Universal Sage Solitaire (By Zach Gage)

Discussion in 'iPhone and iPad Games' started by vectorarchitekt, Aug 27, 2015.

  1. uhdrill

    uhdrill Active Member

    Jan 6, 2013
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    Stfi,
    The traditional "Vegas" style of solitaire I refer to is the optional variant that is included in the Solitare game which has been pre-installed on Windows since Windows 95. I will try to explain the basics here, but if I am not clear then it is an easily accessible game to test out (unless you're a dedicated Mac user of course, lol).

    Basically it is a standard Klondike setup but you start at (-$52) - the cost of dealing the cards out. Each card you can stack into the 4 suit piles above the tableau pays you $5. You go through the deck only once and flip cards one at a time instead of the traditional 3 at once. Once you have no more moves you can deal a new hand for another $52 (if you have cumulative scoring on) and try to either dig yourself out of a hole or build a killer bankroll.

    I honestly do not know how many hours I've spent killing time playing this game. A Vegas mode would be stellar for this game, but first we'd have to figure out how much a deal would start you in the hole and how the point scoring would be adjusted to reflect dollars so that it's a challenge to make a profit and not be too easy.

    If you were able to eventually cobble something like this together then my life would be consumed. Lol.
     
  2. stfj

    stfj Well-Known Member

    Sep 18, 2009
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    uhdrill- wow yeah that sounds great I will definitely strongly consider adding that kind of mode. Thanks for the description!
     
  3. QuickWit

    QuickWit Well-Known Member

    Oct 28, 2008
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    Video Writer, Director, Producer
    Salt Lake City, Utah
    Love this simple game! Perfect for a quick play, though normally I spend too much time on it. Bought full version right away!

    I also agree with the Vegas Variant. It's a great way to play solitaire.

    As for tips... Only one I really try to follow us make sure you keeps rows on the board. If it's a choice of a higher scoring hand that now removes a row, or a lesser hand that keeps all three rows intact, I go for the lesser. But It still comes down to luck.
     
  4. Boardumb

    Boardumb Administrator
    Staff Member Patreon Silver Patreon Gold

    Apr 14, 2009
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    THE BOSS
    Sacramento, CA
    Oh d'oh, that's so obvious I can't believe I didn't think of that. Thanks for the explanation! Though if I'm ever playing poker with buddies in real life and get screwed because I think my flush beat someone's full house, I'll angrily raise my fist to the sky and yell "Damn you Zach Gaaaage!" into the heavens.

    Yes, I LOVED playing solitaire that way back in the day. Because sometimes you just plain won't win a game of solitaire no matter what you do, I'd end up getting myself deep in a hole, then go on a miraculous run to dig myself out. It was super satisfying :) Would love if there was a way to get a similar type of mode into Sage.
     
  5. stfj

    stfj Well-Known Member

    Sep 18, 2009
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    Boardumb- 1. just realized you're Jared. haha hey man!

    2- fair enough about yelling my name to the heavens.

    3- yeah, ive been sitting here knocking out a small bugfix update salivating over a vegas mode. Unless I implement it and it's a total disaster, it's something I'm definitely gonna stick in there.
     
  6. slewis7

    slewis7 Well-Known Member

    Apr 6, 2011
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    My 87 year old Mom is hooked on this game!

    And yes, I bought the IAP a day or so ago. I am glad I did, but I still find myself mainly playing the single deck mode.
     
  7. pluto6

    pluto6 Well-Known Member

    Jun 21, 2009
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    Loving your game. I know that most people could care less, but i love the stats. So, keep giving them a little love and when i put my thinking cap on, i might have a few more stats to track.
     
  8. Jamie84303

    Jamie84303 Active Member

    Oct 15, 2014
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    Stfj, vectorarchitekt, Guise,

    I've noticed heavy battery drainage too. Plus my Ye Olde iPhone 4S (iOS 8.4) becomes somewhat warm. Actually, I'd go as far to say it gets hot. I usually only have quick play sessions also and the reduce motion toggle has no effect on either. These issues have not been noted anywhere else of late. I'm a bit confused tbh as I would not have thought this title would be one that's hard on the processor, even if it isn't so powerful anymore, lol.

    All said, Sage Solitaire is one of my daily go-to iOS games right now and I guess the heat and battery drainage stop it being too addicting ;P Would be great if these problems could somehow be fixed though. P.S. I'm hoping to buy a newer iPhone when funds are permitting.
     
  9. scottbailey

    scottbailey Active Member

    Nov 2, 2013
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    #69 scottbailey, Aug 29, 2015
    Last edited: Aug 29, 2015
    I love the game and the aesthetic. I can't beat it yet and I love that.

    I bought the IAP because I am a sucker for statistics. Any gaming experience is given so much more value and weight (stat puns?) if I can track my stats.

    Any hope for a Spelltower update? I see it hasn't been updated in a few years.
     
  10. L.Lawliet

    L.Lawliet Well-Known Member

    Jun 28, 2011
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    I bought it but I'm disappointed in the battery drain. It's supposed to be a casual game but on my iphone 6 it burns just as fast as me playing a 3D action game. So I actually feel like I have to cut my playtime short.
     
  11. vectorarchitekt

    vectorarchitekt Well-Known Member

    Dec 29, 2013
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    On the last night of the upcoming thread I asked for a SpellTower update that eliminates the 5 and 6 tiles because it just gets too hard too quickly.
    Also I was thinking that the empty space on the iPhone version could be utilized better.
    I like Alphabear lately but SpellTower is still the best word game on the App Store.
     
  12. putermcgee

    putermcgee Well-Known Member

    Jun 4, 2010
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    I just remembered Pair Solitaire too. That's a fun and new take on the game... but I'm enjoying this one a lot more for several reasons.

    Whoa, I was just listening to the podcast where you talked about this!
     
  13. BrettArchibald

    BrettArchibald Well-Known Member

    Jul 17, 2008
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    Formerly Zimbabwe - now England.
    Thanks for the replies. Much appreciated. :)
     
  14. Thrak360

    Thrak360 Member

    Sep 10, 2012
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    Same here. The game is a no-go on my old iOS 6 device. Which isn't really surprising, vast majority don't nowadays.
     
  15. vectorarchitekt

    vectorarchitekt Well-Known Member

    Dec 29, 2013
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    Just curious, why do so many people not update past 6? I see that a lot on here. Is it because you are preserving certain apps or games? Or because the device won't run 7 or higher well?
     
  16. caltab

    caltab Well-Known Member

    Feb 11, 2010
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    I always like games Zack does and this is no exception. I have played it a ton. The gameplay is really fun, but to me the scoring doesn't seem to reward good hands enough. I am no math mathematician so don't know what the right balance should be, but I feel like there have been lots of times where I have a run of really good hands, full houses/flushes/4 of a kind with multiplier and my score doesn't seem to reward that. Also, clearing the board seems to be very dependent on luck rather than skill. I've played many hours and only cleared the board a couple of times. Seems like there should be more of a bonus for a full clear. For me, I don't feel rewarded enough for what seems like a good run. I might just be really bad at the game, I don't know.
     
  17. Mj1ggy

    Mj1ggy Well-Known Member

    Jun 5, 2012
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    Great game but I do wonder if the threshold for high scores is pretty low, which would limit the longevity of the game. I've cleared the board a few times and there doesn't seem to be that much variability in scores.
     
  18. stfj

    stfj Well-Known Member

    Sep 18, 2009
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    vectorarchitekt, Guise, Jamie84303 L.Lawliet - Sorry to hear about the battery drain. I guess thats the downside of working in Unity :| I'll put an option in to run the game at 30fps to limit the drain

    scottbailey - yep! I am very close to finally putting out this spelltower update to enable realtime online play and add a new dictionary

    Thrak360, L.Lawliet - there's a really weird bug where it doesn't run specifically on iPods. Are your devices iPods? I'm trying to track it down but it's super weird and feels like a unity issue

    caltab - thanks for the feedback! It definitely has a pretty gentile curve on the scores. I tried to emphasize playing the whole game well vs. getting a few great hands. I didn't want it to turn into the only way to get the best score was to luck into 2 four of a kinds, etc. Maybe give double deck a shot which has a lot more variability.

    Mj1ggy - definitely see your point. I think there are a lot of other things to play for once you can clear the deck regularly, but I find the score variability and chase is pretty functional up into the mid 1800s when it gets a little crazy.

    the good news is I'm planning a ton of modes to address the getting-tired-of-getting-good-scores issue. including a vegas mode which I think i just cracked this morning (shhhhhhh)
     
  19. vectorarchitekt

    vectorarchitekt Well-Known Member

    Dec 29, 2013
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    This Vegas mode sounds really cool.
     
  20. freakernet

    freakernet Well-Known Member

    Jul 9, 2015
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    I love the game and the aesthetic. I can't beat it yet and I love that
     

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