Carte

Carte is a 1993 freeware card game for the Macintosh by Art Min, modeled on UNO. The player competes against up to five computer-controlled opponents, each with their own digitized voice commentary. The winner is the player holding the fewest points when one player crosses a configurable ceiling score.

How it plays

Like UNO, Carte revolves around matching colors and numbers from a hand of cards, with action cards that disrupt opponents. Up to five AI players join the table, each chatting via digitized voice clips that give the game its personality.

Scoring

Rather than racing to be first out, Carte tracks penalty points across rounds. Play continues until one opponent reaches a chosen ceiling, at which point the player with the lowest score is declared the winner.

Presentation

Carte was notable in the early-1990s Mac shareware scene for its sampled voice work for each opponent, an unusual flourish for a freeware card game of the era.

Coverage

The game also appeared on a MacFormat cover-disc spread, evidence of how widely small Mac freeware titles were redistributed through magazine media at the time.