Phantom Solitaire 3

Now, I'm not saying Phantom Solitaire 3 is a cause worth contacting Trading Standards over, but I do think its name warrants a second look.

That's partly because I can't quite believe the developer has managed to eke three games out of this conceit, and partly because dropping 'Phantom' into the game's title seems about as honest as packing a ham sandwich with nothing more than a polaroid of a pig.

Let me explain: Phantom Solitaire 3 is - as thousands of games have been before it - a card game pack.

Nine versions of solitaire - Klondike, Freecell, Spider, Pyramid, Tripeaks, Golf, Chinese, Yukon, and Spiderette - are on offer in this particular collection, with the game monitoring both the number of moves you make and the time you take to complete each puzzle.

You can use either the D-pad or the number keys to move your cursor around: the '5' key acts as the action button, whether you're picking up cards or depositing them.

Despite the suggestion of adventure hinted at in the game's title, Phantom Solitaire 3 is as vanilla a package as you're ever likely to encounter.

The 'haunted' nature of Phantom Solitaire 3 amounts to one rather dodgy sketch of five ghosts that serves as a backdrop to each and every one of the games. This quintet of spirits doesn't even move - they don't alter, twist, or turn in any respect.

The whole thing, in fact, seems like little more than an attempt to rebrand the same card package we've all purchased several times before, ready for Halloween.

So, in a manner just as economical as Phantom Solitaire 3's gameplay, let me conclude by saying this: don't buy this game. Don't touch it.

Pick up one of the other thousand solitaire games available (like the excellent Platinum Solitaire 3) or, at least, wait for the inevitable Father Christmas Solitaire pack to hit the digital stands in a few weeks.