[ English ]

Video Poker is a popular game that is able to be played in casinos across the world, or alternatively at home on your PC, through an Internet account. The rules are very straightforward and involve the player trying to get the best mixture of cards achievable in order to come away with cash. On this account it’s very similar as a classic game of poker, without the interaction with competing players. Of course, tactics used in a physical game of poker, such as tricking, will be irrelevant here.

The game of Video Poker starts when the enthusiast inserts credits (either tokens, tickets or money) into the video poker machine and presses the deal button. A 5 card hand will be "distributed" on the screen.

The Electronic Poker machine also has hold buttons, and players should now choose which cards to keep and which to throw away. For the cards the bettor would like to keep, the ‘hold’ buttons need to be pressed so that they illuminate. The player can decide to keep any amount of cards they wish, from all to none.

After the bettor has selected which cards he wishes to keep, they should press ‘deal’, which will mean that any fresh cards are handed out if desired. The hand is now finished, with the Video Poker machine scanning the cards to see if it is the same as any of the winning hands shown on the payout schedule.

Generally, the lowest succeeding hand on an Electronic Poker machine is a pair of jacks with the award money increasing for each better hand. A common list of winning hands begins with jacks or better, and moves on to 2 pairs, three of a kinds, straights, flushes, full houses, 4 of a kinds, straight flushes and finally royal flushes. It goes without saying that the pay out schedule can change from machine to machine, so that discerning players are able to pick the most money-making ones each and every instance.

After the first round has finished, the player can either decide to continue on and try to to increase their winnings, or they can press the ‘collect’ button to retrieve any cash that might have been won. Additionally, a few styles of the game give the gambler a chance to double their profits, in which instance another game is played. There are also variations among specific machines, with some decks of cards including wild cards and other varying elements to enhance playability.