Star Wars just might be the most popular alternative universe that we humans have access to. Nowadays, it spans far beyond the initial films that came out in the late 70s and 80s, and it has its own gaming universe, amusement parks, novels, cartoons, Anime, and TV shows. What made Star Wars so popular is the fact that the universe is so deep that you can explore it for years and never fully encompass everything it offers.
If you’ve dug deep enough, you will find out that it has more than a few parallels with real-life situations, objects, and people. The best example of this is the point at which the Star Wars universe touches on casinos and gambling. It has its own currencies, casinos, and of course, casino games. The most popular Star Wars game, which is quite popular among the fans of the franchise, is called Sabacc. If you watched only one film in the SW series, you’re familiar with it.
Sabacc is a fictional gambling card game, similar to what we earthlings now play as online poker, with one major difference being that Sabacc is more random, requires higher stakes, and it favors the house much more than poker does. The likes of Han Solo and Lando Calrissian have made it popular across the known galaxies, and it came to prominence after it was revealed that Han Solo won the Millennium Falcon at a game of Sabacc.
We are sure that Sabacc has your attention now if it didn’t have it before, and so we’re going to share with you the things that make Sabacc different from regular card games known to men.
Deck & Card Values
Poker is a well-known game that is played with a standard 52-card deck. Sabacc, on the other hand, is more unique. This intergalactic game is played with a special deck filled with unique suits, where each card has a different value, there are special cards available, and there are even cards that hold negative value. The more you play, the more interesting it gets. There are even cards such as the concept of The Idiot. It is a card that has a zero value but comes with a special significance to the game lore. In essence, it is more like the Fool in Tarot than similar to anything poker has to offer.
Objective
Poker is as straightforward as one game can be. The players always aim to have the strongest hand. After the cards are drawn, bets are made, and some players fold, the winner is the gambler with the strongest hand. Sabacc operates on different principles. Through the cards in their unique suit, the player’s aim is to get as close to zero as possible. This goal can be achieved through both positive and negative scores.
Betting
Neither Sabacc nor poker is interesting if there’s no betting involved. The difference in the way we approach betting in both games differs quite a lot. In poker, the betting process is a straightforward one. Players make initial bets and raise, call, or fold, all based on the strength of their hand. Of course, bluffing is an option for players who are willing to bet, risk, and call bets while having a weak hand. Sabacc is, on the other hand, seen as a game of investment. Players place bets in order to improve their hands, not based on the strength of their hands. The chips a player bets can be lost if, with the next draw, the hand is not improved, or if a player folds when predicting what comes next.
Risks Involved
We mentioned bluffing in relation to poker in the previous paragraph, yet Sabacc is the game that has more of it. It is a game made for bluffers. It is no wonder Han Solo and Lando excelled in it. In poker, bluffing is a part of the game that is not vital for winning. In Sabacc, it is a vital part of in-game decision-making. During the game, players can discard and redraw cards in order to win. When they do this, they can end up with an even worse hand. When this happens, bluffing comes on stage to make some of the opponents fold early, believing that you now have a stronger hand. Moves such as the Sabacc shift, where cards on the table are randomly changed due to the rules of the game and its electronic interface, are the ideal moment when one needs to bluff.
Winning Conditions
Again, this is where poker remains straightforward. The highest hand wins, and it couldn’t be simpler than that. Sabacc, a game that comes in a few variants, works on a different set of rules. Kessel Sabacc gives a victory to the last player who is left with chips when the round is over. The winner is usually the one who has a Sabacc pair, which is usually a combo that adds up to a zero.
The Gameplay
Poker, the Texas Hold’em version, is played when all players are dealt two cards each, and five cards are open on the table, so you’re able to make the strongest combo out of those seven cards, depending on the number of bets, calls, raises, and folds. In Sabacc, you start with two cards, too. The cards are replaced not by drawing but by acquiring new ones with your limited number of Sabacc chips. There are three turns where you can replace cards. At all times, you ought to have one Sand and one Blood card. If no player has a Sabacc pair, the player with the lowest difference wins.
While similarities are there, Sabacc differs from your regular poker game. With higher stakes and laser guns involved, it is no wonder the situation is like that. Yet, when you know that the Millennium Falcon is on the line, you know that the stakes are higher with Sabacc than in poker.