Overview
Mahjong Solitaire (Shanghai) is a single-player matching game using Mahjong tiles. Unlike the real four-player Mahjong, this is a puzzle game where you clear tiles by matching pairs. Tiles must be 'free' to be selected.
History
Mahjong Solitaire was created for early personal computers, first appearing in the 1981 game 'Shanghai' by Brodie Lockard. It introduced Mahjong tiles to Western audiences as a single-player puzzle.
Around the world
- Shanghai
- Taipei
- Mahjong Titans
Strategy
Prioritize tiles with the most duplicates in play - removing one frees options.
Don't just take the first match
Consider what tiles your move exposes.
Avoid uncovering tiles you can't immediately match - they block the board.
Keep the board balanced between left and right sides.
Look for triplets of the same tile visible
Matching two leaves the third blocked.
Use hints sparingly if available
Think before clicking.
Some layouts are unsolvable due to random shuffling - don't feel bad about restarting.
Frequently asked questions
Remove all 144 tiles from the board by matching pairs of identical tiles.