Arctic Stud Poker Run

Originality, in video games, is a somewhat oversold attribute. Everyone says they want to play original games, but when they vote with their dollars they buy the 16th iteration of Madden Football, and leave games like Beyond Good And Evil on the shelves. Some people also like to argue about whether or not a game is “really” original, since, as the saying goes, there are only 5 plots in Hollywood.

In Arctic Stud Poker Run you race heavily armed snowmobiles. During the race, you may pick up poker cards. The object of the game is to cross the finish line with the best poker hand. I’m going to go out on a limb and say that that qualifies as original.

The game has a cartoonish, Outlaw Golf-meets-Bullwinkle sort of feel to it. You can choose from a number of avatars, nearly all of which can be described with the adjectives “strapping” or “busty.”

The game has a single player training mode, but it is really designed from the ground up for multiplayer, allowing internet and LAN play. Once the action starts, it is complete chaos, a mixture of high speed racing and blazing guns. Games can be set up such that everyone’s hand is visible or hidden; and if everyone knows you’re carrying that last ace, you’d better hope your life insurance is paid up.

If you aren’t the type to run in with guns blazing, you can also set bounties on the heads of other players, and rely on your competitors to do the dirty work for you. Some people call this unethical; I call it fun.

Arctic Stud Poker Run, for Windows, is or will be available from a number of online retailers including Game Refuge, Garage Games, and Manifesto Games for $24.95.

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