Dashabooja
A new release from Sean Gleeson is this original, online solitaire, 10-handed poker game of chance. Incorporating a uniquely animated, 10-armed gold statue called the Dashabooja, this new and unusual take on poker can even serve as an introduction to poker hands for those unfamiliar with the game.
The rules are very simple: 5 cards are dealt face up to each of 10 hands leaving only 2 cards remaining to the deck. The results are shown for each based on the ranking of poker hands with the better hands earning more. You decide whether to take the winnings as is, or risk it all to double your winnings by selecting the higher of the 2 cards that remain. That's all there is to it.
The presentation of Dashabooja is exceptional and really shows off Sean's talent in graphic design and interactive multimedia. The game, although a little light in the gameplay department, offers a decent diversion for anyone looking for a little solo luck-of-the-draw fun.
Also, dancemonkey and Ms.45 think you should also check out Wichita Faro, a more complicated take on the same theme, also developed by Sean Gleeson. It's an authentic look at "one of the most popular and celebrated saloon gambling games in the Old West" (Mark Howard). As is par for the course with Sean's work, the graphics and sound are top-notch, but ultimately you're betting on the turn of a card. It's fun for a five-minute diversion, but you won't be playing too many hands before you tire of the authentic taste of the Old West. It's a game best savored in small doses.
For me, the first game lasted about 15 minutes, and once i had my "strategy" down, the game got pretty borring..... max bet-> click on card on the right every time..
the other game could be skilful once you start counting cards, but i am too lazy to do that..... so i just lost after 3 rounds :P
good things: I liked the statue and the moving animals in the background
Ok to pass five minutes but no substitute for poker.
Which reminds me Jay i haven't seen you on Triplejack for ages.
It's a bit of a snooze fest. It looks nice, but the odds are in your favour that you'll do okay. I was trying to lose, and I came within 100 dollars, but I got a pocket pair with a full house which brought me back up to where I started. I'm now over 3,000 and I'm going to quit.
The game needs some sort of motivation for wanting to get higher.
I agree with Guido...there should be rewards for doing better.
But it seems pretty futile anyway...seems to me that whether or not you gamble on the 2 remaining cards, you would be equally well off. (Can someone confirm this?) Also means that strategy is impossible, because you can't improve your chances of keeping more winnings.
Am I missing something? It seems like you don't need to look at the poker hands at all - just choose whether to go double-or-nothing, and if you do, then choose right or left. Is there something else?
Woot! I got a royal flush! I have the screen cap to proove it too. It was worth 100,000 big ones. I should tried to double up...lol
No, I think that's pretty much it. Still, just the inclusion of the double-or-nothing make it a game that involves you more than, say, a slot machine, and those are still popular.
I think there may also be a way of telling which of the cards is higher, although it might also be that I was just lucky. :)
It looks pretty and I was impressed at first glance but there is really no incentive to keep playing beyond the three or four hands that I managed before I got bored. Perhaps having to recognise the hands yourself would add the element of skill this game really needs.
The story behind Dashabooja is facinating. I love that this was based on a real part of History. Too bad she is lost forever.....
Maybe it's a social experiment: How long will people play this variation of a casino 'game'? Since the offered amount is usually less than you paid, there's rarely any incentive to play the 'safe' option. So everyone ends up guessing a card each time. 50%/50% right? You should end up with the same amount of money after many hands, right? Wrong. Even if you 'win' the 50/50, your credits can still go down, but if you lose they will never go up. You'd have better results playing higher/lower against a random number generator.
Too bad the game isn't more engaging. It's beautifully designed and has a very polished look to it.
I hate to burst Dr_Pangloss' bubble (and anyone else who was duped as they were) but the "history" of Dashabooja is entirely fictional. There was no giant poker playing statue at the Great Expedition. As far as I can tell, there was no Ambrose Malarkey either, at least no famous one. Everything in the "legend" was made up by the creator of the game. Don't believe everything you read.
The odds of doubling up are 1:1. If you are getting better odds than that on your return, then you should try to double up. So, with max bet of 100, any win of 50 or more should be gambled.
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