About HEARTS.io: Hearts io is one of most popular classic card games. Get lowest points as possible. Each heart gives one penalty point. There is also one special.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Why won't you add multiplayer/rule-variations/replayable-games/any-other-feature? It would make the game much better.
A: We get a lot of requests from people that just want one tiny little feature added to a game. What they don't realize is that if we start implementing all the suggestions we get then the games will no longer be simple. The number one praise we get is that the interface is simple and uncluttered and it's easy to play. That's very much deliberate. There is no login, no loading screens, as few options as possible. We want to keep it as simple as possible, and that means each game only has one set of rules, you can't choose variations, we try to add as few controls as possible to the screen etc. So, don't feel bad if you make a suggestion and I deny it, we deny 99% of all suggestions.
Q: Why can't I see my statistics on another computer?
A: This goes back to simplicity again. We don't want people to have to login to the site. We don't want to keep passwords in a database and be responsible for them. Your statistics are stored in your browser, we don't store them anywhere. That means that as soon as you switch browsers you won't see the same statistics.
Q: Does this site use cookies and/or track people?
A: Yes, this site uses cookies. They are used for game purposes, like remembering your scores between rounds, but also to gather aggregate data on people's browsers, screen resolutions and more, which helps us figure out what we need to support. Finally they are also used for advertising purposes. A more detailed description of our cookie use can be found in our Privacy Policy, and you can always reach out and contact us if you're concerned about it.
Q: Do the computer players cheat? Are the games fixed?
A: No. In all the games the cards are dealt randomly at the start, and the computer players make their decisions based only on knowledge of their own hands, and knowledge of what has been played. Basically they use the same information as a human player would have available to them.
Q: I saw an offensive ad. Can you remove it?
A: If you see an ad that is offensive to you then please contact us and we'll try our best to block it. Due to the way advertising works we can't always immediately find the ads to block them, but if you send a screenshot of it, or you remember any text on it or a url then there's a much higher chance that we can find it and block it.
For all three difficulty levels the cards are dealt completely at random to both you and to the computer players. Computer players are not given any special advantage and they do not know what cards are in your hand or in any other players' hands. The difference between the easy, standard, and pro players is the strategy used to choose their plays. If you are finding that the computer is beating you, you will likely benefit from understanding how the computer chooses its next move.
Passing: | Chooses a random set of cards. |
Playing: | Chooses a random valid card. |
Standard Computer Strategy
Passing: | Chooses the three highest valued cards where value is determined by the card number (Ace, King, Queen, etc...) and suit (Spades, Hearts, Diamonds, Clubs). |
Playing: | When playing first, chooses the lowest card in hand. When playing 2nd or 3rd, plays the highest card that will not take the trick, otherwise, plays the lowest card of suit. When playing last, if there are points in the trick, plays the highest card that will not take the trick or if it must take the trick, plays the highest card of suit (avoiding the Queen of Spades). If playing last and there are no points in the trick, plays the highest card in hand. When the player is void in the lead suit, it will play its highest valued cards starting with QS, AS, AH, AD, AC, KS, KH, KD, KC, QH, QD, QC, etc... |
Passing: | Chooses the three highest valued cards where value is determined by the card number (Ace, King, Queen, etc...) and suit (Spades, Hearts, Diamonds, Clubs). |
Playing: | The pro computer evaluates each valid play by simulating random card distributions of the unseen cards taking into account which players are known to be void in particular suits. When simulating a game, each player plays the rest of the round using the Standard Playing algorithm (see above). At the end of each simulated round, the final score is recorded and the average round score is determined for each valid play. The play that results in the lowest average simulated round score is used. |