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How to Play Video Poker

Playing a video poker machine is not the same as playing a slot. As you all know, winning at a slot machine is solely down to luck. You put your money (or a casino token) into the machine, hit the spin button, and pray a little. There is no decision on your part that can have any effect on the outcome of these spinning reels. Casino table game is a different kettle of fish. There are a couple, namely blackjack and poker, where skill and knowledge do play an important part in allowing you to win. With some basic strategy under your belt, you can even out the odds and reduce the house edge down to less than 1%.

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Image source: Peter Mai / CC BY-SA via Wikimedia Commons

Introduction: How to Play Video Poker

Many people just stick to playing slot machines because they feel intimidated at the casino games table. The idea of having to sit down with other players, some of whom are going to be almost professional level players, is simply too much for your average player to bare. They feel that they will look foolish by making the wrong plays, or by not fully understanding the gameplay. Or simply by playing too slowly. therefore they feel more comfortable at the slot machine. If you want rapid games, check out the online jackpot sites.

Low House Edge

But there is an “in-between” option; video poker machines. Video poker requires skill and can bridge the gap between slots and table games. And as an added bonus, most video poker games have a lower house edge than, say, your typical slot machine. These days, video poker is becoming more and more popular. We can see that casinos are constantly adding new machines to the casino floor. Back in the late 1970s when video poker first hit the scene, then there were only a couple of different games available, “Jacks” or “Better Draw”. Today you’ll find hundreds of different options to play.

How to Play

All modern video poker machine games are based on simple and easy to play, draw poker. It has the same rules across the board. You are not playing against anyone, just the computer in the machine. So, let’s start. The machine deals you 5 cards on the screen. You can either ask for 5 more new cards or you can keep the cards you already have by simply pressing the hold button that corresponds to the card on the screen. When you have finished choosing, then hit the “deal” button. Then all the cards that you discarded are replaced with new ones. Winning or losing is dependent on your final hand after you hit the draw button. On the front of each machine, you’ll be able to see the paytable. This will let you know just how much you can win.

Video Poker: The Return

One of the advantages of playing video poker overplaying slot machines is that the video poker game actually tells you to want the prospective payouts will be, based on the paytable written on the front of the machine you’re playing. Poker machines tend to use a combination of hands to calculate the payouts, and these are mostly made from a normal 52 card deck. You can find video poker machines that use one or both added Jokers. One of these is the popular game, “Deuces Wild” which utilizes a 52 card deck but with the Jokers as wild cards. Now, with a set number of combinations from the cards used in each game, it’s possible to make a payout calculation as to how much money you’ll receive for each winning combination.

The Random Number Generator

Now there are 2,598,960 possible hands that can come up from a standard 52 card deck of cards. Within each video poker machine sits a Random Number Generator (RNG) that can draw any one of these possible hands. This is a set probability. That’s why you can calculate the casino edge from the adjusted paytable on the front of each video poker machine.

The calculation might be as it much for you to make there and then in your head. But no worries, as there are software programs and books all designed to do the heavy lifting for you. These will help you determine the payouts for each paytable. It’s by knowing the paytable, that you’ll know whether you’re playing the video poker machine with the best possible return. You’ll notice that there are some casinos that place two identical machines side by side. Yet they have different pay tables. With these, you want to be playing the one with the best return.

Video Poker Strategy

Knowing the paytable is just one factor in the successful playing of video poker. You will also need an understanding of mathematical strategy. Spend some time studying basic poker strategy for each game. You must play correctly, as your possible edge is very, very small. Just one simple mistake on your part can throw that tiny advantage away. Each type of video poker game has its own perfect strategy. So Jacks or Better have a different approach than Deuces Wild. You can find more essential tips between our jackpot winning strategies.

Video Poker: Practice Online First

We recommend that you learn Jacks first. That’s because most casino video poker games are going to be a variation of either Jacks or Better. Go online and practice with any one of the many poker sites that are designed to make you a better player. Sites such as Video Poker Trainer will correct you when you make a mistake. This will lead you to a better understanding of poker.

There are many poker players who think that playing video poker is somehow “less than” playing at a real poker table. And yet there are many hard-core table poker players, who, once they had tried video poker, never went back to the table. We guess it’s simply because, with just yourself and a machine, there are no other distractions, and you can get on and play pure poker.