As a general rule, new variations in Video Poker games the last 20 years or so have not offered the player a better chance of success than the original-style Jacks or Better games. Video Poker games which offer you multiple chances to place ever-more obscure bets are simply there to entice the player into making greater numbers of wagers with the odds stacked heavily against them.

A good analogy can be found on the Blackjack tables: this game if played sensibly can be made almost an even-money proposition, and with a little skill even a positive expectation casino game for the player. As a result most land-based and internet casinos have introduced side bets which increases the house edge considerably. The same principle applies for Poker games.

Our advice to you is to stick to the original casino games and to follow the guidelines we’ve given you, and you will truly enjoy your Video Poker play.

Double or Nothing Feature

Since the introduction of Video Poker to the casino gaming world many varieties have offered punters an extra gambling opportunity to make a winning hand: a simple double or nothing option. If you decide to take this option, the screen clears and five new cards are dealt. The card to the left is face up; whilst the remaining four cards are face down. You can choose any one of the four hidden cards and, if the card you selected is higher than the one showing, you double your money, if it is lower than the card showing you forfeit you lose some cash.

On almost every video poker game Aces are played as high, 2s are low. Therefore, if the card showing is a 2 you cannot lose, if the card showing is an Ace, you cannot win. If the card showing and the card you select are the same value, it is a push, and you are invited to wager again, or to collect the original prize.

Most Video Poker games offer you the chance to continue gambling, doubling your money right up to the point that if you won, you would exceed the video poker game’s natural jackpot. Some games only offer you the chance to double three times, or five times, or to a pre-set limit. This limitation seems to appear more at internet casinos than at land-based casinos.

Some players simply love this feature and claim it is the only way to win some decent cash, whilst others never use it since they believe it has nothing to do with the game. According to the software developers of the game, this gamble feature is a genuine even-money proposition, based on a random visible card and randomly dealt hidden cards. It is also completely separate from the standard Poker game, which is dealt from a different virtual pack.

Personally we have experienced much success using this double or nothing feature at the internet casinos we’ve wagered at, and to be honest we like it. Our initial impression is that it is not random and that if you gamble and lose repeatedly, at some point your chances of winning increases. Since we have only played very few hands, this is not a suggested fact but merely an observation. Nonetheless, the double or nothing feature adds excitement to a game where the prizes are generally small in relation to the stake placed.

Deuces Wild Video Poker

These casino games offer the player superb value for money, on condition they provide a full pay schedule as indicated below. If you follow the strategy shown, a house edge does not exist! Instead, you the player will hold a long-term edge over the game of 0.7 percent.

The industry standard payout schedule looks something like this:

Deuces Wild (Full Pay)

Credit/Coins 1 2 3 4 5
Royal Flush (natural) 250 500 750 1,000 4,000
Four Deuces 200 400 600 800 1,000
Royal Flush (wild card) 25 50 75 100 125
Five-of-a-Kind 15 30 45 60 75
Straight Flush 9 18 27 36 45
Four-of-a-Kind 5 10 15 20 25
Full House 3 6 9 12 15
Flush 2 4 6 8 10
Straight 2 4 6 8 10
Three-of-a-Kind 1 2 3 4 5
*Notice that natural payouts (those not involving wild cards) pay by far the biggest prizes. The natural Royal Flush (excluding a wild 2) still pays 250 coins, and 4,000 for maximum credits played. Once again, this means that you must play the full five coins for each spin, so that you can benefit from this massively increased jackpot. Four Deuces pays the second jackpot, but without a bonus pay for maximum coins.

Royal Flush and Four-of-a-Kind involving at least one wild card pays relatively low prizes since you will see these hands quite often. Usually rare hands such as Straight Flushes, Four-of-Kind and Full House become regular occurrences with the addition of four wild cards into the pack.

Deuces Wild with Progressive Jackpot

Deuces Wild can also be found with a progressive jackpot and, unless you catch the casino game just after the progressive has been reset (following a jackpot win), you will find that these games can offer you a great deal. Normally the games are reset to the standard 4,000 coins after a jackpot and, at that point the house holds an edge over the player of a little higher than 1 percent.

As usual with progressives, the key to deciding whether or not to invest your money in these games will be the size of the progressive jackpot. Remember that the progressive is nearly always displayed as a cash total and not as a coin value.

This is the payout schedule for a Full Pay game with a progressive jackpot:

Deuces Wild with Progressive Jackpot (Full Pay)

Credit/Coins 1 2 3 4 5
Royal Flush (natural) 250 500 750 1,000 Progressive
Four Deuces 200 400 600 800 1,000
Royal Flush (wild card) 25 50 75 100 125
Five-of-a-Kind 15 30 45 60 75
Straight Flush 9 18 27 36 45
Four-of-a-Kind 4 8 12 16 20
Full House 4 8 12 16 20
Flush 3 6 9 12 15
Straight 2 4 6 8 10
Three-of-a-Kind 1 2 3 4 5
*Notice that although the payout for Four-of-a-Kind has dropped from five coins to four coins, the payouts for Full House have increased from three to four, and two to three coins respectively.

A progressive jackpot usually starts at 4,000 coins. At this level, the game is taking 1.1 percent from the player, and the game is only a reasonable proposition. This is the level at which the progressive will be reset following a Royal Flush being hit. When a progressive reaches 6,400 coins, the game is taking no percentage from the player and you are playing an even-money game.

When a progressive is higher than 6,500 coins, you are playing the game with a positive expectation. In other words you have the edge against the house. Remember that even if you find a really profitable Deuces Wild casino game you may not always win. Unless you hit a natural Four Deuces or a natural Royal Flush, the payout schedule is not generous. You will, however, see a lot more premium hands than you would usually see playing Video Poker with no wild cards, or just one.

Be on the lookout for the following progressive totals on a Deuces Wild game with a Full payout schedule:

25c game 4,000 coins $1,000 1.1 percent house edge
6,400 coins $1,600 No house edge
6,500 coins+ $1,625+ Player edge upwards
$1 game 4,000 coins $4,000 1.1 percent house edge
6,400 coins $6,400 No House edge
6,500 coins+ $6,500+ Player edge upwards
$5 game 4,000 coins $20,000 1.1 percent house edge
6,400 coins $32,000 No house edge
6,500 coins $32,500+ Player edge upwards

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