The highest stakes. The best names. And potentially, the biggest audience.
That’s the hope for Deepstack, a new cash-game poker show debuting later in 2026.
The concept is spearheaded by Founder Elton Tsang and Managing Director Jelle Moene, who spoke exclusively with PokerNews about their hopes for Deepstack, and their motivation for challenging the status quo of poker streaming with a deep-stacked version of the “Squid Game” format and technology-driven innovations.
Deepstack: Coming Soon
While the first episodes of the new show aren’t expected to be released until later in the year, both Tsang and Moene make it clear that Deepstack aims to be radically different. From its episodic nature, to it’s cash game format, but also in terms of poker streaming and the way broadcasts are consumed.
Tsang is crystal clear: “We want to present poker in a different way from how people are used to.”
The new cash game show will be played entirely as the BLUVV Game; a variant of the Squid Game, with rules designed to create more action.
“I was the one who invented the game,” says Tsang. “We’ve been playing it a lot in Asia.”
“Not a people have experienced Squid before. I think that once this gets out, people can watch how we play, and by watching, maybe they can gain more experience and learn just how fun this game is.”
Meanwhile, Moene says things have been going really well.
“You have to think a little bit in the direction of Drive to Survive”
“You have to think a little bit in the direction of Drive to Survive. It’s the biggest players. It’s the highest stakes. We make it more cinematic, and we’re learning as we’re going along which is exactly how I think it should be.
“We are filming with the idea that we want to learn by trial and error. I really believe in this product, which we’re making.”
He also praised Tsang for everything he’s brought to the project so far.
“Elton’s network makes sure that we will always have the best players and the biggest legends featured at the table,” says Moene. “That means we’re already well-positioned in the market. From there, we can use our tech and ideas to build the most premium show ever, for both players and viewers. That’s the goal.”
“We know the average poker viewer is probably playing lower stakes, has his heroes, and has his own dreams for the future. We know what we like ourselves when we’re playing in high-stakes cash games, and we know what we want to show the world.”
What is the BLUVV Game?
From the outside, there are two things that separate Deepstack from other poker streams or shows. The first is the name itself. Deepstack is more than just a name. The cash game format is the perfect environment to put words into action, which Tsang says is the perfect antidote for those who find regular tournaments boring.
“You’re playing with 10-30 big blinds all the time, so you’re always having to play really tight, with a standard range. And if you can just remember all the charts, then you can be a super pro.
“When you play deep, there’s so much action,” says Tsang. “It’s only in cash games where you can actually play 1,000 big blinds deep, right? It’s fun to watch people fight in poker game where they’re not waiting for the nuts, waiting to flop a set before they make a big bet. Everyone’s like battling each other all the time.”
The second is Deepstack’s strict focus on the BLUVV Game as the cash game format.
“Triton is mainly focused on tournaments,” says Tsang, who has two titles and almost $17 million in cashes on the world’s premier Super High Roller poker tour. “But we’re not doing any tournaments, we’re just doing cash games, the Squid-type cash game.”
Squid Game is a variation of the stand-up game and is designed to create more action at the table. When a player wins a pot, they earn a “squid” token. Players who fail to win a pot during the squid game must pay a penalty to those who did. Players who earn multiple Squids are line for multipliers, increasing their winnings.
“With the BLUVV game there’s no waiting for those big hands. Every hand people are fighting. You realize quite quickly that people fight a lot more [for the Squid], so there are way more bluffs. And with so much bluffing people are playing so much looser, so much wider. There’s so much raising because people don’t believe each other.”
“I think it’s going to create a lot more excitement for the audience and the players.”
Looking to the Future
In this early stage, Tsang admits there are still many unknowns, but he is hopeful about the future and excited for how the poker community will receive the new initiative.
“We started out as a pretty small team; first, the idea and then working on a business plan. And here we are. We just wanted to start doing it, just trying it out and see what happens and learning. It’s okay not to have like the perfect season one, but, you know, we’ll evolve, right?”
“This will be the future of poker entertainment. I’m pretty convinced”
Moene, meanwhile, says they’re promising a “premium” product that will rival some of the more established brands in the industry.
“Deepstack will be the future of poker entertainment,” says Moene. “The tech we are building will help break the ceiling, and turn poker broadcasting into something much more attractive, entertaining and educational than it has been so far.”
“We want to basically have that type of level broadcast in terms of the cinematic feel, and then we want to add a couple of layers of entertainment, basically see it as a fan engagement platform. This will disrupt the poker viewing markets, for sure.”
Tsang says the primary focus is on disrupting the current status quo of poker and streaming, thanks to the innovations that Deepstack is hoping to bring.
“I don’t think any poker production out there compares to us in terms of what we have innovate. It’s very different and we position ourselves very differently. And we’re already planning the next one, and the one after that. We’re just going to continue doing this until we stop!”
Will Shillibier
Managing Editor