Online preference

Preference is an ancient card game where the outcome depends more on the player's skill than blind chance. The game gained widespread popularity in the mid-19th century in aristocratic circles. It successfully displaced whist, l'hombre, and mediateur, acquiring a solid reputation that has lasted to this day. Today, preference is played by students and teachers, workers and engineers, sailors and astronauts. If you don't know how to play this fascinating game for intellectuals yet, it's time to learn. Moreover, it's easy to do - just read the rules on our website and go to the game page.

A Bit of History

Preference incorporates features of various European games, with whist being its main predecessor. The name "preference" comes from the French word "preference," which was previously used to denote the trump suit. Historians still debate whether preference was invented in Russia or France. The fact that the local aristocracy in the 19th century was as proficient in French as in Russian suggests that they could have given the new game a foreign name. The game fascinated many well-known individuals: V.A. Zhukovsky, L.N. Tolstoy, F.M. Dostoevsky. Poet V.A. Zhukovsky wrote that preference conquered all with its "reasonableness and richness of combinations."

The first guide to the game was written in Russia in 1843, but after the events of the early 20th century, this and other books dedicated to preference were placed in the archives of the library without the right to be issued to readers.

For several decades, preference was in a semi-underground position, although there was no official ban on it. However, all of this is in the past, and today anyone can enjoy playing preference online at any time.

Basic Rules

Three or four players participate in the duel; on our site, a variant with three participants is implemented. Opponents take turns clockwise. A 32-card deck is used, from seven to ace. Each suit has its rank: hearts are the highest, followed by diamonds, clubs, and spades. The trump is determined by the player. The participant making the first move is called the "first hand," and the other players are, accordingly, the "second" and "third hands." After dealing, there is a bidding phase in which the type of game is determined:

• for tricks - the player aims to take the declared number of tricks, and opponents try to prevent them. For example, if they announced "7 of diamonds," it means they commit to taking seven tricks, and diamonds become the trump suit.
• miser - the player declares that they will not take any tricks, and opponents also try to prevent them.
• raspberry - each participant plans to take the minimum number of tricks.

The "first hand" makes the declaration first; this player can pass - refuse to play and stop participating in the bidding. Meaningful declarations are considered miser and bidding for tricks, from six spades to ten without trump. The hierarchy of the game is determined based on the number of tricks - from 6 to 10 and the hierarchy of potential trump suits. You can also declare a game without trump, which will have a higher status. The three most popular varieties of preference are:

• Sochi - a game against a whist player
• Leningrad - against a player
• Rostov - for masters of raspberries

All these variants are presented on our website. You can read in detail about the rules of each type of preference in the corresponding section of our site.

What Makes the Game on preferans.games Interesting

On our website, a wide range of conventions is implemented. Any player, whether a beginner or a professional, can customize the game to their liking. To gain experience, it is worth choosing a robot as an opponent, and professionals can immediately play with real people. To play with live partners, create a request, specifying the necessary parameters:

• game variant (Rostov, Sochi, Leningrad)
• conditions for completion (points in the pool or by time)
• number of points in the pool
• type of whist (rude/gentlemanly)
• penalty for whist
• exit from raspberries
• agreement "Stalingrad"
• whist on the ten of hearts
• misery bargaining
• time per move

You can also choose the background color and the back of the card deck and view the game history. Among the advantages of the site are an extraordinarily realistic design and the ability to choose an opponent of any level of professionalism.

Preference on the preferans.games website is an opportunity to take a break from pressing problems and spend quality time with worthy partners.