Building down

Down in the columns, up on the foundations

In both games the four foundations grow by suit from the Ace to the Re. In the columns you build the other way: a card goes on the next higher card – a 4 on a 5, a Cavallo on a Re.

In Seven Alleys the card below must be of a different suit; in Two Balconies it must be of the same suit. That one difference changes the whole feel of the game.

Seven Alleys: hidden cards come first

Twenty-one cards start face down. The game is mostly about reaching them, and a move that turns one over is worth more than a move that only tidies.

Start with the alleys that hide the most cards. And because three suits fit on every card, you usually have a choice of landing place – pick the one that keeps a run you can split later.

Two Balconies: everything is open

With all 40 cards visible, Two Balconies is a pure planning game. Before the first move, find the four Aces and count the cards lying on each. That count is usually the order in which you dig them out.

Building in the same suit is strict: a 4 of Cups fits only on the 5 of Cups. Runs in suit are precious, because they move together and later go home card by card.

Empty columns

In Seven Alleys only a Re may fill an empty alley, so clear a column only when a Re is waiting for it. Then move the Re with everything built on it and you turn the longest alley into a tidy run.

In Two Balconies any card may fill an empty column, which makes it the most powerful space on the table: it holds a whole run and doubles how many cards you can move at once.

Balconies and multi-card moves

The two balconies of Two Balconies hold one card each. They are for short stays: park a card, free what was under it, and bring the parked card back or send it home.

When you drag a run, the game checks whether it could be moved card by card using the free balconies and empty columns. With one free balcony you can move two cards, with two free balconies three, and each empty column doubles that. Keeping a balcony empty is often worth more than one extra card in order.

When to send cards home

Aces and 2s go home at once. Higher cards are trickier: in Seven Alleys a 6 on the foundation may be the card a 5 of another suit was waiting for. The automatic move only sends cards that no card in the columns could still need, so you can trust it.

In Seven Alleys you may also take the top card of a foundation back down, which occasionally rescues a stuck card.

Undo, hint and the daily deal

Undo has no limit and survives a reload, so treat it as a tool for testing ideas. The hint button never suggests a pointless move. And if you like to compare, the daily deal gives everyone the same checked shuffle.