The World of Black & White Buttons
Fan Tan, pronounced as "FAN-ee-an" is another one of the most played Chinese gambling games. The game has been played since the mid-19th century. It was featured in Zhu Zhuang Dynasty’s State Administration newspaper. The game was eventually made into an actual game around the mid-20th century. It is also frequently called Tan Gao (Chinese Fan) or Tan Sheng (Chinese Fan).
Fan Tan is also known by the several names mentioned above. In America the game is usually referred to as Tan Heung (Taiwanese Fan) or Tan Maori (Malaysian Fan). Fan Tan is a simple version of the traditional game Tan Fung. You can play this in two ways. One group hides in a dark space and makes key rolls, while the other group hides in a different room and makes pushes using a concealed wand. Blindfolded player in another group must find players and make pushes using wands hidden in the background or beads against walls.
Fan Tan in Macau calls Tan Sheng (Chinese Fan) Tai Chi Chuan or Tan Sheng. Macau casinos offer a variation of this game on weekends at their Family Fun Park, Macba (pronounced "moba") Park. The term "Macau" refers to "bay". The only difference between the two games is the usage of "Bay" and the names of the casinos.
Betting is the same as traditional Chinese casino games. It is dependent on luck. The house will try to find a number using the layout of the cards and bet many times, hoping that their number is the correct one. There is no house under any obligation to provide you their betting secret and in reality they often prefer to do so if you don't know what it is. It is your responsibility to learn the tricks of the trade from the casinos. They can show you their gambling techniques and you can try them with your pals on the internet or in your home.
If you're playing Fan Tan at the Macau family fun park, it is best to start by making a few bets. You can place an unassuming bamboo stick, usually covered with fabric or a soft material, on the the long handle of the hand rail and then place it on your leg. The player with the most hands at the conclusion of the round is the winner. You might be able to place a small amount of money on the table for random picks. Talk to your dealer to confirm.
You can also play the various slot machines that are offered at Chinese gambling houses if don't want to put money into. The Fan Tan game, there are five symbols that, when arranged in a particular manner, create an image that represents an amount. There are seven different kinds of Fan Tan colors. The flip of a card from the deck could change your hand. If you win, you flip your card and place the seven symbols again, and continue the process until you've got exactly the correct formation. It may sound simple however, the more experienced players quickly figure out the odds and quickly figure out which seven card combinations are likely to beat the competition before others do.
Once you have assessed your odds, you can either play Fan Tan in the casinos that are located in the city or travel to Macau to visit the many casinos on the streets that offer online betting. These games utilize black and white buttons in Chinese, as well simple slips of paper that are marked with symbols and numbers. If the player who has the white buttons makes a call it is the number on the card which is used for counting. These symbols are used to place bets, and are displayed when the ball is spinning on an electric rail. If the gambler is right they will get the money back. If they're wrong, they lose everything!
When you are done playing, the player simply takes his or her finger off the number pad and gazes at the number which is displayed on an LCD screen. This is the amount of money that the player will be able to claim back. Online betting takes place through an encrypted server, which means nobody will ever know that you have placed a bet. Your anonymity and privacy are protected, just as at the local casinos. Fan Tan makes it even simpler to use your debit or credit card to deposit money and cash out.