Video Poker is a popular game that can be played in casinos throughout the world, or alternatively at home on your home computer, through a web account. The regulations are very simple and involve the player trying to get the highest assemblage of cards as you can in order to acquire money. In this respect it’s very similar as a normal game of poker, minus the interaction with competing players. Of course, techniques used in a physical game of poker, like tricking, will be irrelevant in Video Poker.
The game of Video Poker starts when the player puts credits (whether it is tokens, credit slips or money) into the video poker machine and presses the deal button. A five card hand will be electronically ‘handed out’ on the screen.
The Video Poker game also has hold buttons, and bettors will need to now decide which cards to hold and which to throw away. For the cards the gambler would like to keep, the ‘hold’ buttons need to be pressed so that they illuminate. The player can choose to keep any number of cards they want, whether it’s all or none.
After the gambler has selected which cards he or she wishes to keep, they should press ‘deal’, at which point any fresh cards are handed out if desired. The round is now completed, with the Electronic Poker machine scanning the hand to see if it matches any of the winning hands printed on the pay out schedule.
Generally, the lowest succeeding hand on a Video Poker machine is a pair of jacks with the prize money growing for each and every better hand. A common list of winning hands starts with jacks or better, and moves on to 2 pairs, three of a kinds, straights, flushes, full houses, 4 of a kinds, straight flushes and finally royal flushes. It should be known that the pay out schedule can range from game to game, so that discerning gamblers are able to pick the most profitable game each and every instance.
As soon as the first round has played out, the player can either choose to continue on and try to to maximize their winnings, or press the ‘collect’ button to cash out any money that they may have won. Further, several versions of the game allow the enthusiast an opportunity to double their profits, in which instance a further hand is played. There are also differences between specific machines, with some decks of cards including wild cards and other differing elements to increase playability.