Golden Nugget is set at the Golden Nugget hotel-casino in Las Vegas.[2] It features 16 gambling games,[3][4] including baccarat, blackjack, craps, poker, pai gow poker, roulette, and video poker.[5][6] Poker games include seven-card stud and Texas hold 'em, and the game features six different types of slot machines (What Luck, Eureka, Royal Flush, Treasures of the Sea, Sweet Treats, and Double Diamond).[5][6] The player begins with $10,000 to spend on the various gambling games,[7][4] found throughout the Golden Nugget.[8] For table games, the dealers and players are represented as arms through the use of full motion video (FMV).[5] Sound effects include slot machines, people murmuring, and bets being called out by dealers.[8] The player also has 9 markers with which they can cash in for another $1,000 should they run out of money; however, if the player runs out of money and also runs out of markers, the game is over. The casino also has high limit game and slot rooms; however, a player must have won at least $50,000 to access these, at which point a player gets a VIP Club card.[9]
Golden Nugget features a mystery-themed story mode in which the player takes the role of poker player Steven Killsbourg, whose ex-girlfriend, scientist Dr. Shelly Harkness, has used chaos theory to create the Chaos Chip, a microchip capable of advanced problem-solving.[5][6][4] When the chip is stolen, Killsbourg must play through three poker tournaments to find the culprit, with help from Hugh Swain (portrayed by Adam West).[5][6][10] The story line gradually plays out through FMV clips that are shown as the game progresses. Each subsequent tournament has a higher entry fee than the previous. After completing a tournament, the player must play other gambling games to raise money for the next tournament. As the player progresses through the tournaments, FMV clips of Swain and other characters are shown to help the player eventually identify the culprit at the end of the story.[5][6]