Video Poker is a popular game that is able to be played in casinos all over the world, or in your house on your personal computer, using a web account. The game rules are very simple and consist of the player trying to achieve the greatest combination of cards possible in order to win money. On this account it’s much the same as a normal game of poker, minus the involvement with any other players. Of course, tactics used in a real-life game of poker, such as bluffing, will be useless in Video Poker.
The game of Video Poker starts when the gambler puts credits (whether it is tokens, tickets or money) into the video poker machine and presses the play button. A 5 card hand will then be "dealt" on the screen.
The Electronic Poker game also has hold buttons, and enthusiasts should now decide which cards to hold and which to throw away. For the cards the player wishes to keep, the ‘hold’ buttons must be pressed so that they illuminate. The player can decide to keep any number of cards they want, from all to none.
After the gambler has selected which cards he would like to retain, the player will then press ‘deal’, which will mean that any new cards are needed they will be dealt. The game is now finished, with the Electronic Poker machine scanning the hand to see if it matches any of the winning hands shown on the pay out schedule.
Normally, the minimum winning hand on an Electronic Poker machine is a pair of jacks with the award money increasing for each and every better hand. A common list of winning hands starts with jacks or better, moving on to two pairs, three of a kinds, straights, flushes, full houses, 4 of a kinds, straight flushes and finally royal flushes. It is obvious that the pay out schedule can change from machine to machine, so that experienced players are agile enough to select the most profitable machine each instance.
After the initial round has finished, the player can either decide to continue on and try to to increase their winnings, or press the ‘collect’ button to retrieve any cash that might have been won. Additionally, several versions of the game allow the gambler an opportunity to double their winnings, in which instance another round is played. There are also variations among individual machines, with some virtual decks having wild cards and other differing elements to enhance playability.
