pile. Emptying a pile and using the gap to relocate a card is the main skill in Aces Up, because it uncovers whatever was hiding underneath. Prefer the move that exposes an Ace or sets up a discard.
When can I deal the next four cards?
Any time, but you should wait until you have made every discard and move first. Dealing lays a fresh card on all four piles, so doing it too early can cover cards you still wanted to reach.
What are my chances of actually winning?
Low, and that is normal. Rough estimates put a careful player around one win in ten deals, because some shuffles bury an Ace beyond rescue. Good gap management and patient dealing raise your rate, but no skill makes Aces Up a game you win most of the time.
How do I win?
Clear the entire deck until only the four Aces remain, one on each pile, with the stock used up. Anything short of that and the game is lost.
Is Aces Up free to play?
Yes. Aces Up is completely free on Inkplay, with no download, no sign-up, and no in-game purchases. Open the page and play instantly on desktop or mobile.
Can I play Aces Up unblocked?
Yes. Aces Up runs entirely in your browser with no download, install, or plugins, so it loads instantly and keeps working even on school or work networks where bigger game sites get blocked.
More games to play
In the mood for more? Try Chess, Tic Tac Toe, Connect Four, Reversi, or browse all board games and the full games list on Inkplay. Aces Up also appears in Solitaire.