I think it would be pretty cool developing on the idea with lobbies.
- 6-max NLHE cashgame
- 12 persons can participate in the lobbygame. On 2 tables
- When 12 tables has entered the lobby, ready to play, the players will be randomly assigned on the 2 tables.
- You can leave the table whenever you want. But then you leave the lobby entirely
- There's a waitinglist so new players will automatically receive the seat that has just been left.
- When the game starts, you will only play 15 minutes (maybe anoter timeinterval, but I think it compliments both regs and recreational players), then the 2 tables will break and the players will be reassigned to the 2 tables at random - new positions and new opponents (but only some of the opponents are likely to be new)
- You should not be able to change table or position during the cyclus. Maybe it should be possible to have some kind of random tablebalancing during the cyclus, if for example 4 players leave one of the tables and 6 remain on the other table. However one could argue that if the remainging players can't stand to play 2-3 handed for the remaining minutes of the cyclus, then they must simply leave the lobby.
- When the cyclus has ended, and there is below 12 players remaining in the lobby, then the game will wait to start until 12 players are in the lobby again. Hopefully waiting-lists will keep this running smoothly and fast.
- It should not be allowed to sit-oute/not post blinds. It's only allowed to leave the lobbygame entirely.
- Do you leave a lobbygame, you can not return to the lobbygame before for example 30 mins has passed.
Additional, and maybe necessary ideas:
- When a lobbygame is getting ready to start, it should not be possible to see who is registered for the lobbygame. That way there will be more lobbygame open, since the bumhunters have no choice but to try it out, and they will probably be more inclined to play for a few hands before they leave. So it won't scare away people, and it will create more games.
- It could be done with both accountnames, but it could also, in my opinion preferrably, done "anonymously" for each lobby. So if you enter a lobby, you will have to chose a screenname for that lobbygame, and that screenname will be yours throughout the lobbysession. For example, Galfond enters a game on his MrSweets account on PokerStars, and he choses to call himself "abc123" in that lobbygame. Then he's anonymous, but people will still be able to pick up reads on him and each other (enter notes for example) aslong as he/they stays in that particular lobby.
I think time per cyclus instead of hands per cyclus is better because then you won't have to wait for the other table to finish, because both tables will never be equally fast. Additionally, and maybe more actiongiving, the timefactor has a cool "countdown-feel" to it. It feels exiciting to know that this particular table will only be assembled like this for for example the remaining 8 minutes and 36 seconds. You have X amount of time to win back your loss from the donk that you have direct position on and so on...
2 tables/12 players is better than 30 players in a lobby in my opinion, because it will make it more likely that you will meet a player that you have played with in your last cyclus in the next cyclus again. Thus giving bumhunters a reason to stay and outlast the timefactor on a tougher table, to be able to have the chance to be assigned to a table with the donk(s) in the next cyclus.
Regarding what I mentioned about sitting out, then it can be discussed whetever it should be allowed to take some sort of break, without having to leave the particular lobbygame entirely. That could be solved by eiter:
1. Allowing sit-out in for example 5 min per 1 hour (one's sit-out time should be reloaded up to 5 min for each hour or every 4th cyclus - so that you can't save up sit-out time).
2. You're still not allowed to sit-out at any time, but you can choose to press a button that says "Take a break". Then you will be removed from the game, but not the lobby entirely - and you will be placed as nr. 1 on the waiting list in that particular lobby for up to for example 15 minutes. If a seat is open and you don't chose to accept it within 1 min, the seat will go to the next player on the waiting list, but you will still be nr. 1 on the waiting list for the remainder of the 15 min.
Regarding stacksizes it can be discussed wheter a change could give more action. It could for example be the following variations:
1. Your stack will be "untouched" for the entire time you stay in the lobbygame.
2. After 4 cyclusses you will have to/or be allowed to buy-in from scracth again (20-100xBB for example)
3. You can buy-in from scracth each cyclus, or other options..
These variations are proposed because maybe recreational players or regs would like to buy-in from scratch every once in a while. For recreational players an interessting choice to be able to have and for bumhunting regs, maybe a pleasant option if placed in a bad cyclus (from what information one can gather in a single lobbygame...). And if only placed as an option, then good regs can be able to build their stack deep for an entire lobbysession, which they probably would like.
I'm sure there's some good additions and optimizations to be done with this idea, but this is what I had in mind at the moment, and I think it's a useful idea to fire up some games
It might seem a little bit complicated and rulebased in writing, but in reality I think it can actually be implemented quite simply
Last edited by msm89dk; 01-15-2012 at 11:16 PM.