Three Obscure Retro Casino Games You Need To Play

With the emergence of mobile gaming, casino games can be downloaded and played on a device in an instant. It’s bizarre to remember that there was a time when these games were a novelty. Often budget titles were a casual way to fill in time at a low cost, yet some of them were extremely well made and never got the respect they deserved.

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Las Vegas Cool Hand

Las Vegas Cool Hand was released on the Game Boy and Game Boy Colour in 1998, though the Game Boy title was simply known as Cool Hand. It features the strange combination of blackjack, solitaire, and cribbage, with a wide range of variations available for blackjack. The player gets an amount of money when they start the game which they must try to increase as the game continues.

The game was extremely basic but has gone down in history as a significant title as it was one of the first to produce a helpful guide that could teach players rules as they went. One odd feature was that the game had no save function, so any amounts totalled reverted to normal once the game was turned off. It met with a lukewarm reception with both its North American and European audiences but should be played as it was one of the first real attempts at a handheld casino.

Golden Nugget

Unlike most titles, this one is set in an actual real-world casino, the Golden Nugget in Las Vegas. There are seven games to play, with the poker games having several variations. Featuring casino sounds, it was one of the first instances where you could hear background noises of other dealers, slot machines and tumbling coins.

Available for Microsoft Windows and PlayStation, its most notable feature was its story mode, voiced by actor Adam West. This centred around a mystery hunt for a problem-solving chip which had been stolen by one of the other poker players in the casino.

In its guide on how to select the best online casino in Denmark, BonusFinder provides a list of top European casinos that all attract customers using these types of titles. Very few are simply casino games, but often use narrative themes and even licensed properties to gamify their offerings.

Golden Nugget was one of the first immersive casino games, amping up the graphics, and the games on offer while introducing a narrative. It could be argued that Golden Nugget was the precursor for many major casino titles today. From PokerStars to Royal Casino, all have elements that can be traced back to Golden Nugget.

Hoyle Casino

Source: Pixabay

Hoyle Casino was released in 2000 and then updated with a 2016 version. Available on Windows, Mac, Sega Dreamcast, and Game Boy Colour, it is notable as it was one of the few that guided a player with real-time strategies, including hints, and tips. Not only did this teach them the game if they were beginners, but also taught them to improve.

The game is set in a fictional Las Vegas casino. As the player, you can choose from twenty-five default character types to make your profile. You can then travel through the casino, trying your hand at various games. The 2016 update of the game had a staggering amount of choice, ranging from bingo to seven card studs and a wide range of poker games.

As reported in this article by The Game Crater, a version in 2007 caused controversy when a bug in the card system caused the title to crash. This resulted in mass refunds. However, this did not halt its popularity as it sold 230,365 units and made the developers an estimated $6.15 million.