what was the uspcc thinking?!?

[Gunshy1]

What were they thinking when they changed the ace of spades artwork??? of course i know this happened a long time ago, but who in their right mind thought that it was an upgrade to go to what we have now.

im sure that i don't need to explain either of these pics, but SERIOUSLY the old ace is so much better!!! i just dont get why they changed it.

[phantom1412]

People's opinions varied.
For me, I prefer the new one. Simply is best!

[Bulldozah]

Isn't there an even more zoomed-out version? I'm pretty sure that they keep enlarging the picture, and eventually all we see is a close-up of her belly   

[Curt]

Seems like they were just trying to simplify the logo and make it instantly recognizable. I guess, you could say it is sort of the same thing that Starbucks did with their logo in cutting out some of the excess. It does not bother me too much that they changed it, I really do not mind it either way, I do not expect too much from USPC's standard deck.

[CDXX]

I love the old AoS ... one of my favorite AoS's.

[dmbaggs]

I like the new one more. It's much more simple. Like curt mentioned it is more recognizable and it is also easier to put on the sides of boxes and other places. The original looks great but the new one is more preferable for me

[Don Boyer]

The old, ornate Aces of Spades are really cool - I love the Tally-Ho AoS in particular, basically unchanged from day one right down to listing the former manufacturing company's name instead of USPC.  The modern Western trend has been towards simplifying anything that's considered emblematic for easier recognition - look at the old NASA logo (the "meatball" starscape with swoosh) compared to their '80s logo (the "worm" lettering).  Even when they switched back to the meatball logo to remind the public of their long legacy, they made a simpler version of it.

I'm guessing that over the years and brands, USPC made many variations in the AoS (yes, Bicycle wasn't the only brand that utilized the "Lady Liberty" AoS - Congress immediately comes to mind).  Sooner or later, probably somewhere in the early '70s or so, someone there must have come up with the idea of making a corporate identity, and that starts with unification and simplification of anything that's identified with your company.  People felt that was the more modern way to handle corporate branding, and still do today - Starbucks made their logo simpler, and Nike is more recognized today for their "swoosh" logo than the actual word "NIKE" in print.

Bee remained basically unchanged probably because of the demands of the casino business for keeping things familiar to their customers, while Tally-Ho and Maverick, considered regional brands, were also left essentially unchanged in design to appeal to those customers using it in their respective regions (Maverick - southern US states, maybe out west as well; Tally-Ho - New York City tri-state area).  I imagine that the Aviator brand box, AoS and Joker have changed significantly - you'd never know from the modern "jet" design features that the brand was created to commemorate Charles Lindbergh's trans-Atlantic flight in the '20s.

OK, end of rambling, go about your business.  Move along, move along...

[loldudex2]

In my own opinion, I like the new one more.

[Evan]

I like the new one better. Its simple yet nice!

[Gunshy1]

i just feel the new one is SOOO boring compared to the old version. the old version was so elegant and beautiful; the new one is just simple the ace of spades. the old one said this is the bicycle ace of spades! much like the tally ho AoS does.

[MrLukeCarroll]

I prefer the new one in all honesty, and its instantly recognisable

[xela]

I prefer the old one without the fancy dooda's behind it. The spade itself with the woman inside of it, that part alone would be awesome and in my opinion better than the modern AoS.

[Deboziology]

Maybe it's o us looking at the modern AoS for too long, so we got bored of the design   But I still like the old AoS though, much more elegant IMO:D

[John B.]

I think either works well, I like the old one if i want to collect the deck but them new one for constant use.

[phantom1412]

I think either works well, I like the old one if i want to collect the deck but them new one for constant use.

Yeah, I couldn't agree more.
It would be nice to have a hold on the old one.
But still I prefer the more simple one on everyday use.

[Don Boyer]

There's another reason I can think of for them making a more universal design.  In general, poker players don't like too many changes - they want they one-eyed Jacks remaining one-eyed, they want their Suicide King stabbing himself in the head, and they want an elegant but simple AoS that isn't going to distract them from their game.  Now, Bicycle may not be a casino brand, but it is by far the most popular brand of cards in this country if not the world.  No matter how many wicked-looking variants they make of the AoS or any other design features of their new Bicycle decks, they will continue making the immediately familiar and recognizable Bicycle Rider Back 808's the same way design-wise that they have been for all of recent history.  If memory serves, poker started getting popular outside of casinos probably into the '60s and '70s, which was probably right around the time they simplified the AoS.  Contrary to many Westerns, it was rarely played in the days of the Wild West.

Bear in mind, one and all, that all of this is conjecture and educated guesswork.  I could be way off base, I don't know.