Electronic Poker is a popular game that can be bet on in casinos all over the world, or alternatively at your house on your computer, through a web connection. The rules are absolutely straightforward and consist of the player attempting to achieve the highest mixture of cards possible in order to come away with money. In this respect it’s much the same as a regular game of poker, minus the line of contact with other players. Of course, methods used in a real-life game of poker, such as tricking, will be irrelevant here.
The game of Video Poker begins when the bettor inserts credits (whether it is tokens, tickets or money) into the machine and pushes the draw button. A 5 card hand will be electronically ‘handed out’ on the screen.
The Video Poker machine also has buttons with ‘hold’ written on them, and players should now decide which cards to hold and which to throw away. For the cards the bettor would like to retain, the ‘hold’ buttons must be pressed so that they illuminate. The player can decide to keep any number of cards they wish, whether it is all or none.
After the enthusiast has chosen which cards he would like to keep, the player will then press ‘draw’, which will mean that any new cards will be needed they will be handed out. The hand is now completed, with the Electronic Poker machine scanning the hand to see if it is the same as any of the winning hands printed on the payment schedule.
Typically, the lowest 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 begins 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 goes without saying that the pay out schedule can vary from machine to machine, so that experienced enthusiasts are agile enough to pick the most beneficial ones each and every instance.
After the initial round has played out, the player can either decide to stay on in an attempt to maximize their earnings, or they can press the ‘collect’ button to cash out any cash that has been won. Additionally, a few styles of the game allow the gambler an opportunity to increase their winnings, in which situation another hand is played. There are also variations between specific games, with some virtual decks including wild cards and other differing elements to increase playability.