Video poker comes in many flavors and variations, but most machines are based simply on the classic poker game of five-card draw. In this situation you are dealt five random cards from a 52-card deck. Some machines add a 53rd card in the from of a joker.
You are allowed just one opportunity to improve your hand by "drawing" cards. This means you get to decide which of your five original cards you want to keep, and which you want to replace with (or discard for) other random cards from the deck.
The obvious differences are that video poker is played against a machine apposed to humans. The primary goals are still the same - to achieve the certain hands indicated on the payout table for the particular game you are playing. Each game may have unique rules and payoffs, but all are played in a comparable manner based on the original poker game.
Video Poker has set pay tables and you are playing a machine so there is no bluffing. Pairs are strong in almost every game type. It is the set pay tables of the game that gives the knowledgeable player the advantage. Playing the game is easy, playing well requires a little bit more.
Video Poker has very high returns, in many cases over 100%. How can this be? The house advantage in the game relies on player error. The more mistakes you make, the less chance you will have of reaching the expected payouts for a machine. It is as simple as that! We are not talking any system here just good old mathematical probability. If you play well over a period of time you will be well on your way. We won't blind you with science as the focus of the game is to have fun and lots of it ... but if you can win too...
There has been an explosion of game variations. Basically there are Jacks or Better and Bonus type games and the Wild Card type games like Deuces Wild and Jokers Wild. The Bonus games offer payouts for additional hand types displayed in the payout tables.
For example, Bonus Poker offers additional payouts for Four Aces, Four Two's, Threes or Fours, all with any other fifth card as a kicker. A Kicker is any card of any value that will not affect the payout. eg. Any other card drawn as long as you have Four Aces, Two's, Threes or Fours is still a winning bonus hand.
The Wild Card games such as the popular Deuces Wild have the Two's as the Wild Card. Simply put, If I drew a pair of Seven's and a Deuce, this would be counted as Three Of A Kind. There are also Jokers Wild Games, Seven's Wild and other variations.
Increasingly popular are the multi play games (triple play, power poker etc). These are standard game types that allow you to play multiple hands at once, up to 10 hands in some cases.
Some games also feature a Double Up option. This allows you to draw a single card against the machine on a winning hand to double your winnings. Highest card wins. You can double up as many times as you like, until you lose that is.
It is the different winning hand combinations and variations that create the different strategies you would use and determine from the pay table for any chosen game. It is also these different combinations that determine the probability and payout percentages for any given game.
