Dominoes at Plaza discussed in Game Inventors Corner/Gaming Business at Wizard of Vegas

FleaStiff

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September 18th, 2018 at 11:54:18 PM permalink

After approaching over 150 casinos, a former student at UNLV center for gambling innovation has a card game based on Dominoes being trialed at the Plaza.

Wizard
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September 19th, 2018 at 7:22:28 AM permalink

Indeed, he does --Nevada games on field trial.

I have an interview with one of the game owners here: Casino Dominoes.

"For with much wisdom comes much sorrow." -- Ecclesiastes 1:18 (NIV)

FleaStiff

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September 19th, 2018 at 7:55:51 AM permalink

I don't think I know how to play dominoes but in Miami almost every store sells Domino tables with a map of the USA on one side and a map of Cuba on the other. Don't know how fast the games go but casinos always like to have "a mix" of games. Getting people in the door is always the first step. If Dominoes is a draw... so be it.

charliepatrick

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September 19th, 2018 at 12:21:23 PM permalink

There's an explanation of the game at their website - https://www.casinodominoes.com/
Basically you get three dominoes and a connector one. The aim is to put any of the three next to the connector (using standard domino rules) and get multiples of 5. For instance a 5-5 could only go with 0-5 to get 10. Your bet is paid according to a table: 5 points 2/1 thru 40 points 500/1,

TigerWu

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September 19th, 2018 at 12:44:56 PM permalink

This seems like one of those games that's fun as strictly a game, but not as a game in a casino environment.

And why not just play it with real dominoes? If I'm a domino player, that's what would attract me to playing this game in a casino.

That's just my reaction going off of that video without having played it at all.

Wizard
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September 19th, 2018 at 1:18:48 PM permalink

I'm not sure I understand the rules. How many points would this hand, the middle one on their web site, be worth and why? 6/6, 6/3, 3/4, 2/5

"For with much wisdom comes much sorrow." -- Ecclesiastes 1:18 (NIV)

billryan

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September 19th, 2018 at 2:01:47 PM permalink

Quote: Wizard
I'm not sure I understand the rules. How many points would this hand, the middle one on their web site, be worth and why? 6/6, 6/3, 3/4, 2/5

A Colombian friend taught me to play Dominos. Played it a bit in some Latin Clubs.
When I was thinking of buying a club called the Seoul Music Factory, I found myself spending hours there each day, trying to get a handle on their business model, which was very different than anything I was accustomed to.
One afternoon someone asked if I played dominoes. It was a completely different game that my friends played.
Casinos have to clearly state their rules, as it seems people play the game very differently.

The older I get, the better I recall things that never happened

Joeman

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September 19th, 2018 at 2:07:30 PM permalink

Quote: Wizard
I'm not sure I understand the rules. How many points would this hand, the middle one on their web site, be worth and why? 6/6, 6/3, 3/4, 2/5

25 (assuming the connector is the 6|3 as on the web page)

Of the three dominoes in your 'hand,' only the ones that match the connector (i.e., have either a 3 or 6) can be used. For this hand, that would be the 6|6 and the 3|4.

You play by matching the hand dominoes with the connector, and only the pips on the ends are counted. So, the 3|4 connects with the 6|3 and the two ends are 4 & 6 pips for a total of 10. The 6|6 connects with the 3|6 with the ends being 6, 6, & 3 pips (both sides of a double domino are counted as ends) for a total of 15.

10 + 15 = 25

Only totals that are a multiple of 5 are scored. I.e., if your third domino was a 6|1 instead of the 2|5, it would still match the connector, but the total on the end pips would be 4. Since it is not a multiple of 5, presumably it would not score. It would have been nice if they had an example like this in the demo.

It would also appear that there is no player decision (other than the original bet) to be made in this game.

"Dealer has 'rock'... Pay 'paper!'"

Joeman

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September 19th, 2018 at 2:15:18 PM permalink

Quote: billryan
A Colombian friend taught me to play Dominos. Played it a bit in some Latin Clubs.
When I was thinking of buying a club called the Seoul Music Factory, I found myself spending hours there each day, trying to get a handle on their business model, which was very different than anything I was accustomed to.
One afternoon someone asked if I played dominoes. It was a completely different game that my friends played.
Casinos have to clearly state their rules, as it seems people play the game very differently.

I liken it to poker in that dominoes has a lot of different varieties/variations. Imagine if you only knew 5-card draw and then you sat down at an Omaha Hi/Lo game.

I played a little with friends back in the day. Muggins (the variation this casino game is based on) used to be one of my favorites. There was definitely a more complex strategy to it than just ridding yourself of the dominoes in your hand.

I've never played in Colombia. I would probably also have been lost with whatever variation the were playing.

"Dealer has 'rock'... Pay 'paper!'"

TigerWu

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September 19th, 2018 at 2:38:50 PM permalink

I played dominoes a few times in the Army with the black guys and boy, they don't mess around....

Wizard
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September 19th, 2018 at 2:58:39 PM permalink

Quote: Joeman
25 (assuming the connector is the 6|3 as on the web page)...

Thanks Joe! I think I get it now.

Agreed, no decision making at all. I'm not sure if these rules are natural to dominoes. I haven't played Mexican Railroad, or whatever it's called, in about 40 years so am foggy on how it is scored.

"For with much wisdom comes much sorrow." -- Ecclesiastes 1:18 (NIV)

Johnzimbo

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September 19th, 2018 at 4:19:31 PM permalink

Finally a casino game designed to attract ex-cons :)

klimate10

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September 19th, 2018 at 11:54:13 PM permalink

They should use real dominos, like in Pai Gow tiles.

There doesn�t seem to be a strategy element. You get what you get and the hand plays itself.

DJTeddyBear

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September 20th, 2018 at 5:43:31 AM permalink

They use cards rather than actual dominoes for a variety of reasons: Primarily, they're easier to mix and deal. Have you ever seen the time-consuming, convoluted mix and deal required for Pai Gow Tiles? (On that note, are tile 'cards' used to play PGT in California?)

Also, since these are custom cards anyway, they have additional printing on them to help learn the game: Those little marks in the corners are thumbnails of the domino cards needed to make a multiple of 5.

On the flip side, when I played this game at Cutting Edge, I found those 'helpful marks' to be distracting.

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beachbumbabs

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September 20th, 2018 at 5:54:10 AM permalink

Quote: DJTeddyBear
They use cards rather than actual dominoes for a variety of reasons: Primarily, they're easier to mix and deal. Have you ever seen the time-consuming, convoluted mix and deal required for Pai Gow Tiles? (On that note, are tile 'cards' used to play PGT in California?)

Also, since these are custom cards anyway, they have additional printing on them to help learn the game: Those little marks in the corners are thumbnails of the domino cards needed to make a multiple of 5.

On the flip side, when I played this game at Cutting Edge, I found those 'helpful marks' to be distracting.

Yeah, I would agree the cards are much faster to shuffle. I would also guess, though, that dominoes fall under the same Florida rules as craps and roulette, where you can't use the physical objects (balls, dice, dominos, anything but cards) in such a way that they can be touched by players or dealers (not sure of the exact wording).

That statute is about to change AFAICT, and when it does, that may change the equipment they use to deal the game. Or at least how many casinos offer some type of domino bet.

If the House lost every hand, they wouldn't deal the game.

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September 21st, 2018 at 8:21:32 PM permalink

I visited the Plaza after the Trump rally to play some Casino Dominoes. I haven't analyzed the main bet yet, but here is the start of a page: Casino Dominoes. For a fairly simple game to play, the rules are rather difficult to put in writing. If anything wasn't clear, let me know. I also welcome a confirmation or correction of my analysis of the Doubles bet.