New York, New York – Today, independent developer Zach Gage, creator of the hit game SpellTower, and co-developer of the Apple Design Award winner Ridiculous Fishing, released Sage Solitaire, a brand new solitaire variant that combines the luck and joy of Klondike Solitaire with the depth of Poker, made specifically for mobile phones.

Solitaire is one of, if not the most successful games and computer games of all time. The problem is most popular variants of Solitaire are not really optimized for play on phones, and in-fact, as designed, are not even great games. Sage Solitaire is a modern solitaire game, that fixes the biggest problems of solitaire, and the result is a great game for everyone with a phone.

Sage Solitaire Facts:
* Sage Solitaire is now free-to-download from the iTunes App Store worldwide
* A one-time $2.99 in-app purchase unlocks additional game modes, and customization features
* An online presskit featuring screenshots and a video trailer is available online
* Qualified press can obtain a full review copy, by contacting the developer

Interesting Solitaire Facts:
* While the titles of Solitaire and Patience, and the myth of Napoleon playing solitaire while incarcerated all point to possible French origin, most experts place the birth of solitaire in the Baltics, Germany, and/or Scandinavia.

* The earliest mention of solitaire in print is 1746, but the more well-known card game variants arise more toward the later part of the century. The oldest known book referring to Patience was published in Moscow in 1826.

* In Dutch and Norwegian the word for solitaire refers to “Kabal” loosely translated as “secret knowledge” and may relate to some relationship certain solitaire games had to fortune telling.

* Wikipedia lists over 300 versions of Solitaire/Patience on its Web site. Variants of these games are said to reach into the thousands – nearly all of which were never invented specifically for play on mobile phones.

Solitaire and Computers:
* Microsoft is reported to have included solitaire in Windows to socialize the new mouse-style input required to operate a graphical user interface. The game was originally programmed by an intern, Wes Cherry, and the card-side artwork was from Susan Kare, who designed the original Macintosh’s icons, while Cherry’s girlfriend at the time helped design some of the infamous card backs.

* Microsoft Solitaire celebrated its 25th Anniversary in May of 2015. Ms. Kare recently released a physical card deck featuring her original artwork from the first version of Microsoft Solitaire.

* Freecell Solitaire, the second most well-known variant today, was itself a variant of older solitaire games created by then 10-year-old Paul Alfille who then programmed a version for the legendary computer network PLATO where it began its ascendance in popularity on computer systems and networks.

Device Requirements:
* iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch
* Optimized for iPhone 5, iPhone 6/6 Plus
* Requires iOS 6.0 or later
* 47.1 MB

Pricing and Availability:
Sage Solitaire 1.0 is Free and available worldwide exclusively through the App Store in the Games category. A one-time $2.99 (USD) in-app purchase unlocks additional game modes, and customization features.

Sage Solitaire 1.0
Download from iTunes
Vimeo Video (Trailer)
Screenshot
App Icon
Media Assets

Zach Gage is a game designer, programmer, educator, and conceptual artist from New York City. His work often explores the power of systems, both those created by social interaction in digital spaces, and those that can be created for others, through the framing of games. An Eyebeam Alumni, Apple Design and Game of The Year Award Winner, and BAFTA Nominee, he has exhibited internationally at venues like the Venice Biennale, the New York MoMA, The Japanese American National Museum in Los Angeles, XOXO Festival in Portland, FutureEverything in Manchester, The Centre for Contemporary Art Ujazdowski Castle in Warsaw, and in Apple stores worldwide. His work has been featured in several online and printed publications, including The New York Times, The New York Times Magazine, EDGE Magazine, Rhizome.org, Neural Magazine, New York Magazine, and Das Spiel und seine Grenzen (Springer Press). In games, he is best known for SpellTower, Ridiculous Fishing, and Lose/Lose. All Material and Software (C) Copyright 2015 Zach Gage. All Rights Reserved. Apple, the Apple logo, iPhone, iPod and iPad are registered trademarks of Apple Inc. in the U.S. and/or other countries.