A free poker puzzle for Android and the web, where the cards are only the beginning and Master Shen is already watching your rows.
Thirteen cards, three rows
Thirteen cards. Three rows. One rule: no row may outrank the one behind it. Sanshui: Poker Puzzle is a free poker puzzle game for Android, and it turns an old card-table challenge into a quiet, clever test of nerve. You will not be bluffing anyone. You will be arranging.
The puzzle
Here is the puzzle. You set your 13 cards into a 3-card front, a 5-card middle and a 5-card back. The back must be your strongest hand, the middle must not beat the back, and the front must not beat the middle. Get it wrong and the rows fall out of order. Get it right and you start to see how many ways a single deal can be read.
Tokens that rewrite the rows
Then the tokens arrive, and the table starts to move. Flush and Straight triangles rewrite a row. Adders give a row an extra cell. Blocks stand in your way. A Hazard voids a row entirely. Spy and Swap bring their own mischief. There are no special cards and no paid boosts: just your thirteen cards and the tokens you choose to play.
Instant wins
Some hands end the argument at once. The Dragon, the Dragon Flush, Six Pairs, Three Flushes, Imperial Court and many more win outright, each with its own pixel animation. In Imperial Court the prince, the empress, the king and the emperor take the table. Spot one in your deal and the pixels do the rest.
Three ways to play
Puzzle takes you through levels 1 to 100, climbing the tiers Apprentice, Journeyman, Adept, Master, Grandmaster, Serpent and Twin Serpents, then on into Master Shen’s own tier. The deeper you go, the deeper it goes. Timed asks you to beat par for three stars, and your Presence, your longest unbroken run, is the one number on the leaderboard. Shen is the duel: a 10-second curse window, then a 35-second battle against Master Shen himself.
Presence
Presence is your longest unbroken run, and it is the one number on the Timed leaderboard. It rewards steadiness over flash: how long you can hold your nerve with the clock running.
A world with its eyes on you
The world around the cards is part of the pull. Dragons stare you down: plain, one-eyed, two-eyed and three-eyed. The Eight Immortals, the Seven Fairies and the Four Heavenly Kings all have their place. A phoenix keeps its nest, koi swim in Sheng Yan, and the water stirs when you least expect it.
Master Shen
Master Shen is the rival you will remember. He sets his waters against you and curses yours, and in Shen mode a 10-second curse window opens before the 35-second battle begins. Beat him once and you will want to face him again. He will be waiting.
Start with the back row
A tip for your first deal: begin with the back, and put your strongest five cards there. Then make sure the middle cannot beat it. The front has only three cards, so a pair or a high card is often all it needs. Once the rows sit in order, look at what the tokens can change.
Made for the Android player
Sanshui: Poker Puzzle is a game for people who like to think. A level is a small, sharp puzzle, easy to pick up when you have a few minutes, and deep enough to keep you at the table when you have more. Play on your Android phone or in the browser, and see how far the tiers will take you.
One purchase, ever
The demo is free. One purchase opens the full game, and it is the only purchase there will ever be. Nothing is sold mid-level to get you past a hard row.
The 5000 club
The first 5000 players to join the 5000 club get the full game free for life on release day, 23 December 2026. Join at the5000club.com. Find the game at fourstreetplo.com.
From the creator
Thanks for playing my game. Sportella, creator of Sanshui: Poker Puzzle
