Kings in the Corners
Overview
Kings in the Corners is a classic multiplayer card game that feels like competitive solitaire. Players race to empty their hands by building descending, alternating-color foundation piles around a central draw pile.
Players
2–4 players, using a standard 52-card deck (no jokers).
Objective
Be the first player to play every card from your hand onto the foundation layout.
Setup
1.
Shuffle the deck and deal seven cards to each player.
2.
Place the remaining cards face down in the center as the draw pile.
3.
Turn the top four cards of the draw pile face up around it — north, east, south, and west — forming the starting cross foundation piles.
4.
The four corner spaces around the draw pile start empty and are reserved for Kings.
Turn Structure
Play moves clockwise. Player 1 takes the first turn of the first game, and the first turn moves to the next seat each game: Player 2 opens the next game, and so on. On your turn:
1. Draw (Mandatory)
Draw the top card of the draw pile into your hand. If the draw pile is empty, continue without drawing.
2. Play Cards (Optional)
Play as many cards from your hand as you can (or want) onto the foundation piles:
•
Descending order — each card must be one rank lower than the card it covers (e.g., 7 on 8, Jack on Queen).
•
Alternating colors — red on black, black on red.
•
Empty cross spaces — any card from your hand may start a new pile in an empty north/east/south/west space.
•
Empty corners — only a King may start a corner pile. Once a King is placed, build down on it like any other pile.
3. Move Piles (Optional)
During your turn you may move an entire foundation pile onto another foundation pile if the bottom card of the moving pile legally fits on the top card of the destination (descending, alternating color). You may also move a pile whose bottom card is a King onto an empty corner. Empty spaces created this way can be filled from your hand as above.
4. End Turn
When you have finished playing and rearranging, end your turn. Play passes to the next player.
Winning
The game ends immediately when a player plays their last card. That player wins.
Optional Multi-Hand Scoring
For a longer match across multiple deals:
Keep a running total. The first player to reach a predetermined score (e.g. 25 or 50) is eliminated; the last player remaining wins the match.
(This digital implementation plays a single hand to go-out.)