Tuesday December 16,2014 : BET CONSTRUCT LAUNCH NEW POKER VARIANT
Open Face Chinese Poker gaining in popularity
Armenian gaming developer and supplier BetConstruct has launched Open Face Chinese Poker (OFC), a Chinese poker variant that is thought to have originated in Finland during the mid-2000’s, spreading to Russia a few years later and introduced to the United States in 2012.
The game has seen a boost in popularity and is favoured by poker professionals such as Daniel Negreanu, Barry Greenstein and Jason Mercier, amongst others.
Two to four players are able to play the game, receiving five cards placed face down. The cards are placed on a board of three levels and subsequent cards are dealt one at a time, 13 in all, which are arranged on each individual board.
Each players three hands must be of sequential strength, in decreasing order, from back to front. Failure to achieve this causes fouls and receives penalties.
Rather than betting prior to each round, the game is played out in full, following which points and bonuses (which have an agreed pre-assigned financial value) are scored for winning hands and particular card combinations.
“The game combines simple rules with big drama, which is why it’s compelling and popular with both professionals and amateurs alike,” commented Suren Khachatryan, chief executive officer for BetConstruct.
“The game is only a few years old, yet is has already attracted millions of players as it offers a type of tactical play that is not present in other versions of poker,” added Levon Gyulzadyan, product manager for OFC at BetConstruct. “Since opponents can see each other's cards, there is no bluffing, but the depth of the strategic nuances make OFC captivating and unique”.