Video Poker is a popular game that can be gambled on in casinos throughout the world, or alternatively at your house on your computer, using a net account. The rules are very simple and consist of the player trying to achieve the best mixture of cards as you can in order to win cash. In this respect it’s very similar as a regular game of poker, apart from the interaction with competing players. Of course, techniques employed during a physical game of poker, such as bluffing, will be irrelevant in Video Poker.
The game of Video Poker starts when the gambler inserts credits (either tokens, credit slips or cash) into the machine and presses the play button. A hand of 5 cards will be electronically ‘dealt’ on the video screen.
The Electronic Poker game also has buttons with ‘hold’ printed on them, and bettors will need to now decide which cards to keep and which to throw away. For the cards the player wishes to retain, the ‘hold’ buttons must be pressed so that they light up. The player can decide to keep any amount of cards they wish, whether it is all or none.
After the enthusiast has chosen which cards he wishes to keep, they should press ‘draw’, at which point any new cards will be given out if desired. The hand is now completed, with the Video Poker machine analyzing the hand to see if it is the same as any of the winning hands printed on the payment schedule.
Generally, the minimum succeeding hand on a Video Poker machine is a pair of jacks with the prize money growing for each better hand. A list of common winning hands starts with jacks or better, and moves on to two pairs, 3 of a kinds, straights, flushes, full houses, four of a kinds, straight flushes and last but not least royal flushes. It definitely goes without saying that the payout schedule can vary from machine to machine, so that discerning players are able to select the most money-making ones each and every instance.
After the first round has played out, the player can either decide to continue on and try to to increase their winnings, or they can press the ‘collect’ button to cash out any credits that they may have won. Additionally, a few versions of the game allow the player a chance to double their profits, in which situation another round is played. There are also variations between specific machines, with some decks of cards having wild cards and other differing characteristics to enhance playability.