The 500 Card Game

The 500 Card Game is Australian 500: the trick-taking card game of bowers, the Joker and misère, played by the rules published on Pagat.com. Play solo against computer players whenever you like, even offline, play online with friends or at a public table, or play ranked for a rating and medals. FIVE WAYS TO PLAY, 2 TO 6 PLAYERS • 6 players: two teams of three, with the 11s, 12s and red 13s in the deck • 5 players: call a partner by naming a card, and keep everyone guessing • 4 players: two teams of two, the classic game • 3 players: cutthroat, the bidder against the other two • 2 players: two-hand, with face-up piles on the table THE REAL RULES • The Joker, the Right Bower and the Left Bower • The Avondale bid table, from 6 Spades to 10 No Trumps • The kitty, slams, and Misère and Open Misère, which you can bid at any time • Scoring to 500, with a clear summary and a look back at every trick after each hand RANKED PLAY • People only, for linked accounts: no computer players and no hints • Everyone starts at 800. A win is +25 and a loss is -25 (in 3 and 5 player games it goes by place) • Seven medals named after the cards: Ten, Jack, Queen, King, Ace, Bower and Joker, the first after 5 placement games • A leaderboard of the top 50, your win streak, profile cards, and each table's average rating • Perks unlock as your best medal climbs and are never taken away: a rank frame on your seat, entrance and card-throw effects up to the Joker's Felt Fracture slam, two more stickers, a coloured chat name, three card backs, a share card, and at Joker the Joker's Night theme with its looming jester and its own music track • Leaving a ranked game, or being disconnected from it for 3 minutes in all, counts as a loss for your side • Ratings are just points: nothing to win and nothing to buy PLAY WITH FRIENDS • Create a private room and share its 6-character room code or an invite link, or let anyone join and find tables under Public games • Empty seats are filled by computer players, so you can start with one friend, or on your own • The host chooses the game, the seats and teams, the computer level and the turn timer • Play again in the same room with a running score; between games the host can change the number of players • If someone drops out or leaves, a computer player holds their seat until they are back • Chat at the table with messages, preset phrases and 17 drawn stickers, each with its own sound. Rude words are masked, messages are never stored, and you can mute, block or report anyone, or hide chat FRIENDS AND WATCHING • Link your account for a friend code, add friends and see who is online • Join a friend's table, or invite them to yours, with no code to type • Watch a full or running game without seeing anyone's hand, and take over a computer seat when one is free NEW TO 500? • A step-by-step interactive tutorial • A plain-English rules guide, glossary and tips for every way to play • Beginner mode, a bid helper and hints on your turn (off in ranked games) • Three computer levels: Easy, Medium and Hard MAKE IT YOURS • Six card themes for everyone: Royal Felt, Arcade Night, Southern Cross, Deco Gold, Candy Pop and Clear Four-Colour, plus Joker's Night to unlock in ranked play. Change theme any time, even mid-game • Five background music tracks to choose from, or shuffle them each hand • Win three tricks in a row and a ring of fire lights round your seat • Four-colour suits, large cards, reduce motion and screen-reader labels throughout • Stats for your online games, split by table size: games played, win rate, contracts made and failed, misères and slams • Close the app mid-game and pick up where you left off FREE, WITH NO CATCH The 500 Card Game is free. No ads, no in-app purchases and no real-money gambling. Just cards. Privacy policy: https://fivehundredapp.pages.dev/privacy/ Questions or feedback: fivehundredcardgame@gmail.com