Types of Video Poker Game

Playing online video poker games is perhaps the most convenient way to play the game thanks to the fact it can be done just about anywhere and even from the palm of your hand. Here, we’ll provide you with a list of types of video poker. On top of that, you’ll also find tons of other helpful details which you can use to quickly get yourself up to speed on everything you’ll want to know. Here are 9 Types of Video Poker to Play.

Common Types of Video Poker

When it comes to video poker, there are a ton of different types of games available. Thanks to this, fans of playing video poker often have more choices than individuals interested in playing. Below, we’ve featured some of the most common types of online video poker. Keep in mind this isn’t an all-inclusive list, so you may come across other variants at video poker online casinos which differ from the ones included here.

It’s also worth noting that we’ve provided descriptions of each of these video poker variants. This section isn’t designed to tell you every nuance about each one of these variations. Instead, our goal is to get you acquainted with some of the key points which differentiate each of these popular variants.

1. Joker Poker

One of the most popular versions found at video poker casino sites is Joker Poker. In this variant, the deck of 52 cards contains some joker cards. These cards act as wild cards, which can help players make the best possible hand based on their other cards. Thanks to the inclusion of joker wild cards, you’ll have a higher chance of winning! This is one of the 9 types of video poker to play.

The second meaning of jokers is a slang term for a pair of jacks in Texas Hold’em. If you have two jacks in the hole, you might say you “have jokers.” It is one of many colorful nicknames given to different pairs and hole card combinations. Other slang terms for a pair of jacks are hooks or fishhooks (referring to the shape of the letter J as well as how “fish” or inexperienced players might get excited and overplay a pair of jacks), Johnnies, Kid Dyn-o-mite (from the character J.J. on the “Good Times” television series of the 1970s), the Two Jakes, jaybirds, and brothers.

The joker cards are not used in Texas Hold’em poker, except perhaps at friendly home games. Therefore, any reference to jokers you hear while playing Texas Hold’em at a card room, casino, or tournament is likely to be referring to a pair of jacks.

2. Bonus Poker

With Bonus Poker, the core game functions like Joker Poker where joker cards are wild. Where the bonus portion comes in is whenever you’re able to make select four-of-a-kind hands. When these select hands are made, you’ll earn a bonus payment that’s larger than the typical payout from Joker Poker.

Bonus Poker is a fun and common version of Jacks or Better that offers some of the best payouts in the casinos. In fact, at most land-based casinos, Bonus Poker is the best-paying video poker game you’ll find. Full Pay Jacks or Better and even “Not So Ugly” Deuces Wild are much rarer and harder to find.

The strategy for playing Bonus Poker is straightforward enough. Just start at the top of the list provided in this guide and work your way down.

Lots of online casinos make Bonus Poker available for free or real money, too. It’s well worth the effort required to learn how to play it well, and we’re big proponents of practicing online before trying it out in a land-based casino.

3. Tens or Better

Another popular version found at video poker online casinos is Tens or Better. Here, instead of needing to have a pair of jacks or better to receive a payout, you need to have a pair of 10s at a minimum. Anything less than that, and you won’t receive any form of payout for your hand.

However, in Tens or Better, you will not receive a payout unless you make at least a pair of tens, which makes it incredibly easy to complete your video poker game several times richer than you were upon starting.

Although Tens or Better guarantees frequent small winnings, players who do not like the slower accumulation of solid winnings opt for the Jacks or Better where they have a chance to make a better hand and qualify for a better payout.

Tens or Better is a game in which you compete against the machine rather than against other players. It is a 1-hand game and player’s goal is to have at least a pair of 10’s among the cards dealt. The best paying combination is the Royal Flush.

4. All American Poker

With All American Poker, you’ll find increased payouts whenever you’re able to make hands which include a flush or a straight. With this variant, everything else functions like Jacks or Better with no wild cards included in the deck.

All American Video Poker is a game between you and the dealer and is played with a standard deck of 52 cards. Five cards are dealt in the first hand.

Hold as many cards as you want to build the strongest hand. The remaining cards will be discarded and replaced with new ones from the same playing deck.

All American Video Poker is a standard video poker game based on Jacks or Better play. 

5. Jacks or Better

As the name implies, Jacks or Better requires players to have a pair of jacks or better to achieve a payout. For example, if you only have a pair of nines, you won’t win with this version of the game. But if you have a pair of jacks, you’re a winner. As with other forms of video poker, the better your hand gets, the higher your potential payout will be.

It is the original video poker game and can provide you with hours of fun. The aim of the game is to build the best possible poker hand. The game is won if the player’s hand contains at least a pair of jacks (hence the game’s name). At first you are dealt five cards, you then choose which to hold on to before discarding and replacing the others. You are then paid depending on the strength of your hand. Before you begin playing the game, you must first understand what all of the different hands are. 

6. Deuces Wild

This video poker functions just like Joker Poker. However, instead of joker cards being wild, all of the twos in the deck are. Whenever you have a two in your hand, it’s able to act as whatever card in the deck will most help you make the best hand possible.

Deuces Wild video poker is a simple and easy to play game as it plays in more or less the same way as most other video poker variants. A bet is placed at the beginning of a hand and players are dealt five cards. Players may hold all five or discard up to five cards to receive new cards in the quest for a better and winning hand.

7. Double Bonus Poker

Taking things up one notch and play Double Bonus Poker at online casinos with video poker. With this version of the game, everything functions just like the game described above with one exception. Here, you’ll receive a significant bonus if you end up making a hand comprised of four aces.

Double Bonus Poker is basically a variation of Bonus Poker, which is, in turn, a variation of Jacks or Better. The reason the word “bonus” is added to the name of the game is because of the extra-high payouts for the 4 of a kind hand in the game. The game “pays” for the bigger payouts for a 4 of a kind by reducing the payoff for 2 pairs from 2 to 1 to even money.

With the right pay table, Double Bonus Poker can offer the smart player a small edge over the house. Even some of the less optimal pay tables make for a great video poker game, though.

Also Read – Double Up Poker Machine

8. Aces and Faces Poker

At its core, Aces and Faces is a version of video poker that functions much like Joker Poker. However, the critical difference with this variant is that you’ll receive higher payouts whenever your hands include a face card or an ace.

Most video poker games are just variations of Jacks or Better or Deuces Wild, and Aces & Faces video poker is no different—it’s based largely on Jacks or Better. What distinguishes Aces and Faces from other video poker games are the bonus payouts on the 4 of a kind hands. These bonus payouts apply to any 4 of a kind made up of aces or of face cards (the jack, queen, or king).

9. Multi-Hand Gaming Options

One last format of the game we wanted to include here is multi-handed versions of the game. For nearly all of the video poker versions included above, it’s possible to find variants that allow you to play more than one hand at a time. In some cases, you can play 3, 10, 50, or even more hands at once. For some individuals, this is a more exciting way to play the game. To help you conceptualize multi-handed video poker games, we’ve added a couple of images below of what you can expect.

With so many variations found at video poker online casinos, you’re sure to find one which you’ll enjoy. We urge you to take the time to practice new forms of the game in a free mode before you start risking real money when playing them. Since there are many variables that change hands payout and their associated payment amounts, you must have a good grasp of things before risking your hard-earned dollars.