Saturday 8 February 2020

A Step-by-Step Guide To Playing Video Poker For The First Time


You must have heard about video poker a lot and so you decided to try your hands on one, but, not sure how and where to start. We will guide you through the whole thing, but first, let’s give you some details about the inception of the video poker. 

Video poker is not a new thing that has hit the gambling world; instead, it has made its presence felt since 1970. Obviously, it was not the same as it is now, but the basic concept of the game has remained intact. 

History of video poker 

In the 1970s, a primitive form of video poker came into existence in the land-based casinos. During that time, the video poker machine was known as ‘Poker-matic’. The journey of Poker-Matic started in the casinos of Las Vegas. Dale Electronics introduced the Poker-Matic for the first time, but Si Redd was the one who tried to promote it. As it was a new concept, therefore, it was not welcomed by the casino executives and let Si Redd have the patent. 

People started taking interest in the game and soon it became a popular game in the casinos along with the slot machines. 

Step by step guide of playing the video poker 

The best thing about video poker is that more or less they all follow the five card poker guidelines. Therefore, it won’t be too hard for you to pick up the game. The only thing that is different between the two is that in the classic poker, you play against an opponent and here in the video poker you will be pitted against a computer or machine. 

  • Rules of the game 

You will come across five random cards and from there you will have to decide which one you want to keep and which one you want to discard. The action can be completed by tapping on the screen or just by clicking on the card. Now that you have decided upon the card, you will have to hit the draw button to start your game. Once you hit the draw button, a replacement card will be provided for the ones that you have discarded. The combinations through which you win a standard poker game are also applicable in video poker as well. The most interesting part of the video poker is that there will be no restriction on time. You can take your own sweet time here to complete the game. 

  • Pay Tables


Pay table is the payout list of specific hands. The pay table can be accessed on the machine only and it will also help you in making decisions while playing the game. Among the six columns that are there on the pay table, the left-most column gives you the information about the hands and the other columns are the size of the wager. If you want to know, how many coins have been inserted for starting the game, you can look for the other five columns. This pay table gives a clear picture of the payout associated with the hand matching the number of coins gambled. Depending on the gambled amount the hand either increases or decreases. 

  • Different types of video poker

Deuces, Joker’s Wild, Multi-play Poker, etc. are some of the popular video poker games that you can enjoy depending on your preferences. In ‘Deuces’, the number two card always serves as the wild card and in the Joker’s Wild, the Joker card is the wild card. Utilizing these cards, the players can get several combinations of hand. Jacks or Better is another popular game that you can try your hands on. The Multi-play video poker games include different versions like One Hundred Play, Ten Play, Triple Play, Fifty Play, Five Play, etc. 

  • Keeping an eye on the pay table

Lots of information can be garnered from the pay table, so it is imperative that you pay attention to the pay table. The best thing about video poker is that here you can actually conclude the payout prior to placing your first bet. It is one of those games where the house edge is the bare minimum. Therefore, if you check the pay table and come up with the perfect strategy, then you can actually emerge winner with complete profit on initial investment. 

  • Practice hard

It is always better to play demo games before you bet with real money. There are several video poker games online where you can play for free. Once you get a hang of it and is good at strategizing your game, you can bet with real money. 

It is always good to have some fun with the cards and when you are winning, it is the best feeling in the world. Always remember to strategize your game perfectly, so that when you start playing video poker, you start with a winning streak.