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Space Poker Rules

Coming Soon

Space Poker will be available in a future release. The rules below are based on current known game mechanics and may be subject to change.

Objective​

Space Poker is a poker variant played with two simultaneous games. Players receive two hole cards with a boost bit (+ or -) that affects hand rankings. The goal is to win both games or maximize winnings across both games.

Setup​

  • Each player receives two hole cards selected at random from 2-A (T=10, J=11, Q=12, K=13, A=14)
  • Each hole card has a boost bit which is + or - with a ⅓ chance of being +
  • Both players ante a minraise at the start of each hand
  • All raise amounts are multiples of the minraise
  • Two games proceed simultaneously until both are complete

Hand Rankings​

From lowest to highest:

  1. High Card: No pair or better
  2. Pair: Two cards of the same rank
  3. Two Pair: Two different pairs
  4. Set (Three of a Kind): Three cards of the same rank
  5. Full House: Three of a kind plus a pair
  6. Straight: Five consecutive cards (no ace-to-five straight)
  7. Four of a Kind: Four cards of the same rank
  8. Five of a Kind: Five cards of the same rank

Important Differences from Traditional Poker:

  • No Flushes: Unlike traditional poker, there are no flushes in Space Poker
  • Five of a Kind: This is the highest possible hand
  • No Ace-to-Five Straight: The straight A-2-3-4-5 is not valid

Tiebreakers​

  1. Hand Type: Higher hand type wins
  2. Boost Bit: The boost bit is the first tiebreaker after hand type
  3. Standard Poker Tiebreaks: After boost bit, standard poker tiebreaking rules apply

Gameplay​

Turn Structure​

  • Players always alternate turns
  • On your turn, you can either call or raise
  • At the beginning of a street, calling doesn't end the street
  • After the first action on a street, calling ends the street and causes a reveal of the next set of cards or showdown if it's on the river

Streets​

The game follows standard poker street structure:

  • Pre-flop: After receiving hole cards
  • Flop: First three community cards
  • Turn: Fourth community card
  • River: Fifth and final community card

Showdown​

  • The player who made the final call reveals their hole cards first
  • If the other player loses, they don't show their hole cards
  • Winner is determined by hand rankings with boost bit tiebreaker

All-In​

If a player goes all-in:

  • Wait for results to be collated
  • This may be skipped if off-chain and happens fast enough

Game Flow​

  1. Two Simultaneous Games: Play proceeds on two games simultaneously until both are done
  2. Player Actions: On your turn, raise/call/fold. Hand history and current pot size are shown
  3. Wait for Opponent: Wait for opponent to raise/call/fold
  4. All-In: If applicable, wait for results to be collated
  5. Results: Shows win/loss/split, amount won (if not a split), your hand if it got that far, and opponent's hole cards and hand if known
  6. Both Results Shown: After both games complete, options to start new hands or end the session
  7. End Session: Session may end due to:
    • Playing on-chain
    • Insufficient balance (yours or opponent's)
    • You or opponent declined to continue