A Player's Guide to Good Video Poker Games

Video poker comes in a lot of varieties. No player knows all of the games. And casinos in different areas offer different games. So, where do you start?

The answer is with the pay schedule. ItBob Dancer is one of the world's foremost video poker experts.  He is a regular columnist for Casino Player, Strictly Slots, and the Las Vegas Review-Journa land has written an autobiography and a novel about gambling.   He provides advice for tens of thousands of casino enthusiasts looking to play video poker.  Bob's website is www.bobdancer.com  makes a big difference how much you receive for a full house and a flush. But even if you memorize "9/6," which are the good numbers for Jacks or Better, the numbers are different for different games.

Below is a brief summary of most video poker games that may be found that return in excess of 98% or so. Playing a 98% game perfectly still gives the casino an impossible-to-overcome edge, but limiting yourself to these games will make your money last longer than when you play games worth less. This list gives the games and pay schedules that are available on new machines. But you should note that many casinos have older machines with slightly different pay schedules.

In most casinos, you can find one or more of these pay schedules. Finding the best game in a casino will still involve going around and looking at every game in the denomination you prefer, but at least now you can have a good idea of what you’re looking for. I recommend your first trip to a casino be primarily for scouting purposes. If you already know how to play the best game, by all means sit down and play. But if you are unfamiliar with it, go home and practice on "WinPoker" before your next visit.

Jacks or Better

This game has all fours-of-a-kind return the same amount (usually 25), and two pair returns two. The game is also called "Draw Poker," and on Triple Play and Five Play machines it’s called "Triple Play" and "Five Play," respectively. For some strange reason, by the time you get up to Hundred Play, the game is called "Jacks or Better again."

Pay Schedule Return

9/6 99.54%

9/5 98.54%

8/6 (four-of-a-kind returns 26) 98.63%

Bonus Poker

This is a version of Jacks or Better where four 2s through 4s pay 40 and four aces pays 80.

Pay Schedule Return

8/5 99.17%

7/5 98.02%

Ace$ Bonus Poker

This is a version of Bonus Poker where each ace has a superimposed "A," "C," "E," or "S." Getting "A-C-E-S" in either positions 1 through 4 or 2 through 5 pays 800 per coin bet.

Pay Schedule Return

8/5 99.41%

7/5 98.26%

Aces & Faces

This is a version of Bonus Poker where four jacks through kings pay 40, rather than four 2s through 4s. The reason it pays more than regular Bonus Poker is because you will hold a high pair in preference to a four-card flush, but you will hold a four-card flush in preference to a low pair. Hence, four jacks through kings occur more frequently than four 2s through 4s.

Pay Schedule Return

8/5 99.26%

7/5 98.10%

This doubles the payouts for all fours-of-a-kind and reduces the return for two pair to one. In the 98%+ versions, straights pay five instead of four.

Pay Schedule Return

10/7 100.17%

9/7 99.11%

Double Aces & Faces

This is a version of Double Bonus where four jacks through kings pay 80 rather than four 2s through 4s.

Pay Schedule Return

9/7 99.24%

9/6/5 97.97%

This is like Double Bonus Poker, except four aces with a 2,3 or 4 kicker pays 400 and four 2s through 4s with an ace, 2, 3 or 4 kicker pays 160.

Pay Schedule Return

10/6 100.07%

9/6 98.98%

9/5 97.87%

Double Double Aces & Faces

This is like Double Double Bonus Poker except it is four jacks through kings where you receive 80 to 160 rather than for four 2s through 4s.

Pay Schedule Return

9/6 99.46%

9/5 98.37%

Triple Double Bonus Poker

This is like Double Double Bonus Poker except four aces with a kicker pays 800 and four 2s through 4s with a kicker pay 400. The extra bonus on the quads is paid for by reducing the return for three-of-a-kind from three to two.

Pay Schedule Return

9/7 99.58%

9/6 98.15%

Bonus Poker Deluxe

This is a form of Jacks or Better where all fours-of-a-kind pay 80 instead of 25, and all two pairs pay one instead of two.

Pay Schedule Return

9/6 99.64%

8/6 98.49%

Super Aces Bonus Poker

This is a version of Double Bonus where four aces pays 400 and straights pay four.

Pay Schedule Return

8/5 99.94%

7/5 98.85%

6/5 97.78%

Super Double Bonus Poker

This has the four-of-a-kind structure of Double Bonus, except that four jacks through kings return 120 (rather than 50), and straights return four (rather than five).

Pay Schedule Return

9/5 99.70%

8/5 98.69%

7/5 97.77%

Triple Bonus Poker Plus

This game is like Double Bonus, except quad 2s through 4s return 120 (rather than 80), quad aces return 240 (rather than 160), straight flushes return 100 (rather than 50), and regular straights return four (instead of five).

Pay Schedule Return

9/5 99.80%

8/5 98.73%

White Hot Aces

This game is like Triple Bonus Poker Plus, except that straight flushes return 80 (rather than 100).

Pay Schedule Return

9/5 99.57%

8/5 98.50%

Deuces Wild

The pay schedules listed here go from wild royals to flushes. Included are nicknames for some of the pay schedules.

Pay Schedule Nickname Return

25/15/9/5/3/2 "Full Pay" 100.76%

20/12/9/5/3/2 "pseudo Full Pay" 99.94%

25/16/10/4/4/3 "Not So Ugly" 99.73%

25/15/9/4/4/3 "Ugly Ducks" 99.91%

Double Deuces Wild

Four deuces pays 400 instead of 200.

Pay Schedule Return

16/11 99.62%

15/10 98.86%

Triple Pay Deuces Wild

Four deuces pays 600 rather than 200.

Pay Schedule Return

Only version 99.92%

Loose Deuces

Four deuces pay 500 rather than 200.

17/10 101.60%

15/10 100.97%

15/8 100.15%

12/8 99.20%

Deuces Wild Bonus Poker

Five aces pays 80, five 3s through 6s pay 40, five 7s through Ks pay 20, and straights pay one.

Pay Schedule Return

9/4/4 99.45%

13/4/3 98.80%
 
Double Bonus Deuces Wild Poker

This is like Deuces Wild Bonus Poker, except with higher returns for fives-of-a-kind.

Pay Schedule Return

25/12 99.81%

25/9 98.61%

Super Bonus Deuces Wild Poker

The key hand that pays extra is a five-of-a-kind with exactly one deuce.

Pay Schedule Return

25/15/10 100.13%

25/15/9 99.67%

25/12/9 98.84%

Deuces Joker Poker

There are five wild cards in this 53-card deck.

Pay Schedule Return

12/9/6 99.07%

Kings or Better Joker Poker

You get your money back for a pair of kings or a pair of aces.

Pay Schedule Return

940/20/7/5 101.00%

800/20/7/5 100.65%

940/17/7/5 98.44%

Two Pair Joker Poker

The top pay is for a royal flush.

Pay Schedule Return

1,000/20/10/6 99.92%

Double Joker Poker

Two pair is required to get your money back.

Pay Schedule Return

9/5 99.97%

8/5 98.10%

One-Eyed Jacks

There are two wild cards (J(spades) and J(hearts)) in a 52-card deck.

Pay Schedule Return

200/75/50 100.28%

180/80/50 99.98%

150/75/50 98.96%

150/75/45 97.95%

These names and pay schedules are for IGT games, which have a large percentage of the market. Other manufacturers sometimes have slightly different pay schedules. A 50,000-coin two-way sequential royal flush adds about .4% to these returns. Several of these games come in special $5 versions, where straight flushes return 239 coins ($1,195) instead of 250 ($1,250).