Acme Solitaire

Acme Solitaire is a challenging Canfield variant: you build down in suit on the tableau and up in suit on the foundations, cannot move stacks, and only get two passes through the deck. The objective is to move all 52 cards to the four foundation piles by suit from Ace up to King. A 13‑card reserve and strict build rules make Acme very tough – only about 15% of deals are winnable. Its name Acme (Greek ἀκμή) means “peak” or “zenith”, which perfectly suits this game’s status as the summit of solitaire challenges! 🔥🃏

How to Play

Acme is played with a single 52-card deck. The game starts by placing the four Aces on the foundations, then dealing one card face-up to each of the four tableau piles. A 13-card reserve is set aside, and the rest of the cards form the stock (flipped one at a time into the waste).

• 🎯 Objective: Build all 52 cards into the four foundation piles. Each foundation is built up in suit from Ace through King.
• 📦 Stock: The remaining undealt cards form the stock. Click or tap to turn one card at a time from the stock onto the waste. Only one redeal is allowed, so you get two total passes through the deck.
• 🗑️ Waste: The waste is a single pile where stock cards accumulate. Only the top card of the waste is playable (onto a tableau or foundation). When the waste is exhausted, the game ends or the redeal begins.
• 🏗️ Foundations: There are four foundation piles (one per suit). Each starts with an Ace (dealt at the start). Build each foundation up in suit: 2♣ on A♣, 3♣ on 2♣, … up to King. (Some play with a “round-the-corner” rule allowing an Ace on a King to continue, but typically you stop at King.)
• 🗄️ Reserve: One pile of 13 cards (typically 12 face-down plus 1 face-up). Only the top card of the reserve can be played, and it may be moved to either a tableau pile or a foundation at any time. When it moves, the next card in the reserve (if any) becomes available.
• 🃏 Tableau: Four piles of one face-up card each. Build down in suit on the tableau (e.g. 8♥ on 9♥). Only the top card of a tableau pile can be moved (no moving a sequence as a unit). Empty tableau spaces are immediately filled by the top card of the reserve; once the reserve is empty, any single card may fill a space.

Follow these rules to carefully maneuver cards between the reserve, waste, tableau, and foundations. With practice and patience, you can conquer this ultimate Canfield challenge! 😉

History 📜

Acme is a classic “patience” game first recorded over a century ago. Its rules were published by “Tarbart” in 1905 (in the second edition of Games of Patience). This makes Acme one of the older documented solitaire variants, showing its English origins in the early 20th century.

The name Acme has an interesting backstory. In Ancient Greek “akmē” means “peak” or “zenith”. Around the time this game was named, many businesses chose the name “Acme” to appear at the very top of alphabetized directories. (A humorous footnote: decades later, Warner Bros. cartoons would make Acme Corporation famous with Wile E. Coyote and the Road Runner, but in reality real companies had been using the name long before!) In other words, Acme signified something top-notch – a fitting title for a high-point solitaire challenge.

Acme Solitaire lives on in modern times through digital platforms. You can also play Acme on many online solitaire sites. Mobile and tablet apps have also implemented Acme as a tough-but-fun patience game, but at solitairex.io/acme-solitaire

Sources: The rules above are confirmed by published solitaire references. Historical details come from patience game archives and etymological sources. These include Tarbart’s 1905 Games of Patience and modern solitaire databases that document Acme’s gameplay and background.