Video Poker Blog

The thing is that you must use your skills to beat the other players at the poker table and win the pot. This is not as easy as you may thing because some of your opponents may be pro poker players. The same goes to playing online poker. Even though you are at home, playing on your computer, you are still playing poker against other real players.

Video poker on the other hand is quite different. The first difference is quite obvious: you are not competing with other poker players; you are simply playing against a computer. You don’t need to worry about your skill not being good enough to beat the competition. You can focus on simply beating the computer.

As we have seen above, you are not competing against real players, but against a machine. Does that mean that the game is not completely fair? Does it mean that you will be cheated out of your money? You must know that the game is controlled by an RNG or Random Number Generator. This little bit of technology will ensure that you are playing a fair game and that you are facing realistic odds. This means that you will have the same odds of getting a certain card combination, just as in a live poker game.

One of the hardest things to master about poker is bluffing. It is extremely hard to properly bluff. There are few poker players out there that know when the right time to bluff is, and they can do so without the opponents catching on to them. When it comes to video poker though, bluffing is completely useless. Remember that you are not competing with other poker players, so you don’t need to bluff.

As a matter of fact playing video poker is rather simple, a lot simpler than playing a traditional game of poker. The rules are the same as in a live poker game, the hands are ranked the same, and the game play is pretty much the same. There are a few advantages though. First of all you can discard from your hand any cards that you do not want to keep. This will help you make up a stronger poker hand, one that has better chances of winning. And thus we come to another advantage that video poker offers: you will always get a payout. This of course depends on the strength of your poker hand.

Here is another thing about video poker that people tend to forget about. Let’s say that you are skilled enough to play video poker and walk away with a handsome profit. But why waste your time and talent on playing single hand video poker? Unlike live poker, where you get to play just one hand, video poker allows you to play multiple hands. This way you can increase your winnings and walk away a much happier winner. With tons more cash in your pockets.



By: Adrian Radulescu

About the Author:

There are many people around that have a very nostalgic way of looking at video poker that seems to greatly enhance the amount of popularity that it receives in the online world. While video poker in the online world is similar to video poker in the offline world, there are some differences between the two. These differences are alluded to in the following sections.

Games

One of the major differences between online and offline video poker has to do with the video poker games that are available. When you take a look at what is popular in the offline world it often ends up coming down to jacks or better, deuces wild and in a few cases joker poker. While there are other forms of video poker available in the offline world, these three games put together represent more than 90% of the video poker gaming in the physical casinos of todays world. There are simply not that many other video poker games played to any large extent.

The same is not true of the online world, however. Games with wild cards are popular online and games with bonuses are popular as well. For this reason, there exists a great amount of variation amongst the video poker games that are played in the online world with some people preferring to play games with many wildcards, others preferring to play games that have progressive jackpots added to them and still others willing to try any new video poker game that comes onto the market online just because they are like to see what it is all about. Choice is big online and this definitely contributes to the wider range of games played.

Strategy and Tactics

As far as strategy is concerned, online video poker is the same as its offline counterpart in most cases. Every offline video poker game has its online counterpart and because the dynamics of the game are exactly the same from the offline version to the online version, the corresponding ideal strategy for each game is the same. There are of course variants of the game that are unique to the online world and the strategies for these games vary depending on what the winning hands and their payouts happen to be.

The tactics involved in playing a game are quite different however. The video poker tips that you would receive in the offline world would revolve around focusing on perfect strategy and making sure that you play for a long period of time so that you can stretch out your money and learn to play very well. In the online world, however, distractions are all over the place since you are playing Video Poker Games at home. For this reason, the video poker tips that would represent the ideal in online play revolve around short and productive sessions during which you maintain the optimal strategy for as long as possible. Discretion is the better part of valor in the online world, while the offline world is a ready-fire-aim type affair.



By: Imteaz Ahmed

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If you are looking for a fun and challenging alternative to playing slot machines, video poker is the game for you. Instead of simply pulling the machine handle and hoping that you will be lucky enough to meet a row of identical icons, in video poker your moves would rule whether you win or lose. Moreover, the house edge in video poker is much lower than at slots.

Playing video poker is similar to playing draw poker on a slot machine. It enables you to enjoy the action of poker without having to face other players who may be more experienced and skilled than you are. In addition, in video poker, there are no dealers, no rakes, no bluffing, no cheating; it is all about you and your poker skills.

How to Play Video Poker:

There are several variations to video poker. Some of the video poker variations are played with standard 52 card decks while others are played with additional wild cards. All the variations are based on the traditional card game of poker. Therefore, a basic knowledge of poker hand ranking is necessary.

You start by choosing the coin value you wish to play and then pick the number of coins that you want to bet. Afterwards, you click on deal and five cards will appear on your screen. You can discard some or all of the cards and replace them with new ones. After pressing hold on the cards you wish to keep, you push the deal button and the machine replaces your discarded cards with new ones.

The outcome of the second draw determines whether you win or lose. Each video poker machine displays its payout table, which details the number of coins the machine pays for each five card poker hand. The payout table differs from one video poker variation to the other and so is the minimum hand that qualifies for a payout.

Video poker odds are the same as in regular card poker. A 52 card deck produces more than 2.5 million hand combination. Each video poker machine is set by a random number generator, which simulates the probabilities of drawing any of the poker hand combinations. While in regular card poker, the casino ensure its profits by collecting a rake, in video poker the casino ensure its profits by setting each machine pay table differently.

Video Poker Tips:

1) Learn the basics of draw poker before you start playing video poker at online casinos or at a casino nearby.

2) Know the machine payout of the table you have decided to play at by selecting the machine that offers the highest return.

3) Adjust your strategy to the specific video poker variation you intend to play.

4) Use a mathematical strategy to play the game correctly.

5) Do not keep cards that cannot be used to form a winning hand.

6) Hold on to any pair instead of keeping a high card.

7) Keep any pair rather than draw into a straight or a flush.

Practice playing online video poker in a play money mode.

Jack Reider plays poker and video poker regularly. He also writes about it and other topics for an online casino guide.



By: Jack Reider

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Those interested in playing video poker might be interested to know that video poker itself actually predates the World Wide Web and the Internet (at least as it exists today) by over twenty years. Poker and its many variants has long been one of the most popular of all casino games online of course, and online video poker has brought that venerable form of card play into the computer age.

A Short History of Poker

No one is quite sure where poker originated, although a similar game, known as nas, has been played in Iran for thousands of years. It may have been introduced in the U.S. by Persian sailors making port in New Orleans back in the 1820s. The earliest references to poker in America are from the memoirs of an English actor who played in that city in 1829. From there, the game spread northward aboard the famous Mississippi riverboats, and eastward and westward along the Ohio, Cumberland and Missouri.

Not surprisingly, video poker is perhaps one of the earliest “computer games,” and its development was parallel and contemporaneous with that of the personal computer in the 1970s. Online video poker is a direct descendant of those early (and relatively primitive) electronic games. Video poker went online at the beginning of the Internet Age in the early 1990’s, and was actually played between real people in real time over Internet Relay Chat (IRC) networks.

Today, online video poker is perhaps one of the most popular of all online casino games. Since 2003, the number of video poker players in virtual, online card rooms has grown exponentially.

How Does It Compare to the “Real Thing”?

Aside from the fact that you can play alone using your personal, private Internet connection, the video poker casino game as it is played online is no different than playing in an actual casino or card room. Just like “real” poker, online video poker has a dealer - in this case, a “virtual” one - who hands you your initial hand. You can then discard and receive new cards, ante, raise and call the same way.

Will I Be Ripped Off?

If you’re worried that online video poker is “rigged,” you should know that video poker is the most honest of all online casino games. One of the reason is that the major online video poker sites are publicly-traded companies, and therefore subject to many S.E.C. regulations, and are accountable to shareholders. Such a company that attempts to “rig” a video poker casino game and is discovered may find itself heavily fined and its corporate officers facing felony charges.

Online video poker is one of the best established, well-regulated and user-friendly forms of Internet gaming, providing the same excitement and pleasure of real casino games - and best of all, you don’t need to worry about maintaining a “poker face.”



By: Wayne Hemrick

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Playing Deuces Wild Video Poker and can bring you hours of entertainment, and some money if you follow the tips below

In Video Poker games, only the ranking of the hands is the same as in table poker.When you play Deuces Wild video its fast fun!

Lets look at the game, how to win and have some fun.

Play Deuces Wild Rules

You make your bet, and then the machine deals you a five-card hand. You can keep or throw away as many cards as you wish. Obviously you never throw away a deuce, as its “wild”, and can represent any card you wish it to in the deck.

You now decide which cards to hold and which cards to throw away; you press the appropriate buttons, and then you are dealt new cards for those which you discarded. The game is over, except to determine if you won or not.

When you play Deuces Wild Video Poker, as any Video Poker game, the ranking of hands follows the general poker rules.

Where this differs from the other poker games is that the four deuces can represent any card in the deck you wish, so you can augment your hand accordingly.

Here is how the hands are ranked.

• Five of a Kind

• Royal Flush

• Straight Flush

• Four of a Kind

• Full House

• Flush

• Straight

• Three of a Kind

• Two Pair

• A Pair

A Five or kind may seem unusual, but not when you play Deuces Wild Video Poker

Here are Three Tips to help you Win when playing deuces wild video poker:

1.Play the maximum number of coins per game. The payout for five coins at once is far greater than five times the payout for only one coin.

2.If you have an empty hand (no matching cards, and no deuce), discard all five cards and try your luck with a new hand. Statistics show you have more of a chance this way.

3.Play only at machines that offer the full-pay schedules of 9/5 (9 coins for a straight flush and 5 for 4 of a kind. Read the payout schedules before you start to play Deuces Wild Video Poker, or any other gambling machine

Some Basic Strategy to Help You Win

Winning when you play Deuces Wild Video Poker can be easy, but you need to remember some rules about holding and discarding the cards in your hand.

If you have Four, three or two Deuces – Hold all the deuces, and determine what kind of a hand you can make with what you have.

Discard carefully, and never a deuce.

If you have only One Deuce - Keep the cards and the deuce that go for a high-ranking hand; otherwise, throw all except the deuce and wait for a better combination.

If you have no deuce, you need to follow this strategy:

Hold all paying hands, except the four cards to a royal flush.

Hold a four-card straight flush.

Hold any one pair

Hold the cards that make a four-card flush.

Hold the cards that make up a consecutive four-card straight.

Hold any three cards that go to make a straight flush. Hold any two of 10, J, Q, or K, if they’re in the same suit.

Play Deuces Wild for a great time

Remember,playing Deuces Wild Video Poker can bring you hours of entertainment and follow the rules above and you could make some money as well!



By: Sacha Tarkovsky

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A Strategy for Video Poker

There are various reasons why people enjoy video poker over table poker. For one, they can learn how to play the game without having others around watching their every move. However, the ranking of the hands is really the only thing that is the same as in table poker. Because the game is played on a computer, your main objective is to simply draw the best-paying hand.

In video poker, you are dealt a five-card hand. You then get to select which cards you want to discard and receive new cards for. Your video poker strategy is going to depend on the type of video poker you are playing. There are several popular types of video poker, but the most common video poker games are:

• Jacks or Better

• Deuces Wild

• Jokers Wild

Jacks or Better Strategy

The number one mistake that people make when playing video poker is that they feel as though they need to rush. When you get in a hurry, you don’t see the hand properly and you’re more likely to discard a card that you meant to keep or vice versa. When you are playing video poker, just take your time. The computer is not in a big hurry and will wait patiently for you to make your play. Here are a few points to remember when playing Jacks or Better on a video poker machine.

• Always hold all paying hands when they are dealt to you. Even if you think you can get a better hand, you’re better off winning something rather than losing.

• The only time you might break up a winning hand is if you’re breaking up a lesser paying hand to get four cards for a royal flush. However, this is still risky.

• If you have non-paying hands, then check and hold according to these tips:

o Hold any 4 cards for a straight flush

o Hold any 3 cards for a royal flush

o Hold any 4 cards for a flush

o Hold any pair if they are lower than 10s

o Hold any 4 consecutive cards

o Hold any 2 high cards of the same suit

o Hold any 3 cards for a straight flush

o Hold K, Q, or J of different suits

o Hold any two high cards of different suits

o Hold K, Q, J or 10 of the same suit

o Hold any high card

If you are not dealt any of these hand combinations, draw for a new set of five cards.

Deuces Wild Strategy

The main thing you want to remember is that twos, or deuces, can be used as a substitute for any card in this game. So, never discard a deuce!

You also want to do the following if you receive these hands:

• If you get 4 deuces, hold all five of your cards because you can’t beat this hand.

• If you get three deuces, keep a five of a kind or a royal flush. Otherwise, hold the twos only.

• If you have two deuces, keep any hand that is a four of a kind or better. Keep any four cards that can get you a royal flush, otherwise just keep the twos.

• If you get one deuce, keep any paying hand you get, except if you have four cards for a royal flush. Keep four cards to a flush and keep three cards to a royal flush, otherwise keep only the deuce.

If you are not dealt a deuce:

• Keep all paying hands, but hold four cards for a royal flush instead of opting for a lesser paying hand.

• Keep four cards for a straight flush.

• Keep any three cards for a royal flush.

• Keep any pair.

• Keep two pair only if the full house pays the same as a four of a kind.

• Keep four card flushes

• Keep consecutive four card straights

• Keep three cards for a straight flush.

• Keep any two of the following:

o K, Q, J, or 10 if they are all the same suit.

• If you do not receive any of these hands, draw a complete new five-card hand.

Kings or Better Jokers Wild Strategy

Remember that Jokers Wild is a 53-card deck because of the joker. There are actually two types of Jokers Wild and the following pertains to Kings or Better Jokers Wild.

If you receive a hand that contains a joker:

• Keep hands that are three of a kind or higher, although, you want to hold four cards for a royal flush, even if you have to discard a lower paying hand.

• Remember that the joker is a part of the combination you want. Therefore, if you have a joker and two sixes, then you have three of a kind.

• Keep any four cards for a straight flush and four cards for a flush if it includes an Ace, King or both.

• Keep three cards for a royal flush.

• Keep any four-card flush without an Ace or King.

• Keep consecutive four card straights

• If you don’t have any good combinations, but you have a joker, discard everything by the joker.

If you are dealt a hand without a joker in it, then:

• Keep all paying hands, except hold cards for a four-card royal flush.

• Keep any four cards for a straight flush

• Keep any three cards for a royal flush

• Keep any pair from 2s to Queens.

• Keep any three cards for a straight flush

• Keep any four-cards consecutive straight

• Keep two cards to a royal flush if one of your cards is an Ace or a King.

• Keep unsuited Aces or Kings

• Keep Kings or Aces alone.

• Keep any two suited royal flush cards that are lower than an ace or king.

If you aren’t dealt any of the combinations above, then draw five new cards.

Obviously, you want to choose a machine that has your game of choice on it. Remember that some games will feature multiple decks, while others are only single. Additionally, some games will also have bonus payments for certain hands as well. This can help to accumulate more coins. Also, keep in mind that each casino may vary in terms of payouts on their video poker machines.



By: Robert

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Video Poker slots are a fun game, but require skill to play correctly and this is the advantage over other slot games which require no skill at all.

You have the potential to maximize your gains by being able to put the odds in your favor, making it a more involving lucrative playing experience.

Let’s look at the basics of video poker slots and how to maximise your winning potential

How to play the game

Video Poker slots are derived from draw poker and has the same rules, except that you are not playing against any other players, just the machine.

The machine deals five cards.

The player has the option to, take up to five new cards if they wish.

The player keeps the cards they want to keep by pressing the “hold” button for the individual card shown.

When the player has decided is made they hit the “deal” button, and the cards discarded are replaced.

The result of the game is determined by the outcome after the final hand is completed.

How much you win is indicated on the pay table on the front of the video poker slot machine.

Video poker slots tend to have better graphics and more effects than other online slots, making it a more pleasing game to play.

The Pay Table

The advantage of video poker slots have over other slot machines is that the return of the game can be calculated by reading the pay table.

Most video poker games use the combinations of hands that can be made from a 52-card deck.

The number of combinations that can be made means the payout can be calculated by what the payout table pays out for winning hands.

There are 2,598,960 possible hands from a 52-card deck.

The computer chip in a video poker slot machine is set to simulate the probabilities of drawing any of these combinations.

Because this is a set probability, the casino adjusts the pay table of the online machines to produce the house edge.

By knowing how to read a pay table, you can pick a machine with the best return and best odds of success.

The payouts for all video poker slot machines are the same except for the payout on the flush, full house, or royal flush.

Here is a typical comparison of payouts on a Jacks-or-Better, which is the most popular video poker machine.

Payback Payback with Strategy 9 for a full house 6 for a flush 99.5% 8 for a full house 5 for a flush 97.4% 7 for a full house 5 for a flush 96.3% 6 for a full house 5 for a flush 95.2%

A 9 / 6 will generally hit the royal flush once for each 40,000 hands. The 8 / 5 odds once for each 45,000 hands etc - So try and play 9 / 6 machines only.

Play Maximum Coins

If you bet five coins, all winning hands are paid out by a factor of five, except for the royal flush.

This is a bonus amount given as an incentive to play maximum coins.

Any player who plays less than maximum coins on video poker slots will contribute to a royal flush that will be won by other players, so play maximum coins to increase your winnings.

Play With a Strategy

In video poker, your odds are improved if you play with a strategy and there are strategies free on the net for all of the major games.

Take Your Time

Take your time, with video poker slot machines there in no hurry and you don’t get more money for playing quicker.

The above is a quick guide to the world of video poker machines and the tips above will see ensure you have a good time and the potential to earn big winnings.



By: Sacha Tarkovsky

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