Preferance

Preferance is a trick-taking card game especially popular in Imperial Russia, the Soviet Union, post-Soviet Russia, Austria, and the Balkans. It is thought to have been invented in the late 18th century and has been especially popular among the Soviet Intelligentsia and government officials. Preference is usually played for small stakes by 3-4 players[4]. A 2-player variant exists, but is not very popular. The game is sometimes considered a simplified variant of Bridge; like Bridge, there is a bidding round after which the hand is played out. It also has many similarities to the 500 card game. Preference is played with a Piquet deck of 32 cards consisting of 7, 8, 9, 10, Jack, Queen, King, and Ace in four suits.

History

Despite its French name (French: préférence) and the French terms found throughout the game, the earliest description of the game was traced to Das Neuestes Spielbuch of 1802[5], although the Russian variant may have been devised in the 1840s by the Russian nobility[1]. Another description is found in the German magazine Der Freymüthige, oder berlinische Zeitung für gebildete und unbefangene Leser, I, no. 58, of 12 April 1803, where the journalist describes the amusements of the Viennese after Carnival and says: "The dominating games are Whist, Boston, Ombre, Tarots, and Preference."

As well as developing and diversifying within Russia, and then the Soviet Union, the game of Preference expanded into other countries of Eastern and Central Europe, where variations were developed such as Austrian Preference and Balkan Preference. These games are substantially different from the current Russian game, although they are probably more similar to the original Preference. The game is largely based on Whist with the additional element of suit-based bidding borrowed from Boston. It quickly became very popular, attracting many famous players such as Leo Tolstoy