Today we are going to take a look at the game of Video Poker, for whilst you are going to find quite a number of different variants of this game available to play online, even though a Video Poker game may have the same name it does not necessarily offer an identical payout percentage, and the payouts on variants sharing the same name can and do vary depending on where you play those games!
Below we have several different variants of Video Poker which are commonly found at different online casino sites, but to allow you to spot the better paying variants we have compared the payouts offered on these games.
As all Video Poker games by their very design are completely random, it is the individual payouts listed on the pay tables that will determine what the long term expected payout percentages on each variant will ultimately play out to, and any savvy Video Poker player will be seeking those games offering only the very highest payouts listed on any Video Poker games pay table which ensure the payout percentages of those games are the highest available.
Differences in Jacks or Better Video Poker Pay Tables
You are going to find that most industry standard Jacks or Better Video Poker pay tables return a long term expected payout percentage of 99.54%, and the way to spot a pay table which returns such a payout is by taking a look at the payouts attached to the payouts for the five coin stake winning hand combinations.
You need to play maximum coins per hand to get as the expected long term payout percentage over the long term action you give this Video Poker variant, and the payouts attached to this standard pay table are as follows:
A Jacks or Better hand pays 5 coins, Two Pairs pays 10 coins, Three of a Kind hand combinations pays 15 coins, a Straight pays 20 coins, a Flush pays 30 coins and a Full House pays 45 coins. The higher payouts include a 125 coins payout for a Four of a Kind hand combination, a 250 coins payout for a Straight Flush hand combination and a 4000 coin payout for being dealt any of the four Royal Flush hand combinations.
But be warned though, if you opt to play the multi hand variant offered at sites powered by the Playtech gaming platform you winning chances will be lower, for when playing their multi hand variants you will find the long term expected payout percentage on these games is lower than the 99.54% payout offered on their single hand game and the multi hand variants returns to players just 97.30%.
This difference in the long term expected payout percentages is due to the multi hand Playtech Jacks or Better game having payouts of 25 coins for a Flush hand combination and 40 coins for a Full House winning combination!
Why Play Jacks or Better
If you do want to play the best online Jacks or Better Video Poker variant then you should opt to give the game offered at casinos using the NetEnt gaming platform a try for when playing their version of this game you are going to find the long term expected payout percentage is slightly higher than the industry standard variants offered at other casino sites, which when you play this game optimally will return a payout percentage of 99.56%.
The reason for this increase in the long term payout percentage is the slightly different payouts attached to several hand combinations, and these for reference are as follows and these payouts are paid when playing the maximum 5 coin hands:
A Straight pays 25 coins, all Four of a Kind hand combinations pay 100 coins and the Straight Flush hand combinations pay 200 coins. The fact that you are going to get a high payout on the Straight hand combinations and as you will get them more frequently than the Straight Flush and Four of a Hand combinations is why the payout percentage works out slightly higher over the long term!
Deuces Wild Video Poker Game Pay Table Differences
Quite surprisingly if you opt to play at a Microgaming software powered online casino site and you choose to play the game of Deuces Wild, which is quite popular due to this variant having a set of Wild cards which give the pay table a set of additional winning payouts, then you need to avoid playing the single hand game and opt to play the multi hand variant instead.
There are some not so subtle differences in regards to the single hand variant that gives a much lower set of winning payouts. When playing the maximum five coins per hand, which by the way is the optimal way to play this variant, if you are dealt out the Straight Flush, Five of a Kind, or Deuces Royal Flush hands the single hand variant pays 65 coins, 80 coins and 125 coins respectively.
However when playing for example the 4 hand version of Deuces Wild then the payouts for the Straight Flush, Five of a Kind, or Deuces Royal Flush hands are 45 coins, 75 coins and 225 coins respectively when a five coin hand has been played.
These differences in the payouts on Microgaming’s Deuces Wild Video Poker game will result in a long term expected payout percentage when playing their single hand variant of this game being 96.76% and when playing the multi hand games the long term expected payout percentage is much higher at 99.37%, and as such the multi hand or Power Poker variant of this game which Microgaming call their multi hand games is one of you ought to be playing for that difference in the long term RTP is going to quickly reduce your gaming budget if you play the wrong variant!
Conclusion
Whilst it may be quite time consuming hunting around to find the high pay tables attached to any particular Video Poker game you are looking to play, this is exactly what you will have to do to guarantee you have the best winning opportunities over the long term.
Playing a Video Poker game variant which has a lower set of payouts can and always will result in you losing much quicker and certainly more over the long term real money gaming action you give that particular game.
