There are very many video poker variants at online casinos, but almost all of them have identical game play. You are dealt five cards after placing the bet. You can replace as many of these as you want. Your final hand is compared against the payout table. If you are bored with this routine and are looking for a completely different type of video poker variant, then head to your nearest Playtech online casino. From the video poker menu select Pick‘em Poker. The game play is simpler but the strategy is more complex.
As in other online video poker games, Playtech Pick‘em Poker is played with a single standard deck of cards. After placing the bet you will be dealt two cards face up and will also be dealt two stacks of three cards each. Only the top card of these stacks can be seen. You have to choose one of the two stacks. The three cards in the chosen stack and the two single cards dealt will make your five card hand. So your choice depends on which top card of the two stacks has a better chance of getting a higher ranked poker hand with the two single cards.
The uncertainty is greater in Playtech Pick‘em Poker than even in the basic online video poker variant of Jacks or Better. In order to compensate for this, the payout table begins with nines or better. The payouts for a wager of five coins are as follows. Nines or better pays 2 to 1. The payouts increase with the usual increasing order of poker hand rankings. At the higher end, four of a kind pays 120 to 1. Straight flush pays at 239.8 to 1 and royal flush pays at 1200 to 1. If you wager less than 5 coins then the top three payout ratios are lower. Four of a kind pays 100 to 1. Straight flush pays at 200 to 1. Royal flush pays at 1000 to 1. Hence it is all the more important in Playtech Pick’em Poker to wager five coins.
Playtech Pick‘em Poker is also available in multi-hand format. You can select from 1, 4, 10, 25, 50 and 100 hands. In these games the two single cards and the face up card in the chosen set of three will be the same for all hands. Only the two hidden cards in the chosen stack will be different in each hand. Pick’em Poker is live at all Playtech online casinos such as Omni Casino and Mansion Casino.