Electronic Poker is a popular game that is able to be wagered on in casinos across the globe, or alternatively at home on your home computer, through a web connection. The rules are absolutely straightforward and involve the player attempting to get the highest mixture of cards possible in order to win cash. On this account it is much the same as a normal game of poker, without the interaction with any other players. Of course, methods used in a real-life game of poker, like tricking, will be irrelevant in Video Poker.
The game of Video Poker begins when the player puts credits (whether it is tokens, credit slips or money) into the machine and pushes the draw button. A hand of 5 cards will then be electronically ‘handed out’ on the video screen.
The Video Poker machine also has hold buttons, and enthusiasts should now decide which cards to keep and which to throw away. For the cards the gambler wishes to retain, the ‘hold’ buttons should be pressed so that they illuminate. The player can decide to keep any amount of cards they wish, whether it is all or none.
After the bettor has decided on which cards he or she wishes to keep, they should press ‘draw’, at which point any fresh cards are handed out if desired. The round is now finished, with the Electronic Poker machine analyzing the hand to see if it is the same as any of the winning hands listed in the payment schedule.
Typically, the lowest succeeding hand on an Electronic Poker machine is a pair of jacks with the award money growing for each better hand. A list of common winning hands starts with jacks or better, moving on to 2 pairs, three of a kinds, straights, flushes, full houses, four of a kinds, straight flushes and last but not least royal flushes. It should be known that the pay out schedule can change from game to game, so that experienced enthusiasts are able to pick the most profitable machine every time.
As soon as the initial round has completed, the player can either decide to stay on and try to to maximize their earnings, or press the ‘collect’ button to cash out any money that might have been won. Additionally, several versions of the game give the player an opportunity to increase their winnings, in which case a further hand is played. There are also variations among specific games, with some decks of cards including wild cards and other differing elements to enhance playability.