A puzzle-based Solitaire game set in a world of spies and espionage, The Solitaire Conspiracy is one of Mike Bithell's more out-there concepts and certainly not one for all ages. With a story of stealth, betrayal, and the balance of power, this game is quite the wild ride for a collection of Solitaire puzzles.
One of the big features that make the gameplay different from regular Solitaire is the crews that shake up the classic game. Acting as the "suits" for the cards, each crew has a King, Queen & Jack who have special abilities. These abilities manipulate the cards in one way or another, and they're all cleverly designed. They have a strong balance so that almost every ability can be used as both a help and a hindrance, depending on how well they're used.
10 Blood Legacy - The Rich Get Richer
Described as rich aristocrats who like to play spy, Blood Legacy isn't the most likable group. They're able to slip into any function of high society, sure, but they don't play so well with others, and their power is a pain more than it is useful.
Blood Legacy will re-order any stack they're placed on, putting the highest cards at the top and the lowest at the bottom. It has a couple of specific use-cases for when players need a K, Q, or J, but for the most part, they just bury the low cards players need most.
9 Atlantis Project - Under The Sea
The subject of the latest free content update, Atlantis Project specializes in sea-based spying. Their leader is a hyper-intelligent dolphin. How could they possibly be bad? Well, cleaning up the ocean (metaphorically & literally) is one thing, but playing nice with other spies, not so much.
Atlantis Project's ability will "submerge" all cards of the same value as the one it's placed on. Place one of them on a seven? Then that seven, and all other sevens will fall to the bottom of their respective stacks. It can be handy if there's a high card that needs to be moved out of the way, but it's very easy to use poorly.
8 The Merry - Rob The Rich, Give To The Poor
Perhaps the most thematically appropriate crew/ability combo, The Merry are the lovable rebels players met in Volume, one of Mike Bithell's other games. The Robin Hood vibes are not gone here, as even in the world of spies, their mission statement holds true.
The Merry will drain power from whatever crew they're placed on. This means they'll deactivate the K, Q & J of that crew and then give that power to the K, Q & J of other crews on the board who don't have power, either because they've used it or haven't been activated yet. It's not a bad ability on paper, but it can be annoying when crews that needed power don't get it. What really sinks The Merry, though, is that another crew does their job far better.
7 Scorpio - Kidnapping...And Not A Lot Else
The most traditional James Bond-style spies in the game, Scorpio, do everything with class and dignity and a hint of old-fashioned gameplay. Even kidnapping. It may be a rather hostile method, but who can argue with results? They get the job done by any means necessary.
On the surface, Scorpio's ability seems like a major problem. They steal the lowest-available card of whatever suit they're placed on and drag it to the bottom of the stack. That means it just buries the lowest cards, right? If players use it on a big stack, then yes. However, if a low card is already buried in a big stack, and the player uses Scorpio's ability on a small stack, then that low card is actually much easier to get to. Misuse can make for some difficult situations, but clever spymasters will get a lot out of it.
6 Incognito Limited - Masters Of Disguise
Futuristic hackers who've developed the world's strongest disguise technology, Icongito Limited are the most unknown people in the world. They can be anyone and get into basically anywhere, and they are brilliant at sowing chaos.
Their ability is no different, and how useful it is really comes down to luck. Quite simply, they shuffle any stack they're placed on. Completely random, no preference for high or low cards. It could put that vital low card at the top, or it could bury it even deeper than it already was. Just roll the dice and hope for a good outcome.
5 Mantis Group - Explosions!
The very first crew players get to control, Mantis Group are a rough bunch who get the job done. Finesse is not in their vocabulary, but it doesn't need to be, as their chaotic style ensures they'll win any fight they get into.
Their ability is similarly imprecise but still rather useful. They "explode" any stack they're placed on and scatter all the cards in it onto other stacks. This has two major advantages. One, the cleared stack is the perfect place to deposit any high cards that are in the way. Two, all of the cards that were in that stack are now on top of all the other stacks. It can create some annoying blockages, but all the useful cards buried in that stack are now available to use.
4 Omega Coda - Thomas Is No Longer Alone
AI technology is incredibly advanced in the universe Bithell's games are set in (just look at Subsurface Circular) for proof. While many of these AIs grew to give themselves bodies, some stayed as entirely digital entities, and that's what Omega Coda are — Hackers who exist as pure data.
Their ability is hard to misuse. They surface all cards that are the same value as the one they're placed on. Like the opposite of Atlantis Project, place them on a seven, and all the sevens rise to the top. The only downside is that there isn't always a good card on top of the piles to surface. It's generally just bad luck when that happens, but it's not impossible.
3 Drive Team Six - Fast & Furious
When it comes to getaway drivers, these are the top of the pile. Current top pro & street racers, these guys can get out of anywhere in no time flat. They seem like cool people who probably care a lot about family or something.
Their ability is the first to not really have any downsides. The only real downside is how easily it could be wasted because it's so useful. They will "extract" the next needed card of whatever suit their placed on and automatically put it onto the right pile. It's clean & simple, they just need to be held back until they're truly needed.
2 Alpha Division - IT Support
The final crew unlocked in the main story, Alpha Division are the tech experts who keep the whole spying operation running. They're not so great at fighting on murdering, but they've got the gadgets and know-how to make up for it.
Alpha Division's ability is the opposite of Blood Legacy. Where they re-order a stack low to high, Alpha Division re-order a stack high to low. This means all of the useful low cards are right at the surface, ready for the picking. This does have the downside of burying the K, Q & Js with the abilities, but that's a worthwhile tradeoff to have access to easy low cards.
1 Humanity+ - Publicly Traded Espionage
Humanity+ are an interesting case because they don't hide in the shadows. Where most crews like to work in secret, Humanity+ likes to show off that they are at the forefront of human-augmentation technology by using it in the field and then showing the world.
Humanity+'s ability may sound like a disaster at first, but it's the complete opposite. Their ability removes all of the secured cards on the deck, including the Ace, and scatters them back into the field. It sounds terrible, but those cards are always on top of the decks and can immediately be re-stacked.
This has a HUGE advantage, as it "reboots" that crew's abilities. If the K, Q & J of that crew had used up their abilities, this would recharge them. The "3 per crew" limit on abilities is now made infinite with Humanity+. It's not the best for players looking to complete missions in the fewest moves, and it takes some real know-how to make work, but it's a wonderous help on the field in general.