Sherlock HolmesHarry Houdini
55%45%
Sherlock Holmes wins 55%. Harry Houdini wins 45%.
The detective against the escape artist, both running the point.
Once Upon a Dunk
A Pettigrew Lab game
Sherlock Holmes at the point. Paul Bunyan at center. $15 to fix the rest.
A free basketball game where legends, monsters and people from history play for your team. You get five random walk-ons and a $15 salary cap. The league doesn’t care who your point guard used to be.
Free, with ads. $1.99 turns them off. On Android now, iPhone after.
Some of the roster
Tap a card to flip it.
How a season works
- You get dealt fiveOne random walk-on at every position. Could be Abraham Lincoln at center. Could be a frog.
- Spend your $15 capEvery position has one player at each price, $5 down to $1. Spend it where it counts.
- Sixteen gamesYou watch the games play out like a broadcast, with a trade deadline after game 8.
- Survive the playoffsEight teams get in, and every round is a series. New York, LA, Chicago and Boston are stacked. Titles are rare.
Build your starting five on $15
Every card at its real price. Pick one player per row and stay under $15. Harder than it looks.
You've got $15. Pick five.
$5$4$3$2$1
Save this boardWho would win on the court?
Not a fight. A basketball game. We didn’t guess, we let the game play it out.
Each star joins an average team, every other player rated 70, and the two teams play 10,000 games in the real game engine.
Robin HoodAnnie Oakley
55%45%
Robin Hood wins 55%. Annie Oakley wins 45%.
The two best shooters on the roster, a few centuries apart.
Paul BunyanFrankenstein's Monster
47%53%
Paul Bunyan wins 47%. Frankenstein's Monster wins 53%.
Two of the biggest men in the game, and one rim.
Frequently asked questions
Is Once Upon a Dunk free?
Yes. It’s free to play, with ads. If the ads bug you, a one-time $1.99 purchase turns off the ad between seasons.
Does Remove ads turn off every ad?
It turns off the ad between seasons. The optional ones you choose to watch for a redraw stay, because those are your call.
Is it on iPhone?
Not yet. It’s on Android now, and iPhone follows shortly after. Email us and we’ll write once when it’s out.
Do I need an account or the internet?
No account. Your seasons stay on your phone. The game plays offline; ads just won’t load until you’re back online.
Who are the players?
Legends, monsters and people from history. Every character comes from public domain stories or history, so nobody here belongs to a movie studio.
How long is a season?
Sixteen games, then a playoff bracket where every round is a series. A whole run takes a few minutes.
What’s the Daily?
Once a day, everybody gets the same deal: the same walk-ons and the same prices. One shot each. Then you compare records.
Who would win on the court, Sherlock Holmes or Houdini?
In 10,000 games on the same average team, Sherlock Holmes won 55% and Houdini won 45%.
Who would win on the court, Paul Bunyan or Frankenstein’s Monster?
In 10,000 games on the same average team, Paul Bunyan won 47% and the Monster won 53%.
Privacy, briefly
No account and no analytics, and your seasons stay on your phone. The ads come from Google AdMob, which collects some device information to show them. Where the law gives you a choice, the game asks first.
Read the privacy policyNeed a hand?
Email pettigrewlabllc@gmail.com and a real person answers.
Help and supportRather play football?
Once Upon a Snap is the football version. Same idea: legends on a salary cap, seven positions, its own league.
See Once Upon a Snap