What is the difference between Singapore and Hong Kong mahjong?

Singapore mahjong differs from the mahjong played in Hong Kong as it includes four animal bonus tiles: the cat, mouse, chicken and centipede. Curiously enough, these animals come as two pairs with a predator-prey relationship: the cat and the rat, as well as the chicken and the centipede.

Is Hong Kong Mahjong different?

Although the game play in general is similar in all of the versions of mahjong, the game pieces and scoring, however, slightly differ depending on the regional variations. Almost similar to gin rummy, the object of mahjong is to build sets, as well as get the highest point value.

What are the different versions of mahjong?

What is the difference between American and Hong Kong mahjong?

What is the difference between American and Chinese mahjong? Traditional Chinese mahjong sets have 144 tiles, while American version is played with eight additional joker tiles and different score cards.

What is Singapore mahjong similar to?

Similar to Singapore Mahjong, Riichi Mahjong is the Japanese variant of mahjong. With most of the rules are very similar.

Hong Kong Mahjong - What to look for when buying a Hong Kong Mahjong Set

What is the most popular version of mahjong?

Hong Kong: This is also known as the Cantonese version, and it is believed to be the most popular version of mahjong.

Should I get American or Chinese mahjong?

The set you buy will vary in the number of tiles and other game elements based on the rules of the particular version. When in doubt, buy an American mahjong set since they usually contain all the tiles used in Chinese mahjong and can be converted with some substitutions.

Is Chinese mahjong harder than American mahjong?

A: There are around forty known mah-jongg variants - and more than a dozen Chinese variants! Those other variants are not harder to learn than American mah-jongg. American is the hardest to learn of them all.

Can you use an American mahjong set to play Chinese mahjong?

NOTE: If you buy an American set, you can use it to play Chinese mah-jongg as well (there are more than the required number of tiles present). But Chinese sets cannot be used to play American mah-jongg (not enough tiles).

Where is mahjong most popular?

The game and its regional variants are widely played throughout East and Southeast Asia and have also become popular in Western countries. The game has also been adapted into a widespread online entertainment.

Which version of mahjong should I learn?

In my opinion, two absolutely the best Mahjong variants are Mahjong Competition Rules (MCR, a.k.a. Chinese Official) and Japanese “Riichi”, but they both are fairly complex. As the best variant for the beginners, I suggest Sichuan Bloody Rules (SBR). American Mahjong is also pretty good.

What is the easiest version of mahjong?

The simplest ruleset is Hong Kong Old Style (HKOS). It has simple scoring and very few special hands. Other forms may have few special hands but complex scoring - or simple scoring but many special hands to learn - or complex scoring and many special hands to learn (like American Mahjong).

What are the five types of mahjong?

A hand containing these five types: characters tile, circles tile, bamboos tile, wind tile and dragon tile.

What is the difference between Chinese mah-jongg and American mah-jongg?

The main difference is that the hands allowed in American Mah Jongg are listed on a card and these hands change on a regular basis, usually annually. The allowed hands in Chinese Mahjong never change. Another key difference is The Charleston in American Mah Jongg (an exchange of tiles at the beginning of the game).

What direction does Hong Kong Mahjong go?

In Hong Kong Mahjong, There are 4 rounds: East, South, West and North Round. Within each round, the winds / seating position will rotate as follows: East, South, West, North (counterclockwise). The wind / seat won't rotate if: East is the winner OR dead hand (nobody wins) OR wrong mahjong declared.

What is the American version of mahjong?

American mahjong is played with four players using mah jongg tiles. The goal of the game is to be the first, by picking and discarding, to match one's tiles to a specific hand from the annually distributed scorecard published by the National Mah Jongg League (NMJL) and American Mah-Jongg Association (AMJA).

What does mahjong mean in English?

or mah-jongg (ˌmɑːˈdʒɒŋ ) noun. a game of Chinese origin, usually played by four people, in which tiles bearing various designs are drawn and discarded until one player has an entire hand of winning combinations. Word origin. from Chinese, literally: sparrows.

Can you play mahjong without knowing Chinese?

There's no way around this, HSK haters: in order to play, you need to be able to read some Chinese and pronounce numbers in Mandarin, plus a few extra words to name the suits and announce your actions.

What is the most expensive mahjong set?

What is the difference between Singapore mahjong?

Singapore mahjong differs from the mahjong played in Hong Kong as it includes four animal bonus tiles: the cat, mouse, chicken and centipede. Curiously enough, these animals come as two pairs with a predator-prey relationship: the cat and the rat, as well as the chicken and the centipede.

Does mahjong improve IQ?

In this study, children who continuously participated in the Mahjong classes for 1 year demonstrated increased IQ scores. By subscale index, the increase in VCI and PSI was large, whereas the increase in PSI was significant compared with the historical control group (p = 0.02).

Is there a secret to mahjong?

Have a clear plan of attack – Think about the direction you want to take your hand and stick with it, while also remaining flexible. Picking up tiles for the sake of it won't work, and patience will always win out in the end. If your strategy isn't working, change tactics and look for other winning possibilities.

Is mahjong more skill or luck?

Mahjong game is dependent on skills , not luck. Although sometimes , getting a wrong card can also result to winning a game. There are instances where a player have very poor basic cards but good skills, thus they utilized rigorous card control to prevent other players from winning.

What are the best winning mahjong hands?

All Chows without any animal or bonus tiles (平和) and Mixed Suit (混一色) the more common winning hands in a game of Mahjong. These two combinations have a 1 in 16 chance of happening throughout a round of mahjong. It is a winning hand which consists only of consecutive numbers in sets of three.