Video Poker

Video poker is a machine-based game that combines the random deal of a slot machine with the strategic decision-making of draw poker. You're dealt five cards and choose which to keep (hold) and which to discard. The discarded cards are replaced with new ones from the deck, and your final five-card hand is paid according to a fixed paytable. There's no bluffing or opponents. It's just you against the pay schedule.

The game starts when you insert credits and choose your bet (always bet maximum coins because the royal flush payout is disproportionately higher at max bet). Five cards are dealt from a standard 52-card deck. You decide which cards to hold, press Deal/Draw, and the unheld cards are replaced. Your final hand is evaluated and you're paid based on the paytable displayed on the machine.

Jacks or Better is the most common and beginner-friendly variant. The minimum paying hand is a pair of Jacks or higher. Full-pay Jacks or Better (known as 9/6 because it pays 9 coins for a full house and 6 for a flush per coin bet) returns 99.54% with optimal strategy. Other popular variants include Deuces Wild (all 2s are wild, some versions exceed 100% RTP), Bonus Poker, and Double Bonus Poker.

The key difference from slots is that your decisions matter. Holding the right cards can be the difference between a 99.5% return and a 95% return. Optimal strategy charts exist for every video poker variant. They tell you exactly which cards to hold in every situation. Unlike blackjack basic strategy, video poker strategy varies by game variant and paytable, so check the specific chart for the machine you're playing.