Video poker has a combination of elements from slot machine games and five card draw poker. Similar to slot machine games, the results are based on luck, and like five card poker, the player can influence the outcomes with the decisions he makes. Players can use optimal playing strategies that can give them an edge.
The strategies can help them figure out combinations likely to show up in a game, as the number of cards they will be dealt, remain the same at 52. With the right strategies the odds can come as high as 99.5%, favoring the player. The odds are higher than that of any table game offered at casinos.
Game screen
Unlike other card games, video poker rules allow you not have to beat the hands of your opponents or the dealer. You will be playing against the casino’s software. The payoffs you get will be based on what is mentioned in a game’s pay-table. Every game will have a screen where virtual cards are dealt. On the side, will be several buttons marked for cashing out, dealing/drawing and betting one credit. In the middle of the the screen you will have five buttons for each card.
Game-play
The game starts when you select the button for betting and dealing. You can choose the ‘bet one’ credit option if you plan to wager just one coin. However, if you want to bet all, you will have to select the ‘bet max’ option. After you place a wager, five cards will be dealt face-up. You can either retain the cards or discard them. Based on what you intend to do, you will have to choose the hold/cancel option.
Once you decide to hold the cards, you will have to request the dealing of new cards to replace the ones you discard. You can have new cards dealt only if you discard at least one. The new cards will take the places of the cards that were discarded. The five cards on the screen after this stage will make your final hand. The software will compare the hand with the pay-table combinations. If it matches with a pattern, you will be paid out according to the payout schedule for that hand.
Pay-table
A key advantage is that you can find out the returns for a game from the pay-table. Generally hand combinations that can be created with a standard deck of 52 cards are used. In a few games of Joker Poker, cards may be added to the standard deck. A widely played variant, Deuces Wild, is played with a 52 card deck where wild cards are deuces. A specific number of combinations can be made in the game. Based on this, and how much a machine pays for a combination, you can calculate the payout.
You can make 2,598,960 hands with a standard deck. A machine’s Random Number Generator (RNG) is generally set to play out the combination of hands that are possible. As the possible combinations are fixed, the house generally gets an edge by setting pay-tables accordingly.
To ensure that you get the best return for the money you wager, use strategies based on mathematics. Remember, each variant of the game has an optimal strategy that cannot be used for another variant.
