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Video Poker is probably the simplest interactive gambling game
now available. It is an interactive game because you can choose which
cards you will keep and which cards you will throw away in the draw. Its
simplicity lies in the easy-to-understand rules of the Five Card Draw
poker game. I will therefore begin with a short explanation of Five Card
Draw, and then expand on how this applies to Video Poker.
In the Five Card Draw poker game you are first dealt five cards. You
then have the choice of keeping any or all of them, or throwing away any
or all of them. For each card you throw away, you get another to replace
it. The object is to improve your "hand" [the final set of five cards
you decide to keep] and make it into a winning hand. This is the format
currently used as the basis for the computer program that runs virtually
all Video Poker machines.
On such Video Poker machines, you begin play by inserting your coins in
the slot. Almost all Video Poker machines take from one to five coins.
The only exceptions are $5, $25 and $100 Video Poker machines, which can
take two or three coins as "maximum". You can only win the jackpot, the
top prizes by playing the maximum coins allowed on the machine you are
playing.
Once you deposit the maximum coins, the machine automatically deals you
the first five cards, displaying them on the machine's screen. If you
play fewer than maximum coins, you must hit a lit button labeled "deal".
The machine will then deal you the same five cards you would have been
dealt if you had played the maximum coins, because that set of cards is
determined by the machine's program immediately after the first coin is
deposited in the slot. Depositing further coins will not alter these
five cards, therefore further coins are played solely to increase the
potential amounts of money to be paid out by the machine if a winning
hand is achieved after the draw.
After you receive the first five cards, a row of buttons on the machine
lights up, usually with the word "hold" written on each button. These
buttons are used to keep the cards you wish to hold. There are five of
these hold buttons, one for each of the five cards you have been dealt.
Normally, these hold buttons are directly underneath each card, making
it easy to see which cards you are selecting. By pressing any one of
these hold buttons, the word "held" will appear above or below the
corresponding card. This means that you have selected to retain this
card as part of your hand, and when you take the next step in playing
this hand, the machine will keep this card on the screen. In effect, you
have selected to keep this card. Pushing the button simply tells the
machine what your decision is.
You can hold any one, two, three, four or all five cards, as you wish.
Once you have selected the cards you wish to hold, you must press the
deal button to continue the hand. The machine then keeps the cards you
selected and throws away the rest, immediately dealing you replacement
cards for the ones you didn't hold. If the combination makes a winning
hand, the machine pays you automatically and the hand is over. Most
modern machines pay on "credits", with the number of credits you have
won typically displayed either at the bottom right hand corner, or the
top left hand corner of the Video screen. For instance, if your win is
five coins, these machines will indicate the win by displaying the word
"winner" and running up the amount of five coins on the "credit meter".
After the credits are paid, the words "player paid five" will usually
appear on the screen, and this message will stay displayed until the
next hand is played. Of course, if you win 30 coins, this message will
say "player paid 30", and so on. You can then play the next hand by
using your credits. Simply press the "bet" button, once for one coin,
twice for two coins, and so on; or you can touch the "play maximum
coins" button, in which case the machine will automatically take five
credits, the normal maximum bet for most machines, and automatically
deal the next game. The whole process is then repeated over and over
each time you press this "play credits" button until your credits are
gone, or until you decide to collect them.
With the credit meter option, the machine will pay the amount of your
win to the credit meter each time you win. Each time you lose, the
credits you used to play with are gone, lost in the same way your coins
would have been lost on a losing hand if you had inserted coins in the
slot. If you have credits left on the credit meter and wish to collect
them, you can do this at any time after the current hand is completed
simply by pressing the button marked "collect". The machine will pay you
by dropping your coins in the tray mounted below the machine.
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