MWGT - Something Old Something New

December 2011

Video Poker: Something Old, Something New
by Linda Boyd

Way back in the seventies, IGT founder Si Redd, purchased the rights to video poker from Bally. When “Draw Poker” first began to appear on Las Vegas casino floors, neither Redd nor casino operators could know how popular the game and its variations would become. Now, almost 40 years later, we are sure to find video poker machines in virtually every casino throughout the country and worldwide. If you think the original Draw Poker game must surely be a dinosaur of the past, you are mistaken. In fact, the classic video poker games of years ago have the same endurance as the blackjack and table poker and they’re all here to stay.

Something Old: Sometimes I’ll throw a twenty into a slot machine just because I have a momentary urge to see what the bonus feature is for the “next best thing.” When I’m rewarded with whistles and bells I may return to the same game on a few future casino visits. Eventually, however, I’m bored with the game and want to move on to the latest slot when I’m itching to part with a few dollars for some mindless entertainment. My point is the attraction for any slot machine game seems to wear off for me and many others before too long. That’s why innovators are constantly coming up with newer and more creative slot machine choices. You’ll see a few old diehards still playing games like Cleopatra, Texas Tea and Mr. Woo (some players say the distinct sounds, like the Cleopatra bonus audio, are enticing), but nowhere near as many as in their maiden days on the gaming floor. Why, then, is the opposite true for video poker? When you see a brand new VP game, like Barbaric Deuces (it’s old now, but I’m referring to when it was new) why doesn’t it get the same level of play as the latest slots?

The reason is you don’t need to understand anything to get the ER (expected return) at slots, but you do need to be skilled to get the theoretical ER at video poker. This major difference means if you’re trying a completely new video poker game you’ll get less than the long term ER if you don’t know the game’s correct strategy. With slots you’ll never be penalized by lack of skill even though there’s no way to know the value of the chip inside the device you’re playing. This translates to a big premium on entertainment value with slots and after a time you’ll want a new thrill feature in the bonus round. With video poker, the excitement value of an unknown game is overridden by the cost to your bankroll when you’re unskilled.

In short, something old, namely the core game, is a positive for video poker play and a negative for slots. Most video poker players will choose boredom over a quick loss of their bankroll; that’s why you’ll see smart players flock to the yawn-worthy game of 9/6 JOB instead of a non-progressive version of 8/5 Double Double Bonus.

Game manufacturers as well as casino owners now understand that lack of strategy skills kills a new video poker game because players will wind up getting a return significantly less than the game’s theoretical ER. You may think that’s good for both groups, but the opposite it true. If games aren’t being played, the casino doesn’t make a dime and manufacturers lose future sales.

To their credit, casino brass and game manufacturers have tried to resolve this issue by placing automatic holds on video poker devices. Still, this has not worked for a number of reasons. Players are suspicious of being given accurate holds by the casino because they correctly assume that they have divergent interests. In addition, for some quirky games it’s very difficult to know the mathematically correct holds, even by game theory professionals. Experts will be able to figure out the statistically correct holds, but it is time-consuming and very expensive to do so. The entire process is definitely not worth the cost and effort if the game isn’t going to get a lot of casino play. In fact, I spoke to many who were complaining about the auto-hold device attached to VP machines in a Maryland casino. You see, most people don’t understand the difference between probability and possibility. If the correct hold results in a losing outcome (of course it will a percentage of the time, but is still the best play) then the uneducated cry foul. These are some of the reasons why brand new video poker games aren’t even being introduced. As a side, it’s also why IGT continues to be the game king (literally and figuratively) when it comes to video poker. New manufacturers simply can’t compete by introducing a brand new game or re-naming a classic favorite.

It’s actually a good thing for players because once they know basic strategy for the core games they can easily adapt to the bonus innovations.

Classics: The games you’ll find in virtually every casino that offers video poker are as follows:

Non-Wild Card Games
Jacks or Better (JOB)
Bonus Poker (BP)
Double Bonus Poker (DB)
Double Double Bonus Poker (DDB)
Bonus Poker Deluxe (BPD)
Deuces Wild Games
Full Pay Deuces Wild (FPDW)
Not-So-Ugly Deuces Wild (NSUD)
Illinois Deuces Wild (ID)
Loose Deuces Wild (LDW)
Bonus Deuces Wild (BDW)

Note that there are many forms of Jokers Wild, but they’re not so popular today due to the number of separate games and the fact that the pay schedules have been severely downgraded in most casinos. When you combine many variations, thus strategy complications with short-paying games, it translates to few takers.

Game Strategy: It wasn’t too long ago that I made a video poker recording with American Casino Guide’s Steve Bourie and I was asked to name the one single-most important thing for video poker players to consider. Even though I was red and cross-eyed from lack of sleep (This was during the last Global Gaming Expo), what popped out was that you must know the basic holds for the game you selected. In truth, if you’re clueless, then you will give up the advantage that some video poker games have over slots. The only way you’ll get the long-term ER indicated on the pay schedules is if you play computer-perfectly. If you understand the “key holds,” something I explain in my book (The Video Poker Edge) then you can come close to the ER indicated on my pay schedule tables, but it will be slightly less. That’s the very reason that casinos can well afford to offer some good video poker choices, especially at the quarter level.

This may seem like a daunting task, but if you take the time to use tutorial software (WinPoker, www.videopokerpractice.com) and use strategy cards (free in the back of my book) then it’s doable. Probably your best bet is to select just one of the listed classics and focus on that until you feel confident that you know the correct holds for the most frequently dealt hands.

Something New: As I’ve often pointed out, gamblers are a restless lot and the same old games will eventually bore many. With poker it’s kind of like the attraction to teaching for really good instructors. The students themselves keep changing, making the job interesting. With table poker, the players change or maybe their style of play changes; in other words, it’s more than playing the cards like in video poker, you’re also playing the players. That’s why poker in its many forms continues to attract the masses.

With video poker things are decidedly different from both slots and table poker. Sure there’s a skill component, just like table poker, but you won’t have to worry about psychological factors, like “tells” (mannerisms that give other players a clue to what you’re holding). The long-term results are in fact based solely on skill. You may run into a streak of good or bad “luck” but over time the most skilled players will do the best. The down side is that there are 2,598,960 possible combinations on the deal given a deck of 52 and even more with Joker Poker. This translates to making learning the basic holds a time-consuming endeavor and one you simply won’t be able to do for too many games. Sticking with the basic games, listed above under classics, is necessary for survival, yet manufacturers must address the boredom factor. Actually, they’ve done an excellent job of meeting both objectives. Some games, like guaranteed play (unfortunately it’s “play” not “pay”) have fallen by the wayside while others have prevailed. Some new formats are still awaiting gaming commission approval, but will be in a Midwest casino near you in the future. Here are some new twists to the classics that have been around for years along with some brand new formats you’re likely to see in the future. I’ve also included some tips to help you make wise choices and stretch your bankroll.

Multi-Hands: A gentleman by the name of Ernie Moody came up with this concept several years ago and it’s a hit with players. The reason is it’s the same old games with the option to play from one to a hundred hands during the same game. There are some things you should know to maximize your odds.

Moody’s company, Action Gaming, has the rights to 3, 5, 10, 50 or 100-play video poker. There’s no rhyme or reason as to why those are the choices except that’s what he decided and his company holds the patent on multi-hand play. What’s important for players to know is that in order to receive full pay for a royal flush, that’s 800 for each wagered coin instead of 250 returned for each coin; you must play max coins, that’s 5, for each hand. With 3,5 or 10-play you must also play max hands. You can play any number of hands with 50 or 100-play devices. That means with a smaller bankroll you should find a 50 or 100-play device and select as many or as few hands as you want, of course making sure you bet 5 coins on each hand. What if you can’t find a 50 or 100 play machine in the casino? Then select the fewest required hands, say a 3-play instead of a 5 or 10-play.

Always keep in mind that you will want to check out the pay schedule for the base game and select the best available by bringing pay schedules with you. For example, you’d select 9/6 JOB (ER of 99.5439%) instead of 8/5 BP (ER of 97.4009%). Also determine whether or not you’re bankrolled for the game you choose by checking the variance (this is on the pay schedules and the greater the variance the bigger the risk). Of course the cost of each hand is more with multi-hand VP, so ignore the machine’s indicated denomination and, instead, compute the game’s cost. For example, the denomination may be quarters, but the cost of each 10-play game is $12.50.

Progressives: If you can’t find the game you’re looking for, then try to locate a progressive version of the game with the same pay schedule. For example, people are complaining that 9/6 JOB is starting to be hard to find. If all they have is 8/5 JOB, then look for the largest progressive available. Keep in mind the speed of the meter is not as important as the amount of the progressive at the time you find a seat. Once the royal is hit (most JOB progressives are only progressive on the royal flush) then the ER goes to reset, so be self-disciplined enough to leave.

Format Options: There are two new format options that are about to hit the casino floor in the near future. You’ll see these in your favorite Midwest casino before too long and will want to know the rules. Whether they succeed is up to both the players and casino management. Game manufacturers and players want fair pay schedules even though both groups understand when additional bonuses are available there will be a price to pay — that’s extra coins for the feature. The problem arises when casino managers put a bad base pay schedule on the new format and players attribute it to either a “fixed” or just “rip-off” option. They rarely understand it’s just a poor pay table but that isn’t too important. What is significant is that players lose their bankroll too soon and the video poker game is a flop. Here are the two latest format options you’ll find.

Build a Wheel: You’ll play any of the classic games mentioned above with the added possibility of earning extra coins by spinning a wheel. You’ll be given two parts of the wheel-fill and can earn the four other parts by being dealt trips (three of a kind) or better. If you’re dealt a full-house or better, then the missing pieces are automatically filled and you get the spin. Possible downside to this game is that the casino-owner, not the game manufacturer, determines the version of the classic game offered. In other words, they may offer 7/5 JOB instead of 9/5 JOB (the demo at the gaming expo was a 9/5 JOB) making it a bad choice. When you consider that extra coins are needed to offset the added bonus feature and some games are housed in multi-play devices (3, 5, 10, 50 or 100-play as described above) it can quickly become a major bankroll destroyer. Just to give you an example of the required odds on some dealt hands refer to table 1.1.

Power Quads: Just like with all format options there's an opportunity to receive more coins, but it will cost you. Here you get a 2,000 coin bonus after you have quads in each of the 13 denominations. You can continue in the effort by logging in next time you play in the same way you can with Star Wars and a few other slots choices. The machine will credit you with the quads you have from previous sessions even if you're in a different casino. This game will either fly or die like the other new options depending on the pay schedules for the base game and if players can start off with a single play version (some formats may only be available on multi-hand devices) so they can get the hang of it before investing too much of their bankroll.

Final Thoughts: Something old, something new, that's part of the superstition accompanying traditional marriage ceremonies. It's also made a brilliant and profitable union for IGT and its many subsidiaries. Just like in the world of video poker you'll find lucrative partnerships between International Gaming Technology and Action Gaming (patent on multi-hand video poker) and a slew of others. There have, of course, been some IGT partnerships, like guaranteed play, that didn't work, but for the successful "marriages," like multi-hand, it's been a lucrative union. Players and inventors alike have had the best of both worlds. They've been able to play games they understand, something good for their bankroll, yet have the excitement of something new. We just have to hope that they don't kill the golden goose by downgrading pay schedules, forcing players to invest more in each game (multi-hands) while expecting too many extra coins to be deposited for the format bonuses. I'm all for the "something new," but if it's too expensive, like high-maintenance spouses, the relationship is doomed.

- Linda Boyd, a long-time table game player before turning to video poker, writes for many gaming publications. Her book, The Video Poker Edge, includes free removable pay schedules and her free strategy cards for the most popular games. The 2010 Second Edition is now available at amazon.com, bookstores or www.squareonepublishers.com. Kindle edition available.