Undersea Solitaire Tripeaks is one of Plarium’s most recent casual games. Known for narrative-driven games in the strategy and RPG genres such as RAID: Shadow Legends and the Stormfall series, the Israel-based developer has now launched a fresh take on the classic solitaire game with an aquatic twist. The game is currently available to download for Android and iOS users.
Undersea Solitaire Tripeaks follows the story of Alfred the Crab who used to live in the idyllic undersea town of Rocky Bottom. Hit by a devastating whirlpool, his home now lies in shambles and your task is to assist your new friend in rebuilding his town. Along the journey, the narrative will get even more elaborated and so you’ll get uncover ancient artifacts, welcome new friends, and even solve crimes.
The game mixes Solitaire mechanics to drive the story forward. To unlock new renovations and chapters, players will have to engage in Solitaire levels and solve them successfully in order to win stars. There’s more than 2,000 levels to beat and a large variety of gameplay mechanics that are guaranteed to keep players engaged and coming back for more.
The rules that govern Undersea Solitaire Tripeaks are easy to understand, so new players shouldn’t have any issues getting started with the game. However, you might reach a point where it becomes increasingly hard to clear a level. Hopefully, we can give you some ideas of how to proceed when that happens with our Undersea Solitaire Tripeaks guide which contains a collection of tips and tricks meant to help you beat levels faster.
1. Don’t Rush When Deciding Your Next Move
Winning a level in Undersea Solitaire Tripeaks means completely clearing the game’s tableau. At the bottom part of the display, you’ll notice a deck of cards and one of them is facing upwards. This is the active card which you can use to remove other cards from the board.
Check out the cards that are laid out and facing you and choose one that is either one point higher or lower than your active card. So if you have a K as an active card, your next one should be either a Q or an A. If you pick the Q, the next card should be a J or a K. It can be either black or red, the color doesn’t matter.
This is the basic rule around which all of the puzzles in Undersea Solitaire Tripeaks revolve. It’s simple enough, but even so, you shouldn’t get overly confident. Make sure you really think over your next move, don’t just tap on the first option you see.
Consider the alternatives before you decide what to do, because most of the times you’ll have to pick between different paths. If you move too quickly, you might even miss out on a match. This behavior decreases your chances of successfully completing the level and drains your resources, as you’ll be compelled to use the Back button to bring back the active card you failed to match, and this costs gold.
2. When Choosing Your Next Card Make Sure It Unlocks More Cards
As mentioned above, sometimes your active card might be a match for multiple cards in the tableau. For example, let’s say your active card is a 5 and there are various options to match it with on the board including a 6 and a 4. How do you decide which card to pick for your next move? Well the first thing you should ask yourself is this – which of these cards is sitting on top of a larger pile of cards?
You need constantly be uncovering new cards on the board in order for you to progress fast and efficient, so if the 6 is sitting on top of large pile of cards (see screenshot), while the 4 doesn’t really reveal any new cards, you should pick the former.
At the same time, you should survey the tableau and see whether it’s possible to make a longer combination of cards. For instance, you can follow up the 6 with a 7, but if you choose the 4 you can follow it up with a 3. In this particular example, the two routes are similar in terms of length.
But what if you could add another 2 and then an A or a 3 to the chain. Then you should select the longer route instead. Getting rid of a larger number of cards, will reveal additional ones. Not to mention it will feed the streak meter and perhaps you’ll be able to get an extra card.
So remember, always make sure you chose the variant that can reveal more cards – whether we’re talking about creating a long chain of cards or simply picking the card that sits on top of a bigger pile of cards.
3. Strive To Remove 5 Cards In A Row
Speaking of which, you should try your best to remove 5 cards in a row as often as possible. This feeds your streak meter (shown in the upper right corner) and when it finally fills up, an extra card will be added to your deck, thus improving your chances of success.
It’s not always easy to create chains of 5 cards, but you should strive to do so, nevertheless. Apply the previous tips we’ve discussed to make it happen more often. You should take your time to consider the options you have available first and see which one is more conductive of you removing 5 cards in a row.
Most of the times you’ll get an extra card for your efforts, but sometimes, when luck strikes, you will also be able to grab a Booster card. This will automatically be shuffled into your deck. We’ll talk more about Booster cards in section 5.
We can’t stress enough the importance of not rushing and taking the time to review the board and the cards at your disposal before making your next move. There will be some instances where you’ll need to move rather quickly, that’s true, but in most cases taking a more sluggish approach will work best for your interests.
4. Get Rid Of The Blockers As Soon As Possible
Levels in Undersea Solitaire Tripeaks are often populated by special cards or blockers. As their name indicates, they block a card into place, so you can’t interact with it until you perform a certain action. Below we’ve listed some common blockers you’ll be stumbling upon while playing this game.
The Lock Block
This card needs a key in order to be removed from the board. It usually sits on a big pile of cards, so your access to them is restricted unless you get rid of it. Therefore, it’s essential that you remove it as soon as possible. Make sure you move quickly and search for the key in the other piles you do have access to.
The Net Block
The net block keeps a card in place, so you won’t be able to use it unless you unlock it with the appropriate active card. Once the nets fall, you can take advantage the card as usual. Most of the times, net blocks appear on cards that sit on top of large stacks of cards, so you will need to get rid of them fast, in order to turn over other cards and advance the game.
Focus on these blocked cards, whenever they appear, or else you risk not being able to access certain parts of the cards that appear on the tableau.
The Bomb
The bomb is a nasty little surprise. When it shows up you’ll just have a few seconds to remove a certain card from the board, or else the bomb will explode and kill a bunch of cards from your deck. Avoid that at all cost by working as quickly as possible to remove the bomb. In this case, you shouldn’t linger too much when making a decision about your next move.
Once the bomb is gone from the board, you can relax and slow your pace down again. Some levels feature not just one bomb, but many, so scraping one bomb doesn’t mean you’re automatically done with this threat.
These are but a few examples of the special cards you’ll be encountering while playing Undersea Solitaire Tripeaks, but our advice is valid across all of them. Make sure you prioritize getting rid of these blocks first, so you can have unrestricted access to the other ones.
5. Use Boosters When You Absolutely Have To
Some levels in Undersea Solitaire Tripeaks can get really difficult, but our advice is not to give up on them after first couple of tries. Try several times to solve the level on your own. Maybe take a break and return to the game at a later time with a clear mind, and see if you can solve the level then.
Yes, the game offers up some aids in the form of Boosters which can help you solve levels faster, but your ability to get access to them depends on your cash reserve, which is pretty limited. You usually get a gold coin reward after each successfully completed level. The sum varies depending on how many cards you got left in the deck and the difficulty of that level. The more leftovers you have, the larger the reward will be, so be sure to keep that in mind.
Anyway, Boosters cost gold, so if you keep using them you’ll end up cashless pretty soon. There are three tools that are available to equip before a level starts including:
Block Remover Booster
This power-up removes all obstacles from the board. For example, during a level where you have to deal with nets and bombs, this booster will take it upon itself to automatically remove them all for you, so you won’t have to worry or rush to get rid of them as fast as possible.
3-Card Cleaner Booster
This is a great Booster to use when you’re constantly very close to finishing the level, but can’t get rid of the last 2-3 cards by the end. With this power-up equipped you can take out a maximum of 3 cards from the board and win the challenge.
Easy Streak Booster
Remember that we told you should try your best to remove 5 cards in a row so that you can expand your deck of cards? Well with this Booster under your belt, you only have to remove 4 cards in a row to activate the streak meter.
Don’t forget that all these Boosters cost gold to equip, so think twice before activating them. The Card Cleaner Booster for example will take you back with 400 gold coins.
Now there are other power-ups available to help you beat levels. During each level, you’ll notice a Back button which allows you to bring back the previous active card. This is handy in case you weren’t fully paying attention and you missed a match, but it will cost you to make this maneuver. The first time you press on the Back button you’ll have to pay 200 coins, but this amount increases with frequency of use.
If you failed a level, but you were close to finishing it, there’s also the option to buy 5 extra cards in exchange for 700 coins. You should only do so if you’re absolutely sure you can clear the level using these additional resources, which means having just a few cards left on the board.
Another Booster available is the Joker card. This is a golden action card on top of which you can place virtually any other card from your board. It costs 1000 coins to get one, but fortunately you can win one occasionally, so you won’t normally have to spend such an impressive amount of cash.
The same goes for the other Boosters, you can win some while playing the game and making progress or by participating in events, but we’ll talk more about those in an upcoming section.
The best thing you can do when seeking help is to spend 400 coins on a pre-level Booster and try to make the best of it to solve the level. It’s the cheapest option you have at your disposal, the other ones will really deplete your resources, and you want to conserve as much gold as possible.
6. Don’t Ignore The Story Line
For some players, it might be tempting to just focus on the solitaire levels and ignore the renovation aspect of the game. We don’t recommend doing so. While it’s possible to do just that, moving forward with the storyline has its perks.
Use the stars you’ve accumulated to rebuild Alfred’s town and help his buddies who also need some support for completing various tasks. While you do that, you’ll fill up the progress bar for each chapter of the story. Once you’ve fully completed one you’ll be able to unlock rewards which consist of gold, boosters and additional lives.
Moreover, some of the tasks you have to complete while helping Alfred might yield additional gold. So following the storyline is worth it, and you should spend a few minutes using up the stars you’ve won each day. The good news is that there’s a fast forward button you can use, so you don’t have to sit through all the dialogue if you don’t want to.
7. Make The Most Of Your Gold
Gold is an essential resource in Undersea Solitaire Tripeaks. As we already explained, you get access to it by playing levels and completing the solitaire challenges presented to you. Make sure you don’t go around spending gold on needless things and store it for when you truly need it.
Once you’ve unlocked a new renovation you can select one of the three options you like best. But if you change your mind later on, you can go back and replace the decor with something else. The problem is that doing so will cost you gold, so we advise against it. Or at least wait until you’ve amassed a bigger sum and then go ahead if you really care about the township’s aesthetics.
As we suggested above, make sure you continue with the story line as to be able to unlock progress rewards. These gifts you get at the end of each chapter contain all kinds of stuff including gold, so don’t ignore the story if you want to have enough cash at your disposal to fix a momentary lapse in judgement or get extra 5 cards to finish off a level.
Also, keep in mind that you should always strive to complete the daily missions. These are shown if you tap on the check list-shaped icon in the right side of the display. Check to see what you have to do every day in order to unlock token prizes which can be used to win more gold.
It’s an also a good idea to log into the game on a daily basis. Even if you don’t have time to start an extended gaming session, just take a few seconds out of your day to visit the game and redeem the daily gift. These will accumulate, and by the time your schedule has cleared up and you can devote some time to the game, you’ll have a nice stash of resources ready and waiting for you.
By the way, you can get a quick infusion of gold by logging in with your Facebook account. If you’re willing to do that you will be rewarded with 500 coins. Invite friends to join the game, and you will be able to cash in even more. Also, you’ll be able to ask them for assistance whenever you run out of lives, although in our experience this rarely happens in this game.
8. Use Events To Your Advantage
Undersea Solitaire Tripeaks is populated with numerous events, some of which contain separate mini games of their own. Play them and you can win important rewards including coins, Boosters and more.
The events in this game are quite different between them. Some can extend over the range of a whole month, so you have plenty of opportunities to make good use of what they are offering.
To give you an example, during the Scrapbook event you have to use Tokens to complete all the pictures in a scrapbook to grab different prizes. Tokens are additional resources you can earn in exchange for completing daily missions or taking part in events. These can then be used to pay for picture scraps.
Other events have their own mini-games embedded into them. For example, during Treasure Path you get to spin a wheel to gain moves, so you can advance on a board and win different prizes. To spin, you’ll have to play Solitaire levels in the same vein as the ones in the standard game.
The difference is you’ll have to pay with gold (200 coins) to unlock each level. If you have enough cash to spend, starting up on the Treasure Path is truly worth it since the rewards are quite substantial. But if you don’t have that much saved up, you should probably wait until the event makes a comeback.
Another type of event has you collecting a certain kind of resource and once you have enough you get to grab prizes. For example, during Pearl Dive you are tasked to collect pearls while beating levels to unlock the Grand prize which consists of 1,500 coins. You have approximately 3 days to do so. Pearls are plastered on top of random cards on the board, so when you remove those cards you will also collect the pearls.
Our advice is to check the events on the right and left part of the display, the first time you log into the game each day. There might be rewards waiting for you from events that have ended, and you should definitely collect them before they expire. This way you’ll also be able to keep up with the events that are still ongoing.
With this tip we wrap up our Undersea Solitaire Tripeaks guide. We hope the tricks we’ve included will help you solve these levels a lot quicker. If you happen to know more strategies for this game which weren’t included in this article, fell free to share them with us by posting a comment below!