Canadian Online Video Poker Game Guide

Online video poker is one of the most popular games in any internet-based venue, and for good reason. While minimal strategy is involved, it is a game that can be enjoyed with minimal thought and without having to play against others. The premise is simple in that players only need to create the best 'poker hands' possible with the cards they are provided. The games look a lot like slot machines in both land-based and online venues, and the house edge can be significantly low in some online casinos.

How to Play Video Poker

Internet video poker is played exactly like the games found in land-based venues. The player will take a virtual 'seat' at a machine, choose his or her wager amount, and then click the 'deal' or 'play' button. The player will be presented with five cards, and he or she can choose which of these to keep and which to exchange for new cards in order to create the most desirable hand. Most of the games that can be found online require players to create hands that consist of at least a pair of Jacks or better in order to win a payout, but this varies somewhat based on the variant of the game that is being played.

Different Variants

Outside of the popular Jacks or Better video poker variant, players can also select from Kings or Better--which is exactly the same but presents slightly higher payouts only when players obtain a pair of Kings or a higher scoring hand--and Aces and Eights, for example. In Aces and Eights, players receive higher payouts when they make pairs, three of a kind, full houses or even two pairs with Aces or eights. Deuces Wild is another popular variant in which all of the twos are wild and can substitute for any other card with the exception of completing a royal flush.

Jokers Wild

The rules associated with the ever-popular Jokers Wild are a bit different since there are two Jokers introduced into the virtual deck, creating a deck of 54 cards rather than 52. Since the odds of creating hands are actually increased due to the addition of two wild cards, the payout scale is almost always modified so that players do not receive any payout at all unless they can obtain at least two pairs. For this reason, the payouts for the poker hands may actually increase just slightly.

Video Poker Strategy

Since the player is actually required to make choices during gameplay, it can be said that an online video poker strategy can help. Above all else, players should become familiar with the odds of receiving certain cards and creating certain patterns so that they will know which choices to make. For instance, if a player receives a Jack and a Queen, holding these cards and drawing three is much more likely to produce a pair than a straight.