What's a good font to use for rules on a blackjack table?

Question

I'm working on an iOS app that has a blackjack table in it, and need to figure out what font to use. I see a bunch of serif fonts when doing web searches, but they're hard for my crude eye to identify. Here's a couple of shots of what I'm looking for:

Answer 1

I would stick to any Humanist serif typeface. Which one is your call.

Some Humanist typefaces I like are:

• Bembo
• Brioso
• Dolly
• Eason
• Farnham
• Galliard
• Jenson
• Le Monde
• Lo Type
• Serpentine

Answer 2

I think Scott and Mononess have given pretty good suggestions for general-purpose blackjack tables, e.g. if you're designing this for a gaming table manufacturer.

However, if you're designing this for a specific casino, then you ought to consider it along with their brand platform. If you google "MGM grand blackjack" or "Bellagio blackjack" or especially "Caesars Palace blackjack" you'll see that most of these big casinos have branded blackjack tables that, like their chips and playing cards, match their interior design and visual branding.

There is still a common motif with the rules text—bold, wide character serif fonts—but unless you know the casino has a western/saloon motif, I'd go with the more staid humanist fonts that would better suit a wider range of brand identities.

Because many casinos are gonna want to brand their gaming tables with their logo and iconography, and very stylized fonts just don't go well with other heavily stylized fonts typically used in logos and branding. For example, Caesars Palace uses laurel wreaths to mark out the different player positions as well as their standard logotype along the bottom of the table. The Bellagio similarly has large "B"s in the Bellagio script font stamped at each player position as well as the full logo at the bottom of the table.

Lastly, the typeface as well as the other ornamentation you choose should match the motif of the gaming floor and provide some cohesiveness with the other gaming tables in the same area. So if there are craps or poker tables adjacent to the blackjack area, then you may want to use the same font.

Answer 3

You can try this font: GM Hiptop or some types of antiqua fonts like this maybe in combination with "west" or "saloon" style fonts.