Many companies have made watches with roulette wheel style dials, but actually having a working, spinning, three-dimensional roulette wheel as part of the watch? Unheard of. That was part of the basis for the Cristophe Claret Gaming line of watches. Three distinct pieces comprise the watchmaker’s avant-garde collection. There’s a very high chance you’ll find your card game of choice among the three, where watch functions include the choice of either a functioning blackjack, poker, or baccarat game. In addition to the main game, on one side of each of the models in the place of a pusher is a carved out portion of the case covered in sapphire crystal housing two miniature dice. The dice are cast by moving the watch. Acting as a caseback is a fully functioning roulette wheel that is operated by any movement of the watch. An indicator, in lieu of a miniature ball (pill), is used to determine which is the winning number.
The blackjack watch has two “hit” buttons on the side which allow the wearer to deal an additional card for either the player or dealer. A cathedral gong is used to sound a chime each time a new card is dealt. This chime feature remains for all three game variations where it is incorporated into part of each game and can be viewed on the same side of the case as the dice, opposite them at 2 o’clock.
The poker version of the watch features Texas Hold ’em as the game of choice. Up to three players can play due to Cristophe Claret’s used of slatted coverings that display the cards only to the player on that side of the watch. Pushers control the flop, turn, and river where certain card reveals will of course sound the imbedded cathedral gong as well.
Last, but not least, my favorite game, baccarat, gets its own reproduction in the form of the third watch in the collection. The setup is simple: six total card slots and two pushers on the side for the banker and the player. A middle pusher in between the two serves to shuffle the cards. Two cards are initially dealt, and the third card slot is available in case of either side needing more than two cards to determine the result. All baccarat versions also feature versions of a dragon motif on the dial.
Each rendition comes in at 45mm in diameter and features the dice and roulette functions. A variety of case materials are available and if you have a lucky number you can contact Cristophe Claret to have a small emerald placed on the caseback which will mark your favorite number on the roulette wheel. All models feature a 72 hour power reserve with dual barrels. The watches are available in an array of different metal combinations and are generally priced a little shy of 200,000 CHF, but will fluctuate based on metal choices and any sort of personalization.
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