How to Play The Wish Solitaire

A relaxing memory game using only high cards (7 through Ace). Match pairs of equal rank from eight piles, using memory and careful card uncovering to clear the board.

Setup

1. Remove cards 2–6 from a single deck, keeping only 7s, 8s, 9s, 10s, Jacks, Queens, Kings, and Aces (32 cards)
2. Deal four cards face-up to each of eight tableau piles
3. No stock pile is used

How to play

• Look for pairs of uncovered cards with the same rank (two Kings, two Aces, etc.)
• Drag one card onto its matching partner to remove both to the discard pile
• Once you remove a pair, the card beneath it in that same pile becomes uncovered and playable
• Continue matching pairs until all 32 cards are gone or you're stuck

How to win

Objective: Clear every card by matching pairs of equal rank (two 7s, two 8s, etc.) until only empty piles remain.

All cards are matched and removed. You're stuck when only unmatched cards remain available.

Tips

• Remember which cards you've already paired to avoid chasing matches that don't exist
• Keep full piles active as long as possible to preserve your options
• Don't clear a pile unless you've exhausted every other pair option

Play The Wish free on Windows

CardTray is a free solitaire app for Windows that includes The Wish alongside 300+ other games. It saves every move as you play, so you can close the window and pick the game up later, replay any deal, and take on a new Daily Challenge deal every day. Browse every game in the Game Gallery.

Related games

More games from the Pairing family:

• Doublet Cell — A pairing game with four temporary cells (like FreeCell) to help maneuver.
• Doublets — A straightforward pairing game where you remove any two cards of the same rank, regardless of suit.
• Isabel — Remove cards in matching pairs while building in the foundations as a bonus.
• Nestor — A simple single-deck pairing game.
• Patient Pairs — Patient Pairs asks you to clear the whole tableau by matching up cards of equal rank, two at a time, using only the cards left uncovered at the top of each pile.