I realised when I was getting my system back to normal (HD faliure – probably post on this at some point) that I have not written any posts about any of the really great freeware I use on my Mac. I realise that a lot of people do these top ten lists for interesting software or fun software for Macs. And a lot of them list programs you have to pay for.
My list is for USEFUL SOFTWARE I USE ALL THE TIME. And of course all software listed here is 100% FREE SOFTWARE. There is NO payware or shareware included. So here’s my up to date list of all the software I consider indispensable for my happy Mac life. These are vaguely in order of how often I use them.
Mahjong Club is the world’s favourite multiplayer Mahjong site. Play for free or real money in single hand, multi-hand and tournament style games against other Mahjong players from around the world. Ivory Mahjongg latest version: A free game for Mac, by Jeremy Karlson & Leigh. This new and free Mahjong sequel brings the game to all new heights Free.
Anyone have a recommendation on a PC computer program to teach how to play 'real' Mahjong, that's the 'real' Mahjong, not the stack of tiles solitaire game. L If you're interested in Japanese Riichi Mahjong (and if you're not, you should!) you should check out: Where Bart, I and others have some short mini-reviews of various PC, Flash and iOS games for Riichi Mahjong.
I also play on Tenhou (Fan-made English Instructions here: ) which is free and absolutely fantastic! I hope to see you at the virtual table! My favorite stand-alone mahjong program is Saikyo no Mahjong 3D. As you may have already guessed, there's not just one way to play 'real' mahjong.
There are a handful of very popular styles, and of course, each has problems. Thankfully, most of them (except American) play exactly the same except for scoring including any minimum score. I made a very short document on how to play called Rules for Basic Chinese Mahjong, and you can download it from this page: Once you have that down, you'll want to learn a more popular style.
You can create a free account at mahjongtime.com and use their online lessons to learn most of the popular styles. I think mahjong is played best in person, so I recommend that you either learn one style and start teaching it to friends, or find three friends who all want to learn and do it together. The best program, and I am still using it after many years, is Four Winds It plays many scoring variations, has a really good AI, and is free for trial purposes! Best one I have tried! Likewise share the comments on this.
Hands down this is the best PC mahjong program out there I think. I've been using in since 1998 (version 1), and I have just not found anything even remotely close. Great support by the developer over the years, and has depth both in terms of existing 'preset' rules, but also customisation to tweak to pretty much any variant you might come across. From recollection it won't teach you the game, but I wouldn't be scared by mahjong - its all about collecting sets, and after a few games you will have the base understanding. Well off you go and improve your skills. Funnily enough I was just looking at the knowledgebase/online documentation pages yesterday and there is some great material there, might give you a steer on which version of mahjong to kick off with and how to improve. Personally I cycle through all the presets, playing until I hit a personal best, then move on to the next one.
I have found that I do have some favoured rulesets, and equally some I am not keen on. What Four Winds gives you is the choice in one complete package. Edit: Also it does multiplayer over LAN etc.
Likewise share the comments on this. Hands down this is the best PC mahjong program out there I think. I've been using in since 1998 (version 1), and I have just not found anything even remotely close.
Having played 4 Winds for years, I can say that it's the most accessible for English speakers. However, the best Mahjong programs are developed in Japan (where the game still flourishes). Most are unknown in the west - but once you've gotten used to the Kanji (there are numerous free resources out there), it's really hard to to back to 4WMJ. Likewise share the comments on this. Hands down this is the best PC mahjong program out there I think.
I've been using in since 1998 (version 1), and I have just not found anything even remotely close. Having played 4 Winds for years, I can say that it's the most accessible for English speakers.
However, the best Mahjong programs are developed in Japan (where the game still flourishes). Most are unknown in the west - but once you've gotten used to the Kanji (there are numerous free resources out there), it's really hard to to back to 4WMJ. Dave Fair points.
My experience to date (and ignoring the english speaker aspect) is that those versions are rule specific. There is not one package that offer the variety of 4W's. If there is can you point me in the right direction as I would be very interested (Kanji or not). My experience to date (and ignoring the english speaker aspect) is that those versions are rule specific.
There is not one package that offer the variety of 4W's. Yes, you're absolutely right. The Japanese have lots of variations and options for rules (red 5s, red 3s, Open tanyao, pinfu–tsumo ari/nashi, etc) but it's all really just Riichi Mahjong which is only one of the many major variations of Mahjong available. After having experienced a large number of varieties, I liken Mahjong to Poker - and Riichi is Texas Hold'Em. Once I came to love that ruleset, I don't play any of the other flavors. There are many Japanese Riichi games which teach the rules. Most notably is the PSP version of Saki Portable - but it's all in Japanese.
After having experienced a large number of varieties, I liken Mahjong to Poker - and Riichi is Texas Hold'Em. Once I came to love that ruleset, I don't play any of the other flavors. IMO, Riichi isn't Texas Hold'Em. Texas Hold'Em is a specially refined version for competition play with the aim to emphasize the skills which are important to Poker (i.e. The betting and bluffing, rather than card luck). Features such as community cards (instead of private draws) and blind bets (instead of ante) clearly aim to reduce the luck, so that the game is more about the betting.
In contrast, Riichi has many rules which inflate the luck in the game, such as dora (esp. The newer rules: ura-dora and red fives, put way too many dora in the game), and excessive emphasis on concealed hands (putting luck of the draw above player interaction). Some pattern values are also way off, which is akin to ranking the Straight below the Two Pair. Also, the scoring is needlessly complex, with triplet-point counting in an environment where it has little significance.
So I'd liken Riichi to Draw Poker in the West (or 5-card Stud in the East, i.e. The main version played before Texas Hold'Em came onto the scene). Riichi has become popular in Japan tournament play, because it was the only thing they had when they developed tournament play. And lately it has gained a lot of popularity worldwide, because (ahem) its main competitor, namely MCR, is way below par.