Overview of Video Poker
Video poker is a mix between slots and video poker in that the game is based on
the popular casino game of poker, but it is played on slots-like machines. Poker
has been enjoyed in the United States since the early 1800's and since that time
it has evolved. Now video poker is one of the most popular casino games that is
offered in both land-based and online casinos.
The Forefathers of the Video Poker Machine
In 1891 the first slots machine on which poker could be played, was invented by
Sittman and Pitt. Players inserted a coin into the machine and pulled a lever in
order to spin the drum. Fifty playing cards across the five drum spun randomly.
The aim of the game was to hit the best poker hand possible. In the first poker
machines, the ten and Jack of spades was removed, hence the reduction from 52
cards to 50 cards.
In 1899, the famous Liberty Bell slots machine was invented by Charles Fey.
This machine replaced the playing cards with symbols and the craze of slots
games was born. As the slots game grew in popularity, poker machines became less
popular and it took many more decades until video poker found favor once more.
The Video Poker Machine is Born
Video poker and video slots were first invented in the 1970s. Dale Electronics
launched the Poker-Matic video poker machine into casinos in Las Vegas in 1970.
These did not become popular at the time. When video slots machines as were
introduced in 1975, they also did not gain the popularity that their inventors
expected as the players did not trust the payouts from the machines. Video poker
finally took off with a bang when in 1979, a company called SIRCOMA (which is
now known as IGT) invented the hold and draw options for video poker and created
a game known as Draw Poker. As the popularity of video poker continued to grow
more variations of the game were created. Video poker began to become more
popular in the casinos than table-based poker.
The Appeal of Video Poker
Many people now prefer video poker over slots games as the player has more
control over the outcome of the video poker game. There are many variations of
the game and they require some level of skill in order to be successful. The
payouts also tend to be higher in video poker than in slots games. For players
who are tossing up between video poker and table poker, video poker is ideal for
the poker enthusiast who prefers a bit of privacy when gambling.
Online Video Poker
The increasing popularity of online casinos has added to the popularity of
video poker. The first online video poker game was invented by Microgaming in
1994. As the Internet became more available to more people and online gaming
became more acceptable, greater numbers of people around the world have started
to enjoy video poker. Many of the top online casinos offer multiple variations
of the game, as well as progressive video poker games.
