Video Game Designer Puts New Twist on Poker with HTML5 CasinoRPG

Tired of losing to the house? Poker players will finally get a chance to BE the house in upcoming video game CasinoRPG.
James Simpson, an avid poker fan, and his company GoldFire Studios is trying to kick-start the ambitious game that will combine role-playing, social gaming and gambling games in a massively multiplayer format.
CasinoRPG has elements that may remind players of classic PC games like Railroad Tycoon and Rollercoaster Tycoon.
“This isn't Farmville with casinos, it is truly an MMORPG with a focus on poker and other casino games,” said Simpson.
“The game is played in real-time with friends and strangers alike, even away from the poker tables. Whether you are a marked cards poker, tycoon, city-builder, or RPG fan, there is something for you in CasinoRPG.”
The game is currently featured on Kickstarter and has already raised nearly $10,000 towards production.

From PokerRPG to CasinoRPG

James Simpson made his first poker video game in high school.

 

The 24-year-old Simpson is an intriguing story in his own right. He was motivated to design video games from a young age in Oklahoma City and GoldFire Studios was essentially born out of a number of projects he was working on during high school.
It was around this time Simpson started playing poker home games (he was too young to play in the casino) and quickly fell in love with the game.
Simpson wanted to do more than play home games, however. He wanted the complete poker experience. It was this desire that led him to create PokerRPG.
“The reason I started PokerRPG in 2006 was because I loved poker and I loved role-playing games but there was nowhere to play both at the same time,” he said.
The game gave users a chance to play cards but also customize their poker player avatar by designing their own pad, chat with friends and invest in poker stocks.
PokerRPG went on to develop a strong community and over 13 million hands have been played in the game.

Going Bigger and Better With CasinoRPG

Poker will play a big part of CasinoRPG

 

Simpson describes CasinoRPG as the next level of PokerRPG. You can still play poker in the game but there are also table games like blackjack and slots.
Players start out as a janitor in a casino but can eventually become the casino owner by gambling their way to the top. “As a casino owner, you can actually design and run your own casino, and other people can visit your casino and play your games,” he explained.
Poker is big business when it comes to social gaming. Games like Zynga Poker have hundreds of thousands of marked card tricks players.
“There is a large emphasis on poker specifically within CasinoRPG, and why we think this game will truly stand out in the crowd for poker players is because your winnings are no longer just a number,” he said.
“Most of today's free-to-play poker games just offer the poker, but no surrounding experience.”
Not so in CasinoRPG. In fact players will be able to able to build bigger and better casinos as well as lake-side mansions and sports cars.

CasinoRPG Part of HTML5 Revolution

CasinoRPG's entire world will run in-browser

 

Another major selling point of CasinoRPG is that it utilizes cutting-edge HTML5 technology, which means it will be playable in Internet browsers without any extra add-ons.
It’s a relatively new technology that’s still catching on in the gaming world.
“We've worked with platforms like Flash, Unity and native apps in the past, but they all have very specific drawbacks,” he said.
“HTML5 is finally maturing in a way that lets us address those drawbacks directly and present and truly cross-device experience that just can't exist on those other platforms.”
That means the game can be updated without players having to re-download the software. It also means CasinoRPG is fully accessible on both PCs and Macs.
“I believe people will be blown away by what they see running in a browser with no plugins or downloads,” he said.

How Video Games Could Change Real-Money Poker

Could a poker client like PokerStars be improved?

 

As someone that been designing games for a good portion of his life, Simpson has a unique perspective on the software behind major online poker sites such as PokerStars or Party Poker.
“I have played on PokerStars, Full Tilt Poker and Party Poker in the past,” he said.
“They all have solid pieces of software, but the common thread I've seen lacking has to do with communication. I almost never saw things like chat utilized by players at these sites.”
Simpson went on to say they’ve placed a heavy emphasis on community in CasinoRPG and one of the goals was to have players make friends at the table. There’s a great deal of communication and personalization at the tables.
“These are aspects that could still work well on real-money tables as well,” he said.
CasinoRPG has two more weeks on Kickstarter to make its goal of $20,000 in pledges. Poker fans can check out the Kickstarter page here.

Breaking Down the Three-Bet

In today's ultra aggressive online games, it seems like you can't sit at a table for more than one orbit without facing at least one reraise before the flop.
Many players, however, don't even understand the reasons behind their actions. They just three-bet because it's the popular thing to do.
Some players three-bet way too wide a range, and some way too tight a range.
Both extremes can be very exploitable, and understanding the underlying reasons behind three-betting will help you do it much more effectively.
There are essentially two types of three-bets: the three-bet for value and the "light" three-bet.

The Value Three-Bet

The value three-bet is the "traditional" three-bet and is the same as any other value bet.
You believe you have the best hand, and you'd like to get more money into the pot while you have the advantage.
Which hands deserve to be value three-bet is up for discussion.
It really depends on a variety of factors - the table dynamics, your image, your opponent's image/playing marked cards tendencies, etc.
The key ingredient is that you have a hand that figures to be best against your opponent's range.

Three-betting too tight makes you predictable.

 

Against a standard tight-aggressive player your three-bet for value might be fairly tight - something like AA-JJ and A-K.
If instead you're up against a loose-aggressive player or a fish who you know likes to call reraises light, your range might be much wider - something like AA-99, AK-AQ.
The problem with three-betting too tight a range is that you risk becoming predictable.
If you play with the same opponents, they are going to catch on that when you three-bet you have a monster hand.
If they can accurately put you on four to five hands every time you reraise, they'll be able to make perfect decisions against you.

The "Light" Three-Bet

The "light" three-bet is when you reraise a pre-flop raiser with a hand that does not rate as the best at the moment but that still has value for a variety of reasons.
A light three-bet is a semi-bluff. Basically your first goal is to win the pot immediately. You would like your opponent to fold to your reraise.
Thus, your ideal opponent to three-bet light is a player who is loose with their opening raises.
You know that they raise light and thus you can reraise them light, because you know that for the most part they are going to have to fold.
This will win you the pot without even seeing a flop.

Image

If you have the image of a supertight player, you are going to have a hard time getting paid off on your big hands.
That's because they know you're tight and that if you are coming out shooting, you must have a hand.

Image is everything.

 

When you start three-betting light, your image of being a nit will be thrown out the window.
Let's say you three-bet a guy with 8♠ 7♠ and end up showing down two pair.
Now your opponents will start to look at you in an all-new light.
They'll be thinking, "Man, this guy isn't a nit after all. He just three-bet me with eight-high. I am going to call that guy down more often. He's clearly FOS."
Three-betting counters whatever tight image you might have established and allows you to play a more rounded game.
If your opponents believe you're full of it, then you're going to make thin value bets all day long until they readjust.

Balancing Your Range

Three-betting light is essential to making sure your reraises are more balanced.
If you only three-bet a tight range - say AA-QQ and A-K - then your opponents know that when you three-bet, you can only have one of four hands.
Obviously, not a balanced range.
When your reraising range is so narrow, your opponents are always able to make the right decisions.
As mentioned, though, when you add the light three-bet to your arsenal, your opponent can't be certain as to what you hold marked cards lenses.
You could have double aces or you could have 4♠ 3♠. They'll be left guessing.
And when they're left guessing, you leave the door open for them to make mistakes.
They will end up calling you when you have the goods, and folding when you have nothing.

What's a Good Light Three-Bet Candidate?

There is no one "good hand" for three-betting but there are certain types of hands better than others.
When you understand that the light three-bet is basically a semi-bluff, it makes it easy to determine which is which.
Your goal is to win the hand without showdown, but obviously that isn't always going to work.
So, when you're called, you want to have a hand that can play poker on the flop.
Suited connectors are great light three-bet hands because those times you do get called, you have the ability to flop a strong draw and potentially stack a guy.

Keep yourself in check.

 

This just isn't going to happen if you are three-betting T♥ 4♣.

Keep Yourself in Check

Remember, most of the value from the light three-bet stems from the fact that it's a semi-bluff.
You are relying on your opponent to fold the majority of the time.
If you start three-betting too often, your opponents will stop giving respect to your three-bets and start looking you up more often.
When that happens, your fold equity is gone and there is less value in three-betting light.
Now would be a good time to switch gears and benefit from your confused opponents paying you off light.

It's Not Rocket Surgery

The primary reason to three-bet is for value. Everything else is just a product of that. You want to get value out of your good hands.
However, if your three-betting range is too tight, then your opponent will adapt and just fold every time you three-bet.
Three-betting light balances your three-bet range and leaves your opponents guessing - and when they are left guessing, as we saw, they're going to make mistakes.
And as we all know, those mistakes are just numbers added to your bankroll at the end of the night.