Just Mahjong Online

Mahjong, which is an ancient Chinese game of skill and strategy, is also popular in online gaming sites and casinos. Owing to its popularity, many online casinos have started offering online Mahjong to their players for free and also for real money. Maybe you could use some of your bonuses to pay for your first real mahjong game!

If you have enjoyed playing this game for free, possess the necessary skills and are aware of the key strategies, you can now play it at an online casino for winning some real money. However, depending on the variation of this game you’re playing, you could even get a bit lucky with your strategies.

How to Play Mahjong

Mahjong is a matching game that is usually played with 4 players, although the Japanese solo version can be played by a single individual. A game of Mahjong is usually has 4 people playing against each other, where each player is given a set of 13 tiles. The four players take the four sides and a Mahjong wall, which is a set of 24 face-down tiles, is set in the middle. To win a game of Mahjong, all you need to do is find matching pairs for the 13 tiles you have and clear away your set.

There are 136 tiles made of four suits in classic Chinese Mahjong, and the player who clears all his tiles first wins. Solo Mahjong has 144 tiles that are face up, and single player has to match the two identical tiles from the top or side, without disturbing the remaining tiles.

Online Mahjong

Online Mahjong is similar to live Mahjong except that you would be using virtual tiles and playing the game on your computer. To play online Mahjong, all you need to do is find an online casino offering this game, and create an account with them. You may have to download the software for multiplayer Mahjong, but most sites let you play solo Mahjong using flash software. Mahjong can be played either for free or for real money.

Popular Online Mahjong Variations

There are different ways to play Mahjong, although the most common online version is the Hong Kong or the Cantonese Mahjong. Following are some of the variations of Mahjong you can play online.

Classical Chinese Mahjong – Classical Chinese Mahjong is perhaps the oldest format of Mahjong from which the other versions have been derived. This format consists of 136 tiles, and is played in 4 rounds, with each player having 13 tiles to discard.

Solo Mahjong – This is a popular version of Mahjong that is found on the internet. As the name goes, this game is played by a single player, whose aim is to clear all the tiles by matching them. The player starts off with a ready hand and has to find the right tiles from the wall, which has 24 face-down tiles, to match his set of 13 for a win.

American Mahjong – The American version of Mahjong is a lot different from the classic Chinese game. American Mahjong has 166 tiles, and is played by four players with each getting 14 tiles. The game also involves use of dice racks, jokers, score cards etc, with rules that are different from the Chinese version.