Aces High

The goal of Aces High (Aces up) is to discard all cards except the four aces. When the game ends, the number of discarded cards is your score. You will win the game if you get 48 points, meaning only four aces are left on the table.

Controls

Gamplay has mouse control, but touchscreens are also supported, however mouse cursor is always visible. Standard Pico-8 controls are 🅾️ = z-key, and ❎ = x-key on keyboard. Press Enter to pause the game and access the settings like sound and volume.

Rules

You can remove the top card of any column if there is another top card of the same suit in a different column that has a higher rank.

The ranking of cards follows the standard order: Ace (high), King, Queen, Jack, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2 (low).

Example: If there is a 9 of hearts in one column and a 3 of hearts in another, you can remove the 3 of hearts. Removed cards are added to the foundation pile, increasing your score. When a column becomes empty, you can move any top card from another column into the empty space. Strategic use of empty columns can help you reveal more cards and create more opportunities for removal. When no more cards can be removed or moved, click the stockpile to deal another round of four cards (one to each column). Continue doing this until the stockpile is empty.

You win if you manage to discard 48 cards to the foundation pile, leaving only the four aces in the columns. Your score is the number of cards you have successfully discarded to the foundation pile. The game continues until you reach the maximum score or you can no longer make any moves.

Tips and strategy

Remove low cards: Try to remove low-ranked cards early, especially if they block higher-ranked cards of the same suit.

Use empty columns strategically: Moving cards into empty columns opens up opportunities to reveal more cards and make more moves.

Watch the stockpile: Take note of how many deals is left in the stockpile. Game will show you when five or less deals is left.

Odds of winning: 1 in 43.