Diamond Solitaire Mahjong

There is exactly one puzzle in Diamond Solitaire Mahjong, and the pieces on it are set with diamonds, gems and sparkling jewels rather than painted suits. Pairs are told apart by stone, so the eye works on cut and colour instead of counted symbols. The Solitaire list lists every board filed under this heading.

SOFTGAMES adds a zoom control, and it matters more than a convenience feature usually does. Shimmering stones at full board width read as broadly similar, and pulling the view in close is what settles whether two pieces really carry the same jewel before you commit to the match. The Xmas 2020 Deluxe pile asks the same question of a taller pile.

Scoring turns on speed: quick matches earn points, and the total is posted to a leaderboard. That loads the second half of the board, where free pieces are thin on the ground and hesitation is expensive, with most of the scoring weight. The single layout sits in an 800 by 600 frame and responds to a mouse or a tap. Working the covered edges first pays in the Magic and Wizards board as well.

1. Study the jewelled layout and find two free pieces set with the same stone.
2. Zoom in whenever two cuts look alike, then select the pair to clear it.
3. Keep matches coming quickly, since points are awarded for speed.
4. Empty the layout to post your total to the leaderboard.

• Zoom before you commit — a wrong read on two similar gems costs more time than the closer look would have.
• Bank speed early — free stones are plentiful in the opening, which is when quick matches are easiest to chain.
• Leave duplicates spread out — clearing two adjacent copies of a jewel first can leave the other two locked at the base.
• Replay the one layout — with a single puzzle in the game, a better leaderboard score comes from knowing where its awkward stacks sit.