What NERTS! Online is
NERTS! Online is a fast-paced competitive solitaire game. Each player runs their own solitaire layout while racing to empty a special pile called the Nerts pile. It comes from a game the Zachtronics team learned from their artist Kyle, who had played it for years, and it became a regular after-lunch habit in their office. Over time they added house rules, longer tournaments, and a theme song. When the team moved to working from home in early 2020, they built a rough online version to keep playing together, and that eventually became this release.
Playing with your group
You can play with up to five of your friends, all going head to head in the same match. Everyone plays their own cards at the same time, so the table stays busy and the pace stays quick. The game includes some Zachtronics house rules, such as letting players move cards between their Nerts pile and their tableau after Nerts has been called. The developers describe it as the way they play it in the office, so expect the same mix of speed and table chaos you would get from a group of people slapping cards down after lunch.
Before you start
The game is free to play. Card backs can be unlocked by owning other Zachtronics games, and there is an optional Sponsorship Package DLC that adds a NERTS! Online themed card back plus a special holographic foil effect usable with the other card backs. None of that affects the cards you play with, so you can jump straight in with your group.