Mahjong is a game that originated in China. Players must arrange tiles of five different types in specific combinations. The beautiful illustrations on the tiles are based on Chinese symbols. The game quickly became popular in the US when it was first introduced in the 1920s.
Where can you play Mahjong?
Classic Mahjong involves using 144 tiles and four players can play it. The social game is entertaining, and family and friends can get together and enjoy it.
Another option today is to play Mahjong online using a casino games app on your mobile phone. There are many different online versions of the game, including those you can play by yourself or with others. You can play free versions or opt to play for real money.
What do Mahjong tiles depict?
Mahjong is a puzzle game with a setup that uses a base layer of 144 tiles in a specific shape and three other layers on top of this. The Mahjong tiles depict:
- dots
- bamboo
- Chinese characters
- winds of the four cardinal directions
- dragons
- flowers
- seasons
The tile setup
The traditional Mahjong setup of tiles has four arms that jut out from the corners of the bottom square layer. You may enjoy playing Mahjong on your own, and you can spend money shopping online if you choose to buy the tiles at an online store. There are also templates available online that show you how to set up the tiles. When you become a more seasoned player, you can experiment with setting up tiles your own way. You just need to ensure that you have a large base with arms that jut out and tiles that are open for removal.
How do you play Mahjong online?
One of the reasons why people love Mahjong is the social aspect. Another is the concentration it requires and the exercise it gives to the brain. Today, there are many options for playing Mahjong online. Whether you play with real pieces or online, the rules are basically the same. There are hundreds of different layouts available. The goal of the game is to remove tiles from play by matching identical pairs. The stacking of the tiles in the pyramid shape introduces challenges.
You can only use a tile if it is not covered by another tile and if it is open on the left or right side. You can freely match any of the flower or season tiles. As there are four tiles for potential pairing, this involves strategy. You have to choose the tiles that you think will open up more tiles in the future. Your score depends on how many of the tiles you remove and the speed at which you play.