Video Poker is a beloved game that usually will be gambled on in casinos throughout the world, or alternatively at home on your PC, through a net connection. The rules are absolutely straightforward and consist of the player trying to get the greatest combination of cards as you can in order to come away with cash. In this respect it’s very similar as a classic game of poker, without the interaction with competing players. Of course, techniques used in a physical game of poker, such as tricking, will be useless here.

The game of Video Poker begins when the enthusiast inserts credits (whether it is tokens, tickets or money) into the machine and presses the draw button. A hand of five cards will then be "handed out" on the screen.

The Video Poker machine also has hold buttons, and players will need to now choose which cards to hold and which to throw away. For the cards the enthusiast wishes to retain, the ‘hold’ buttons need to be pressed so that they light up. The player can choose to keep any number of cards they wish, from all to none.

After the player has chosen which cards he or she wishes to retain, the player will then press ‘deal’, at which point any new cards are needed they will be handed out. The game is now completed, with the Video Poker machine analyzing the hand to see if it matches any of the winning hands printed on the pay out schedule.

Normally, the lowest winning hand on an Electronic Poker machine is a pair of jacks with the award money getting larger for each and every better hand. A common list of winning hands starts with jacks or better, moving on to 2 pairs, 3 of a kinds, straights, flushes, full houses, four of a kinds, straight flushes and last but not least royal flushes. It definitely goes without saying that the payment schedule can change from game to game, so that experienced enthusiasts are agile enough to choose the most profitable ones every instance.

After the initial round has completed, the player can either decide to continue on and try to to maximize their winnings, or press the ‘collect’ button to cash out any credits that have been won. Further, some styles of the game give the enthusiast an opportunity to increase their profits, in which case a further round is played. There are also differences among individual games, with some virtual decks including wild cards and other differing elements to increase playability.