Game of the Year: Fairway Solitaire HD

I know what you're thinking, "He must be joking, right?" The short answer is no, but allow me a bit of elaboration. Fairway Solitaire HD is everything I love in a casual game. I love card games more than most--I carry a pack of cards with me wherever I go--and solitaire, in all its incarnations, is one of my favorite card games; I particularly love Tri Peaks solitaire, which Fairway Solitaire takes and mixes with a tiny bit of golf, thus the name. It's incredibly simple, but the game does what it needs to do extremely well and I'd marry the game if I could/if it wouldn't be weirder than a video game site called "Pixelated Sausage."

I love solitaire, but so what? You're still likely wondering why I picked Fairway Solitaire over all the other games on 2012. It's rather simple: Fairway Solitaire is the only game I play every single day; the only game that has stuck with me for eleven straight months. I have not gone a day without playing a few hands of solitaire in months, dropping well over a hundred hours, probably two-hundred, since I first played the game. Big Fish Games has done a good job supporting the game since launch--I am specifically talking about the iPad version--and cemented its place on the top of my list when daily courses were added, giving me a reason to play every single day; though, I am still a bit annoyed by the continued lack of Game Center support for the iPad version.

I know a lot of people won't agree with my choice, finding it as ridiculous as my co-host, but it is my choice and mine alone, which is something you have to remember when checking out "Game of the Year" awards on any site. If you've never played the game, I hope this gives you a reason to give it a chance--it's cheap and a great time (and also available on PC). I don't know what else to say because I feel like I've beat you all over the head with this game more than enough times throughout the year, so I think I'll end with a few of my stats. (These are all stats at the point of this writing, guaranteed to change by tomorrow.)

• Current Rank: Level 57
• Stars Earned: 1,775
• Trophies Earned: 1,041
• (Other) Trophies Won: 48/48
• Most Gold Bucks Earned: 2,954,145
• Most Courses Completed: 1,665

That's it and that's all folks...

Fairway Solitaire

Give the game a shot and maybe, just maybe, you'll love it as much as I do.

*Stats Update: 03/08/13

• Current Rank: Level 67
• Stars Earned: 2,417
• Trophies Earned: 1,588
• (Other) Trophies Won: 51/51
• Most Gold Bucks Earned: ??????? (Stat seems to be gone)
• Current Gold Bucks: 545,085 (All earned in-game)
• Most Courses Completed: 2,531