HMD Entertainment was founded in 2012 from an idea by President and CEO Dr. Ronald Wolff. After contemplating the different methodologies of casino gaming, Ron focused on creating a new, totally different game that combined classic poker hands with a betting concept seen in Roulette.
Pokerlette® was born, and Ron’s three sons were instrumental in its design. Michael, an engineer, helped create the layout. Steven, a UNLV gaming student at the time, helped with odds. Aaron, due to some very mild autistic traits, could visualize what others could not and had developed strategies for automatically winning certain board games. His input was used to insure that no winning strategy for Pokerlette could be found.
Ron promoted his game in Las Vegas and wherever he could. He shot a commercial, had a Windows and Macintosh version of the game developed to play online, but could not make the breakthrough he was seeking.
In 2015, Ron met George Fiorile of 5 Diamond Development Inc. George had worked in the casino industry since 1988, before he started his consulting firm. George saw Pokerlette and immediately had Ron’s faith in its future success. Together they used input from George’s casino executive friends to hone the game and get to its refined present form.
Ron was out walking his dog Warrior one day and thinking about other card games he was familiar with, when he started thinking about the game “Acey–Deucy”. While he was walking he contemplated if the concept could work in a casino format and then went about creating Field GoalTM, a game where the player gets cards that fit through the designated card value “goal posts”, determined by the dealer’s lone upcard. George immediately latched on to the new concept, and broadened it to allow the other players to bet for or against the “kicker” or active player. Field Goal has all the exciting action of a craps table in a very simple game.
Ron and George recently teamed up with TCS John Huxley Inc. to create a Huxley “Blaze” table for Pokerlette. All the winning spots now light up with LED’s built under the felt, which makes the game much easier for players and dealers to enjoy. They demonstrated the new table at the 2018 NIGA convention in Las Vegas and then shipped the table to shipped the table to Canterbury Park Racino in Minnesota which soon became the monumental first install of Pokerlette.
Our goal is to bring exciting new products to the gaming industry. We strive to think "outside the box" and create unique games that will create a longer gaming experience for the player.
President and CEO - HMD Entertainment
President - 5 Diamond Development