Show HN: Rebluff Poker, no limit hold'em for loose aggressive players
Hello, I'm uberf1sh, software engineer (I've previously worked for Amazon and Fortnite, though obviously none of the following as to do with my previous employers).

My cousin introduced me to online poker in 2008 and I loved it instantly, playing $2 games for fun and glory (the same day my aunt also proceeded to warn me that "it all starts like that", oh boy if you knew Tata). I was initially pretty bad but I had fun. Indeed, in 2008 the game was really amazing because it was so chaotic and full of crazy plays, your blood was pumping before even sitting at the table. Fast forward I was able to make $1000 a day in vegas, spending everything on sneakers, restaurants and other unspeakable stuff (you know the drill, what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas).

5-8 years ago, things started to take a bad turn. The game slowly but surely became incredibly boring. Most regular players started to all adopt a strategy called tight passive. Tight means you play only the best starting hands and passive means you don't bet or raise much, you let your opponent dictate the action (i.e. you let them bet and raise on your behalf). The tight part isn't much of an issue because there is counter strategies that works well (e.g. setting mines). However the passive component is absolutely dreadful.

Passive poker is an anti-game strategy. When it comes to games and sports in general, an anti-game strategy works as follows: you are not reaching for a win, but instead, you make the game so boring and frustrating, your opponents become crazy. Passive poker is beatable, but while a passive player don't win much, he doesn't loose much as well. The player keeps its score close to zero and wait patiently that his opponents get crazy enough to make a mistake (while looting beginners).

In short, it kills the game entirely. Nowdays, online cash games (especially at lower stakes) are ridiculously passive. The biggest bluff you can expect to see on some tables will be for 3BB (big blinds) max if you're lucky. You will never ever see a 3-barrel bluff with air anymore. You can't set mines either because they wont bet big enough to make it worth it and they will stop betting mostly after the flop. You can often see players literally not betting a dime on the flop, turn and river, even with monster hands. It hurts to see a player check on the river when he speaks last, only to discover they have the nuts - he wants to hurt you that's the point.

It's time for passive poker to go. It's time for a change of rules. So I've built Rebluff Poker. Rebluff Poker is the first gaming platform dedicated to loose-aggressive no limit hold'em. The game is in every bit the same, except, each and every player has to bet or raise to some extent on average, or gets to pay a significant penalty in the form of antes (up to 5BB per hand for a multi passive recidivist). For a decently aggressive player, it makes no difference. At the moment, the threshold is close to 2.5BB per hand on average.

The game is also much more fun for beginners. Playing LAG against beginners lead to a higher variance which means the beginner still wins occasionally.

The plan is to raise money (so far I'd say the reception has been incredible) to get a proper gaming license and legal framework (some licenses are dirt cheap nowdays). So I distribute gift cards to players so we can play, but, I have deactivated stablecoin deposits and withdrawals. Once you've lost your gift card chips, there is no automatic way of getting more so still take care of them if you decide to play. Once we get a gaming license, you will be able to withdraw your balance. In the case where we don't get a gaming license, your balance is worth nothing, it's play money. It's then 100% legal to play today (as a bonus the server is out of reach of a DMCA).

Dealers, let's shuffle and deal.

https://rebluff.poker

https://discord.gg/TQxqxEpxbS

uberf1sh)at(rebluff.poker