What is Online Video Poker?
What is Video Poker all about? Poker professionals will tell you that you that you cannot master a game until you get to understanding video poker.
Video Poker was introduced in the 1970s and it has had an exponential growth in popularity and membership ever since. This form of Poker differs from real world casino poker in that you do not need to go to a casino to play. All you need to have is access to a console that doubles up as a machine for Video Poker. This can be installed in any of the bar rooms or lounges in the locations that people usually flock to during weekends.
Casino based poker and Video poker
Understanding Video Poker depends on your ability to distinguish between the normal casino based poker and video poker. The former involves a dealer who is a person whereas in the case of the latter it is the machine itself that deals the cards. The whole strategy in Video Poker is built around holding the card of the maximum value from the cards that have been dealt with by the machine. The amount of pay out depends on the kind of cards one holds with regards to the pay out schedule. The pay out schedule is printed on top of the casino machine.
Once you have the cards required for a pay out, you should choose whether you want to double your winnings or cash out at the stage. If you want to double your winnings, you would also face the possibility of losing out in the next hand. Thus, this is one choice that you should make consciously. You may also want to cash out like you do in the slot machines where after a winning; you have the option of getting out.
Main Keys to Video poker
Essentially, the key to understanding Video Poker lies in the fact that it is a fusion of the traditional poker game and the slot machine. Thus, though the rules of the game are similar to that of poker, the cash out and pay out schedules are those of the slot machine. Video Poker appeals to those who want to win big without putting too much money for extras like casino charges and the travel to far away casinos. It gives the benefit of playing from whichever location one wants to without bothering too much about the casino playing rules and the like.
Understanding Video Poker involves understanding the nuances of playing alone and anonymously without too much interference from other players. Thus, it is a win-win proposition for the gamblers and the machine owners. One of the other differences is that Video Poker is dependant on the random number generator that is programmed in the computer of the machine whereas the slot machine operates slightly differently.
However, the pay out percentages of the slot machines is substantially lower than that of the Video Poker machines. And there is no element of skill in the slot machines whereas the game of video poker runs on a lot of skill and chance in equal measure. Thus, the difference between the two needs to be noted and made use of when playing in either of the machines.