This free browser game lets you bet fake money on Dungeons & Dragons-style battles

(Image credit: Goblin Bet)

There's a new way to bet fake money in fantasy battles seemingly inspired by Dungeons & Dragons online.

Wait, was there an old way to do this? Either way, GoblinBet is a free browser-based game where you watch automated, turn-based brawls between wizards, dragons, giant centipedes, mules, cultists, acolytes, neurocrabs, kobolds, and so on. Rounds between with an initiative roll to decide who goes first, and from there the battles play out like an animated D&D match, except way, way shorter. In GoblinBet, you can expect matches to last a couple of minutes, whereas D&D of course can take all dang day.

If you want to see it in action, all you have to do is head here and watch - there's no sign-up necessary for just lurking. However, if you want to try your hand with Lady Luck and chat with other betters, you'll need to make an account, which is as easy as picking a username and password and verifying your email address. From there, you're given a base amount of gold to play with, and you can choose to bet for one of two fighters. If you continue to lose, like yours truly, you'll always keep 50 gold so that you can continue playing with the hopes of building up your fake fortune.

GoblinBet is obviously heavily inspired by SaltyBet, which is a similar betting site - also using fake money - but it often hosts actual live tournaments between real people like the Evolution Championship Series. Personally, I'm much more amused watching a magmin go up against a crocodile than just two regular ol' people.