Card game · Plays in the browser
Briscola, online and free
Beta Fully playable, still being polished.
The Italian forty-card classic, one click away: take on the computer whenever you like, or open a table with friends and play as two, three or two pairs.
Nothing to install: play on your phone or your computer, in English, Italian or Spanish.
Six screens from the game
The actual game, not a mock-up. Scroll sideways.
Five levels, and none of them cheats
No level ever looks at your cards: whoever plays better wins, just like at the table. Start from Easy and move up when you feel ready.
Easy
For learning the rules at your own pace.
Medium
An even match, for a relaxed game.
Hard
Gives nothing away: stay sharp.
Expert
Plays well and rarely slips up.
Professional
The strongest. For players who already play well.
A hundred and twenty points, sixty-one is enough
Three cards each, one card turned up to set the trump suit, and from there you take tricks and draw until the stock runs out. Never played before? The rules are inside the game: one screen, with the cards that score drawn next to their points.
Nine decks, to play with the cards you grew up with
Neapolitan, Piacentine, Bergamasche, Bresciane, Trentine and Spanish cards, the antique Piacentine engraved and hand-coloured in the nineteenth century, and a French-suited deck with oversized indices that stay easy to read on the smallest screen. Turn through them in the showcase on the front screen, look at each one up close and pick the one that feels like home.
A match with whoever you like
Quick match to be sat down with someone straight away, or set up a table with friends — two of you, three, or two pairs — and pass on the five-letter code: whoever types it in sits down with you. Close the app by mistake and the seat stays yours for half a minute.
Rules, strategy and the decks
Three longer reads, for anyone learning from scratch and for anyone who already plays and wants to win more hands.
The rules
Cards, points, how a trick is taken and how a game is won: everything you need for your first match, as two, three or two pairs.
Read the guide →Strategy
When to take and when to let go, how to spend your trumps, what to remember: advice for losing fewer hands.
Read the guide →The regional decks
Neapolitan, Piacentine, Trentine and the rest: where Italian playing cards come from and how to tell them apart at a glance.
Read the guide →Good to know before you sit down
How do you play Briscola?
It is played with a forty-card deck. Everyone holds three cards, and the card turned up under the stock sets the trump suit, which beats every other. Each hand, everyone plays one card: the highest card of the suit led takes the trick, unless someone plays a trump, and then the highest trump takes it. After each trick you draw, until the stock runs out. Inside the game the rules fit on one screen, with the scoring cards drawn next to their points.
How many points do you need to win?
There are 120 points in the deck: the ace is worth 11, the three 10, the king 4, the knight 3 and the jack 2, every other card zero. As two players or two pairs you need 61 to win; with three players, whoever scores the most wins.
Can I play Briscola online with a friend?
Yes. Open a table, choose two players, three or two pairs, and send your friends the five-letter code: whoever types it in sits down with you. With a quick match you are seated at a table straight away, without waiting for anyone.
Can I play against the computer?
Yes, at five levels: Easy, Medium, Hard, Expert and Pro. None of them sees your cards, and you can play as many matches as you like.
Is it free? Do I need an account?
It is free. Against the computer and with friends there is nothing to sign up for: open the page and play. To take on players from around the world you sign in with your Google or Apple account and pick a username; the same account saves your progress.
Can I play on my phone?
Yes: in the browser of your phone, tablet or computer, with nothing to install.
Is the game in English?
Yes. The game speaks English, Italian and Spanish: it starts in your device’s language, and you can switch in the settings. The rules fit on a single screen, with the cards drawn next to their points.
Which cards can I play with?
Nine decks to choose from: Neapolitan, Piacentine, antique Piacentine, Bergamasche, Bresciane, Trentine, Spanish, Spanish Fantasy and a French-suited deck with oversized indices.
With friends straight away, and your progress saved with Google or Apple
Against the computer or with friends, you open the page and you play. To take on players from around the world you sign in with your Google or Apple account and pick a username, no password to make up. And if you switch device, the same account brings back your profile, with your level, rating and stats.