This review originally appeared within iLounge’s iOS Gems series within the compilation article, iPhone Gems: Every Solitaire Game, Reviewed. Additional details may be found in the original article.
Though it’s comparatively expensive, Mondo Solitaire ($10) by Ambrosia Software is definitely one of the best options in this bunch. Unlike so many of the other games here, it’s obvious from the title screen to the options and variety of built-in card games that Mondo Solitaire was professionally developed.
The most important feature for serious card players is Mondo’s inclusion of just over one hundred different types of solitaire games, each with on-screen rules, internal links to related games, and interesting ways of tracking statistics.
This isn’t just Klondike, Spider, and Freecell; you get tons of different board layouts to choose from, providing a nearly infinite amount of replayability and opportunities to learn different rules.
We were also impressed to find that Mondo includes seven backgrounds or your choice of background photos, plus eight types of card backs. While we’d have really liked the ability to customize the cards further, the interface is extremely clean, and makes very nice use of the iPhone’s display.
There’s a well-done combination dragging and auto-complete interface with some cool touches, including a magnifying glass to see too-small cards and a neat dotted line to indicate where certain cards are being moved; the only issue with the interface is a confusing paperclip interface that’s supposed to help you pick multiple cards to move at once, but in our experience was unintuitively implemented.
While we really don’t think Solitaire games are worthy of $10 asking prices relative to the highly sophisticated 3-D titles that are appearing on the iPhone at that level, Mondo Solitaire comes pretty close to being worthy of some premium. If you’re looking for a very cleanly designed Solitaire title with plenty of depth, this should be one of the first titles you check out. iLounge Rating: B+.
Our Rating
Company and Price
Company: Ambrosia Software
Website: www.ambrosiasw.com
Title: Mondo Solitaire
Price: $10
Compatible: iPhones, iPod touches
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