Historical Background of Video Poker Games
Video poker is one of the most entertaining games that you can find at online casinos. This variety of games is available in different denominations depending on a player’s financial power. You can play from a penny up to hundreds of dollars at a go from the variety of video poker games for online casino platforms.
Some of the most popular video poker games are Better, Jacks, and a host of wild card and bonus games such as Joker’s Wild and Deuces Wild.
Most video poker game lovers and critics alike wonder how this popular game got its recognition. Let’s take a peek at the historical background of one of the most popular games in the online gambling business.
Since 1891
We’ll trace the history back to 1891 when a New York-based company, Sittman and Pitt Company of Brooklyn, invented the first poker machine with five drums and a total of 50 playing cards.
To play the game, a player will insert a coin and pull the handle, spinning the drums in the process. Each of the spun drums would stop on a specific card that makes the final poker hand.
Seven years later, Charles Fey, commonly known in the gambling industry as the Father of the Slot Machine, eventually invented the poker machine known as Card Bell. This innovation allowed gamblers to play up to 20 coins to win a royal flush.
Fey took poker games to another level in 1901 when he created Skill Draw, a special poker machine with a hold feature that players could use to hold one or any number of cards. They could also re-spin the cards to improve their hands.
Not done yet with their contribution to the poker games industry, Sittman and Pit came up with the draw poker machines in the early 1900s. The draw feature turned gamers from passive users to contributors. It took poker games from blind luck machines to one where gamers had a say.
The innovation led to skyrocketing demands for the machines that the two companies struggled to keep up with. Thanks to these ubiquitous machines, poker games found their way into most tobacco shops and liquor stores across the United States, gaining massive popularity and patronage in the process.
It’s noteworthy that people were already into card games before poker was introduced. However, poker players switched to the machine versions to take advantage of the draw feature that took the game from a mere game of luck to a contest where a player’s gaming skills can make a huge difference on the outcome.
Gambling wasn’t as legal as it is today in the United States. Players couldn’t receive monetary rewards for their winning hands as casino operators could only offer winners cigars, drinks, or cigarettes.
There’s a twist to poker games. Players were given the impression that 52 cards were used for the game whereas only 50 cards were held by the machines with five drums with 10 card-holding capacities. The prominent cards missing were the 10 of Jack of Hearts and Spades without which a royal flush wasn’t easy to get. The removal drops the possibility of a gamer getting the royal flush.
The popularity of these machines birthed modern video poker games. In 1970, Dale Electronics made the first video poker machine dubbed Poker-Matic. Every Las Vegas casino had one, although most players had some reservations about those machines.
A couple of years later, Si Redd, a Bally Gaming’s distributor, pitched the idea of a Video Poker game to the company’s Chicago-based executives because the company was into slot machines and wasn’t ready to experiment with a new idea.
However, Bally allowed Si Red to take the game’s patent and within a couple of months, he partnered with Fortune Coin Company, a partnership that led to Si Redd’s Coin Machines (SIRCOMA) mass production of the patented video poker machines.
A decade later, the new game grew so much in popularity that it became the most popular new member of the casino gaming family.
Banking on the game’s popularity, Si renamed his company International Gaming Technology and took it public. The company’s success in the casino gaming industry turned it into one of the biggest players in the casino gaming equipment industry.
Video poker’s popularity kept growing in the 1980s. People who had some reservations about casino tables found a better alternative in video poker games and gradually shifted to machine-based games.
With video poker’s invention, video slot machines’ popularity grew exponentially. The gaming industry currently offers several video poker variations to keep up with the growing demands for this game. With the release of new exciting games with better incentives and rewards, the sector will continue to grow for years to come.
The little journey that started with the release of a mechanical poker machine in 1891 has revolutionized the industry. Over the past decades, the industry has evolved as new technologies are introduced and gamers can choose from an array of video poker games according to their preferences.
Undoubtedly, man’s ingenuity has contributed immensely to the industry’s growth over the past century. Without creative inventors who saw the need for a revolution in the industry, thousands of game lovers across the globe would have been denied the pleasure of playing this exciting and hugely rewarding game.
Most Popular Video Poker Games
Here is a brief review of some of the most outstanding video poker games for online casino with the features and benefits of playing any of them:
Royal Flush Party Deluxe Video Poker
Royal Flush party Deluxe is a video poker card mobile game with a classic theme. Released and last updated on June 8, 2022, the game offers an impressive maximum win of *900 bet per line.
Although the game’s default language is English, it is also targeted toward non-English speakers. Some of the optional languages it supports for better exposure are Chinese, Malay, Japanese, and French. Others are Vietnamese, Spanish, Portuguese, Swedish, Russian, and Indonesian.
System Requirements
The cross-platform game can be played on mobile devices and personal computers. The required desktop client Operating System is Windows, Mac, or Linux while mobile users can play the game on Android 5.0 or iOS 11.0 and above.
Besides the Operating System requirement, desktop users need 2GB RAM and 128mb GPU to play the game. Although the desktop client-supported browsers include Firefox, Chrome, Opera, Safari and Internet Explorer, recommended browsers for Desktop users are Google Chrome and Firefox while mobile device users are advised to use Google Chrome and Safari.
How to Play the Game
Playing the game is pretty simple. To start the game, a player will adjust the Coin Size and select each coin’s worth. To play the maximum amount of coins, a player will click BET MAX.
For the first hand, click DEAL` to receive them. Then, click HOLD below any of the card you want to select or click the card itself.
Then, click Draw. New cards will replace ones that are not held instantly.
Custom Development
Players who desire to play the customized version of the game can do so. You can play the customized version in your language, add your company name, or add something else to make it unique to you for a price.
10s (Tens) or Better Video Poker
This is another classic video poker game with a twist. It offers a maximum win of *800 bet per line.
The game’s default language is English but prospective players from non-English-speaking countries can play it in their preferred language such as Russian, Chinese, Spanish, Portuguese, Japanese, Swedish, Indonesia, Malay, or Vietnamese.
It should be noted that the game doesn’t offer jackpots or freespins. However, it makes up for this shortcoming with an amazing load speed, thanks to the game’s small filesize without compromising on attractive features.
Each of the games has some incentives such as special popups, special animations, sounds, and effects to give players nothing but a rich and memorable gaming experience. That’s besides jackpot animations, mega win animations, special sounds, and a host of other special assets that make this game one of the best in the industry.
Client Requirements
The required operating system for desktop users is Linux, Windows, or Mac. Mobile users are better off with iOS 11.0 or Android 5.0. The minimum desktop hardware requirement is 2GB RAM and 128mb GPU. Some of the supported browsers are Firefox, Internet Explorer, Safari, Chrome, and Opera. However, Firefox and Google browsers are recommended for desktop users while their mobile counterparts can choose either Google Chrome or Safari.
Game Description
The Tens or Better video game is designed for video poker game lovers who crave the best gambling experience. When playing this game, players are required to either keep or throw away their card hands; depending on the type of card they are dealt.
Each card has a button to activate it and choose appropriate action. However, each player will select the cards they want to hold or discard.
Then, Press the Draw/Deal button once you’re done so you can immediately get replacements for discarded cards. Then, you can see whether your combination can win you the game or not.
If you have a winning combination, you’ll be paid. Otherwise, keep trying until you do.
Jacks or Better Deluxe Video Poker
Jacks or Better is another member of the videopoker card group from CasinoWebScripts. The superfast loading game was released on September 20, 2022, and updated on May 1, 2022. It takes between 10 and 20 seconds to load this game despite its impressive array of features that compete favorably with its disappointingly slow competitors.
Like the ones mentioned above, it is also created for the multilingual global online gambling community with several supported languages such as Vietnamese, Indonesian, Spanish, French, Chinese, Swedish, Indonesian, Malay, Russian, and English.
It aims to achieve that by providing players with a platform where they can verify that possible game outcomes and odds are intact and not manipulated to gain undue advantage over players and make them lose their games.
With an impressive payout rate of 98.39% and a bet per line of *800 for maximum the win, the game justifies its ranking as one of the best video poker games in the industry.
Gaming Requirements and Customization Option
The game share similar server and client requirements with its counterparts listed above. Before playing the game, check out if your personal computer or mobile device ticks all the boxes to ensure that you have a smooth and exciting gaming experience.
There’s also a customization option for gamers who want to create a special experience with the game. As mentioned earlier, embedding your name, company name, or others into the game will cost you a token.
Created on March 20, 2022, and updated on May 11, 2022, the Robo Wild Sevens Video Poker game is another member of the group that every video poker game lover should check out. With a loading speed of between 10 and 20 seconds, the superfast game is one of its kind.
As with the games reviewed in this article, the game’s default language is English. Nevertheless, the excitement and fun the game offers aren’t limited to English-speaking gamblers but to the entire online casino community, thanks to other languages it supports.
If you aren’t comfortable with English, you can choose other language options such as Japanese, Chinese, Swedish, Spanish Russian, and French. Other supported languages are Indonesian, Portuguese, Malay, and Vietnamese.
Integrated into the game is Provably Fair to ensure that gamers aren’t cheated of their wins. In place of regulatory bodies, the concept reduces cheating in the online casino space and promotes fairness. Players can leverage this innovation to verify a game’s outcome or odds before playing it.
The desktop client operating system requirements are similar to the ones shared above. With a Linux, Windows or Mac Operating System, you are good to go. Android 5.0 or iOS11.0 is the recommended mobile client Operating System.
Server Requirements
You’ll need a special server to run this game, specifically casino software developed by CasinoWebScripts.
If you are currently running an online casino or have casino software, you’ll need CasinoWebScripts’ API to connect the game to your software. The API is equipped with multiple functions that make integrating CasinoWebScripts’ games into your casino effortlessly smooth. Your servers will host everything.
Note that purchasing the API only comes with limited features. For instance, you won’t have access to a backend panel for managing your settings and game statistics. More so, users won’t have a front to access their accounts and manage them. You also need to install the latest MySQL 5.5 and PHP7 versions on your server to run it.
Video poker games are here to stay. Their increasing popularity makes them some of the best games in the online casino industry that every gambler should check out. As a businessman, you can also choose them if you want to buy online video poker games for your gambling site.
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