Amusement devices: games – Board games – pieces – or boards therefor – Betting or wagering board
Reexamination Certificate
2002-07-09
2003-08-26
Pierce, William M (Department: 3711)
Amusement devices: games
Board games, pieces, or boards therefor
Betting or wagering board
C273S292000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06609711
ABSTRACT:
II. BACKGROUND OF INVENTION
IIA. RELATED APPLICATIONS
There are no applications for patent related hereto heretofore filed in this or any foreign country.
IIB. Field of Invention
My invention provides a casino-type card game that combines modified characteristics of a black jack game with modified characteristics of a poker game, both games simultaneously played pursuant to separate bets with a single card hand.
IIC. Background and Description of Prior Art
Gambling games have assumed increasing popularity and economic importance in the recent cultural past by reason of extinguishment of the historical aura of illegality that has previously surrounded gambling. This is especially true of casino-type gambling that has in recent years been embraced by many sovereigns to enhance their own coffers and in privately owned and operated for profit casinos which have come into being largely as a result of the approval of sovereign operated gambling. At the inception of the present gambling era, the gambling itself was sufficiently novel and enticing that it begot substantial public participation even though most of the casino gambling games were the same as, or variants of, ancient gambling games, some of which had been known since at least the fifteenth century. As time passed however, the early novelty began to wane and casinos have sought various inducements to maintain and enhance customer interest in their business.
One such type of inducement has been the creation and development of new, different and novel gambling games, and especially such games as do, or are perceived to, change and enhance the probabilities of a player's winning, or reduce or remove the effects that the skill and knowledge of professional gamblers associated with casinos may have upon the outcome of gambling games. The instant game seeks to fulfill this need by providing a new card game that yet remains within the essential ambit of known and habitually familiar card games of ancient origin, and one which removes casino employees' knowledge and skill as a factor affecting or determining game outcome.
The instant game accomplishes its ends by intimately blending modified elements of the traditional black jack game with modified elements of the traditional poker game, two of the world's most popular gambling games played with cards.
Both black jack and poker historically have had many and various versions, modifications and methods of play but the essence of each game is still well understood by many, if not most, gamblers.
Black jack, as presently known in U.S. gambling houses is in essence a version of the French game, vingt-et-un or “twenty-one”, and that latter game in turn owes its organogenesis to the similar more ancient game of baccarat. The aim of baccarat, to acquire a total of playing pieces having value as near as possible to a given number, presently generally nine, without exceeding it, is a gambling principle known even before playing cards were invented. Black jack in its early history was usually played against a dealer or banker who was one of the group of game players and could be variously determined as play was instituted and proceeded. In modern day casino gambling the dealer or banker is usually an employee of the casino. Though the probability of winning is slightly higher for the dealer than for other players, skill and knowledge still are somewhat determinative of the outcome of the traditional black jack game. Since the casino dealer is, or is perceived to be, a professional gambler of substantial knowledge and skill, the present day casino black jack game, even when dealer play is partially or completely determined by house rules, is not looked upon with complete favor by casino patrons, and especially by those players that have, or perceive that they have, no substantial knowledge of the game.
In modern U.S. casino gambling the potential advantage of a skilled and knowledgeable dealer has generally been removed, or substantially removed, by house rules such as requiring the dealer to stand on a hand having a count of seventeen or more, but requiring the dealer to draw to a hand having a count of sixteen or less. Such rules, however, do not completely alleviate in the minds of all casino players the concept that the outcome of the game may be affected by the dealer's professional skill and knowledge of the game.
Poker is a quite ancient game with ancestral progenitors in Spain, Italy and France that appear in the literature as early as 1526, although those ancestral games were somewhat different from the modern U.S. casino forms of poker. Poker appeared as a gambling game in the United States at least as early as 1829 and was popularized in the modern U.S. form in England, and probably in Europe in general, in the 1870's by Queen Victoria who had a substantial liking of the game. The original game was played with three cards in its earlier European forms and card hands were ranked differently than in present day casino games. The number of cards in the poker hand increased to four in Europe in the 1700's and this begot the bluffing aspects of the game that continue into the present day with five or more cards in a hand. Poker probably better rewards the skillful player than any other card game and because of this, in present day casino gambling, the game is generally played between patrons without participation of house employees, except as non-playing dealers, because of the advantage that knowledgeable professional gamblers may have in the game. There are many variations of traditional poker games, but the common elements essential to game play and hand valuation remain substantially standardized in modern day casino gambling, at least in the English speaking world. Poker remains in the present day one of the most popular casino card games, notwithstanding or because of the importance of a player's skill in determining the game.
The instant game and its method of play blend various features of both black jack and poker to provide a single new game that is more probabilistically dependent than skill dependent to both attract customers and allow gambling houses to regulate profit margins of the game with reasonable accuracy by the application of mathematical probability theory.
The instant game differs from the traditional U.S. game of black jack by setting a maximum hand value of thirty-one rather than twenty-one, by assigning point values to cards that differ from traditional black jack point values and by determining bet payments based on predetermined point values of players' hands rather than by comparing players hands to a dealer's hand. The play of the game begins by dealing each player three cards and thereafter sequentially allowing each player to receive any additional number of cards desired until his hand exceeds thirty-one points or the player stands player three cards and thereafter sequentially allowing each player to receive any additional number of cards desired until his hand exceeds thirty-one points or the player stands on the hand he has. A player at any time may “double down” by making a second bet matching his first point value bet and thereupon receive one additional final card.
All of the player's bets are then evaluated. With the point value bet the instant game values the ten card with no point value, the other cards with traditional black jack values and pays hands one-to-one that have a total point value of twenty-nine, thirty or thirty-one points. If a player doubles down, a total point value of twenty-nine or thirty points in the player's hand pays one-to-one on both bets and a total point value of thirty-one points pays three-to-two.
After the point valuation the player's poker hand is evaluated when the total point value of the hand is not greater than thirty-one. The second poker bet is paid to the player if he has a poker hand with a pair of jacks or higher value. Poker hand values are determined by traditional U.S. poker valuation, except that three of the same value royal face cards (jac
Bergman Keith S.
Pierce William M
LandOfFree
Casino card game does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Casino card game, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Casino card game will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-3075870