Electronic Poker is a popular game that can be bet on in casinos across the world, or in your house on your personal computer, using a net connection. The rules are very simple and consist of the player attempting to get the best assemblage of cards possible in order to win money. On this account it’s very similar as a classic game of poker, apart from the involvement with competing players. Of course, techniques employed during a physical game of poker, such as bluffing, will be irrelevant here.
The game of Electronic Poker starts when the bettor puts credits (either tokens, credit slips or money) into the machine and presses the play button. A hand of five cards will then be electronically ‘distributed’ on the video screen.
The Video Poker machine also has hold buttons, and enthusiasts should now decide which cards to hold and which to throw away. For the cards the enthusiast wishes to keep, the ‘hold’ buttons need to be pressed so that they light up. The player can choose to keep any amount of cards they want, whether it’s all or none.
After the bettor has chosen which cards he or she wishes to retain, they should press ‘draw’, which will mean that any new cards will be needed they will be given out. The game is now finished, with the Electronic Poker machine analyzing the hand to see if it matches any of the winning hands printed on the payout schedule.
Typically, the minimum winning hand on a Video Poker machine is a pair of jacks with the award money increasing for each better hand. A list of common winning hands begins with jacks or better, moving on to 2 pairs, three of a kinds, straights, flushes, full houses, 4 of a kinds, straight flushes and last but not least royal flushes. It definitely goes without saying that the payout schedule can range from machine to machine, so that discerning players are agile enough to select the most money-making machine each time.
After the first round has finished, the player can either choose to remain on in an attempt to increase their winnings, or they can press the ‘collect’ button to cash out any money that they may have won. Further, some versions of the game give the gambler an opportunity to increase their wins, in which situation a further round is played. There are also differences between specific games, with some decks of cards having wild cards and other varying characteristics to increase playability.