Play Spite & Malice free online against a computer rival. Build shared stacks and race to clear your pay-off pile. No download, ads, purchases, or sign-up.
Overview
Spite & Malice, also called Cat and Mouse, is a two-player patience game played with two standard decks. Your goal is to empty your pay-off pile before your rival.
The deal
Each player receives a face-down pay-off pile with its top card exposed and a five-card hand. Choose a 13-card or 20-card pay-off pile in Settings. The remaining cards form the shared stock.
Building centre stacks
Start any empty centre stack with an Ace, then build upward in rank through Queen. Suits do not matter. Kings are wild and may represent any needed rank. A completed Queen stack clears automatically.
Playing a turn
Tap a card in your hand, the exposed pay-off card, or the top of one of your side stacks. Then tap a legal centre stack. You may continue playing as long as moves are available, and an empty hand refills to five.
Ending a turn
Discard one card from your hand onto any of your four side stacks. Only each stack's top card can be played, so avoid burying a card you will soon need.
Winning and scoring
Playing the final card from your pay-off pile wins the round. The winner scores 5 points plus one point for every card left in the rival's pay-off pile. Highest total after four rounds wins.
Tips
Prioritize your exposed pay-off card. Save Kings for awkward gaps, keep several side-stack ranks accessible, and avoid completing a centre stack if doing so immediately helps your rival.
