Your money can increase nicely during this time, and you can also lose it all very quickly, which is most annoying. If you win, your money is doubled, and you are offered a chance to go again. Some machines offer double down: After you have won, you get a chance to draw cards against the machine, with the higher card the winner. (The best returns are offered on the Bonus Poker machines the payback for a pair of jacks or better is two times your bet, and three times for three of a kind.) The Holy Grail of video-poker machines is the 9/6 (it pays nine coins for a full house, six coins for a flush), but you’ll need to pray a lot before you find one in town. Be sure to study your machine before you play.
There are a number of varieties of video poker machines, including Jacks or Better, Deuces Wild, and so forth. This is somewhat more of a challenge than slots because you have some control (or at least the illusion of control) over your fate, and it’s easier than playing actual poker with a table full of serious poker players. And, it is hoped, you collect your winnings.
You are dealt a hand, you pick which cards to keep and which to discard, and then you get your new hand. Video poker works the same way as regular poker, except you play against the machine.
