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POKER GALORE DISCLAIMER __________ This game is intended for amusement purposes only, and should not be used for any other purpose. The creator of this game neither endorses nor discourages casino gambling. The tips and suggestions listed in this documentation are opinions gathered from various researchers and gamblers, and if anybody uses any of these suggestions in actual casino play, they do so at their own risk. The author of this computer game and documentation assumes no responsibility for any gambling losses resulting from any playing strategy suggested by this document. See 'The Small Print' at the bottom of this document for other legal information. INTRODUCTION ____________ Video poker is a fascinating game which is widely played in Las Vegas, Nevada and a few other places. Since its introduction in 1970, it has grown in popularity until it rivals that of the traditional slot machine. In recent years a number of variations on the original Jacks or Better video poker machine have been introduced, some with very favorable odds. With strategy, practice, and luck, it is possible to beat the house at video poker. QUICK START -- HOW TO PLAY POKER GALORE _______________________________________ To start the game, put all the poker files in a subdirectory on your hard disk and type: C> POKER Use the mouse or the function keys to choose one of the six available video poker games: Jacks or Better Joker Poker Double Down Poker Second Chance Poker Deuces Wild Multi-meter Progressive Poker SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS ___________________ Poker Galore requires an IBM compatible computer with 256k memory and an EGA card with enhanced display (sometimes called an EGA monitor), or VGA card and VGA monitor. The EGA or VGA card must have 256k memory on the card (all VGA cards most EGA cards, except for very old cards, have 256k memory). If you do not have EGA or VGA, this program will not run! Because of the high resolution and beautiful colors, EGA or VGA is absolutely required to run this program. Some IBM computers such as the PS/2 Model 25 and Model 30 do not support EGA. Tandy 1000 series computers do not support EGA or VGA. A mouse and Sound Blaster card are supported but not required. TECHNICAL DETAILS _________________ Poker Galore was written in C and compiled with Microsoft C 6.0. All graphics functions were achieved using the Fastgraph programmer's graphics library. Music and sound code was programmed using the Worx toolkit by Mystic Software. HOW TO TURN OFF THE SOUND EFFECTS _________________________________ If you are in the main menu, use the mouse or <F9> function key to select "Turn Sound On/Off". If you are already playing a game, press <NumLock> key to toggle the sound effects off and on. EXITING THE GAME ________________ From any screen other than the main menu screen, you can press <ESC> to exit to the main menu, or if you are using a mouse, you can use your left mouse button to click on the box marked "ESC exit". From the main menu, you can exit to DOS by pressing <ESC> or <F10>, or you can use the left mouse button to click on the box labeled "F10 Exit to DOS". HOW TO DISPLAY YOUR PLAYING STATISTICS ______________________________________ Use the mouse or press the <F8> function key from the main menu to choose the "Display Statistics" option. You will see a screen that shows how well you are doing in each of the six games. The following statistics are displayed: Bankroll - current status of bankroll (starts at $100 on each of the six games) Hands - number of hands dealt Action - total sum of money wagered Amount Won - total sum of money won on all hands Payback - defined to be the amount won divided by the action. Notice that the bankroll is only displayed once, and that it is always cumulative. The bankroll always starts at $100 for a new player or a new game. The progressive jackpots are displayed at the bottom of the Playing Statistics screen. The progressive jackpots go up a tiny amount with each hand played by any player on any of the games. PERSONALIZING POKER GALORE __________________________ Use the mouse or the <F8> function key from the main menu to choose the "Enter Your Name" option. You will be prompted for your name, which will be stored in a file along with your playing statistics. This is useful if you want to keep track of your wins and losses. Information on up to 10 players can be stored in the POKER.DAT file. If you do not enter your name, you will only see your statistics for the current playing session and your cumulative statistics will not be kept. If you would like to keep track of your cumulative statistics, it is recommended that you use the "Enter Your Name" option at the beginning of each playing session. CHOOSING A GAME FROM THE MAIN MENU __________________________________ You may use the mouse or the function keys to choose a game from the main menu. The following games are available: F1 Jacks or Better F2 Joker Poker F3 Deuces Wild <registered version only> F4 Multi-Meter Progressive <registered version only> F5 Double-Down F6 Second Chance PLAYING VIDEO POKER ___________________ There are four simple steps in playing video poker: (1) insert 1 to 5 coins. (2) You are dealt 5 cards. (3) Choose which cards to keep and which ones to discard. (4) Draw new cards to replace the ones that were discarded. Here are the keystroke sequences to accomplish these steps: Insert coins: You can insert coins one at a time by pressing the <space bar>. You may insert 5 coins by pressing the <Ins> key. If you are using a mouse, you can click the left mouse button anywhere on the screen to insert one coin. If you want to insert 5 coins at a time using the mouse, you must click on the box labeled "Coins 5". Deal cards: Press the <Enter> key to deal the cards. If you are using a mouse, press the right mouse button to deal the cards. If you insert 5 coins, the cards will be dealt automatically. Hold/discard: Use the first five function keys to hold and discard the cards of your choice. For example, if the first card is labeled "Hold" and you want to discard it, press the <F1> key to change the word "Hold" to "Discard". If you change your mind, press the same key again. If you are using a mouse, you can use the left button and click anywhere on the card or in the box labeled "hold/discard". When you select a card to discard, you will no longer see the front of that card. The card will be turned over and you will see the back of the card. You may press <F10> to discard all 5 cards. If you are using a mouse you can use the left button to click on the box "discard all" to discard all 5 cards. If you quickly click the left mouse button twice on this box, all 5 cards will be discarded and 5 new cards will be drawn immediately. Draw: When you are satisfied with your selection of cards to hold and discard, press the <Enter> key to draw the replacement cards. The cards which you chose to discard will disappear and new cards will appear in their place. If you are using a mouse, you may click the right button to draw. After you have performed the above steps, the computer will determine whether you have a winning hand and what that hand is worth, and then it will adjust your bankroll accordingly. You can then repeat the above steps. The object of the game is to increase your bankroll. JACKS OR BETTER _______________ This is a good game to start with. It is the simplest game, and some help is offered on the screen as you play. You will be prompted for which keys or mouse buttons to use to insert coins, deal, hold and discard cards, and draw. Jacks or Better is the original and probably the most popular video poker machine found in Las Vegas. The payout schedule is as follows: Royal Flush 250 (4000) Straight Flush 50 4 of a Kind 25 Full House 9 Flush 6 Straight 4 3 of a Kind 3 Two Pair 2 Jacks or Better 1 If you achieve any of the above hands, your winnings would consist of the number in the payout schedule multiplied by the number of coins inserted for the hand. The exception happens in the case of the royal flush when 5 coins are inserted. In this case, a royal flush pays the jackpot amount of 4000 coins. JOKER POKER ___________ Joker Poker is played with a 53 card deck. The extra card is the joker and is considered to be a wild card. It can be used to represent any other card in the deck. When a hand contains the joker, the computer will calculate the best possible hand that can be made using the joker as some other card. Here is the payout schedule for joker poker: Royal Flush (with no joker) 400 (4000) 5 of a Kind 200 Royal Flush (with a joker) 100 Straight Flush 50 4 of a Kind 20 Full House 7 Flush 5 Straight 3 3 of a Kind 2 Two Pair 1 Kings or Better 1 Notice that a royal flush with a joker in it pays less than a royal flush without a joker in it. Notice also that the lowest paying hand is a pair of kings, and some of the other hands pay less than the Jacks or Better payout schedule. As with Jacks or Better, you can win a 4000 coin jackpot if you get a royal flush with no joker and 5 coins played. DEUCES WILD ___________ Deuces Wild is played with a 52 card deck containing 4 wild cards, the deuces (cards valued 2). The payout schedule is as follows: Royal Flush (with no deuces) 400 (4000) 4 Deuces 200 Royal Flush (with deuces) 25 5 of a kind 15 Straight Flush 9 4 of a Kind 5 Full House 3 Flush 2 Straight 2 3 of a Kind 1 As with the other games, it takes a royal flush with no wild cards and 5 coins to win the 4000 coin jackpot. Deuces Wild does not pay on any pair. It pay 200 times the number of coins in for a hand containing 4 deuces. Since there are more ways of making winning combinations when there are more wild cards, each winning hand pays slightly less than in Jacks or Better. MULTI-METER PROGRESSIVE _______________________ Multi-Meter Progressive is similar to Jacks or Better if you play 5 coins or less. You have the option of inserting a sixth coin and trying for a progressive jackpot. If you play 6 coins and make any winning hand lower than a full house, the payout will be the same as if you had inserted 5 coins. However, if you make a full house or better, and you have 6 coins in, you will win a progressive jackpot. In real casino play, the progressive jackpots go up each time a player inserts a coin into a progressive machine or a "bank" of progressive machines (usually 10 or 20 machines networked together). So, many players are contributing to a jackpot that only one player will win. To simulate this in our game, we increase the jackpot amounts whenever any player inserts coins into any machine. That is, playing Jacks or Better, or any other game, will increase the progressive jackpots. Some players only play the progressive machines when the jackpot reaches a certain level. When the progressive jackpot goes over this amount, the expected return is in the player's favor, and it can be very profitable to play a progressive machine. For more information about this, please refer to the references, particularly the books by Lenny Frome and Stanford Wong. When a progressive jackpot is won, the win value goes back down to the corresponding five-coin payout, and then slowly increases again. DOUBLE-DOWN ___________ Double-Down is a game played in two stages. The first part is played exactly like Jacks or Better. You insert coins, deal, hold/discard and draw 5 cards and the payout schedule is the same as in Jacks or Better. If you have a winning hand, you are given the opportunity to double your winnings. You may continue to double your winnings until you lose or until you choose to stop. After playing a winning hand, the computer will ask you "Do you want to play Double-Down?". To play Double-Down, press the <F1> key or click the left mouse button on the box labled "YES". It will then turn all the cards face down and immediately turn up one card on the far left representing the dealer's card. This card will be labeled "DEALER". You are then given the opportunity to pick one of the other four cards. Use the mouse or the function keys to make your selection. This card will be labeled "PLAYER". If the card you choose has a higher value than the dealer's card, you win. Whatever amount you won on the poker hand is now doubled. The computer asks you if you want to play again. If you do, proceed as above. You can double your money indefinitely, or until you lose. In the case of a tie, no money changes hands. SECOND CHANCE _____________ This is an exciting new variation on video poker that seems to be gaining popularity. Although the profit potential of this game may not be as high as some of the other games, many people think it is great fun to play, and some players even prefer it to all the other games. It works like this: You play the hand just like the Jacks or Better game, and the payout schedule is the same. After you discard and draw, you have one more chance to make a hand. If the computer determines that you have a chance of making a straight or better with one more card, it will ask you if you want to play second chance. You must respond "yes" or "no". Use the Function Key <F1> for "yes", <F5> for "no", or click the left mouse button on the appropriate box. If you choose to play Second Chance, the payout schedule will disappear and a new payout schedule will appear, along with the back of another card representing your sixth card. You will then be prompted to insert more money. Insert 1 to 5 coins in the usual way, then press <Enter> or click the right mouse button as you would to draw. The sixth card will be turned up. If that card can be matched with any 4 cards to make a winning hand, your bankroll will be adjusted accordingly. The Second Chance payout schedule is determined according to how many cards are left in the deck and what those cards are. This schedule will also vary according to what hands can be made. In no case will the expected value of the second chance bet go over 100%. Some Second Chance hands will pay on a pair of 10's or better. PLAYING STRATEGY ________________ The playing strategy varies according to which game you are playing, and certain other factors such as the size of the progressive jackpot. For a detailed mathematical analysis of playing strategy, consult the references, in particular the book by Lenny Frome. Here are some general strategy suggestions: If you are dealt a royal flush, a straight flush, four of a kind, or a full house, do not draw any cards. If you are playing Deuces Wild, and you are dealt 4 deuces, or if you are playing Joker Poker and you have 5 of a kind, do not draw any cards. If you have 4 cards of a royal flush, draw 1 card and try to make the royal flush. This applies even if it means you have to break up a straight or a flush. Hold a straight or a flush if you can not draw 1 card to a royal flush. If you have 4 cards of a straight flush, draw 1 card, but do not break up a straight or a flush to do so. If you have three of a kind, draw 2 cards. If you have two pair, draw 1 card. Never break up two pair, even two low pair. If you have a pair of jacks or better, draw 3 cards. This rule does not apply in Deuces Wild or Joker Poker. If you have 4 cards of a flush, draw 1 card. If you have 3 cards of a royal flush, draw 2 cards. If you have any pair, draw 3 cards. If you have 4 cards of a straight, draw 1 card. If you have 3 cards of a straight flush, draw 2 cards. If you a pair of high cards (jacks or better), draw 3 cards. If you have 2 high cards of the same suit, draw 3 cards and try for the royal flush. If you have 1 high card, draw 4 cards. This list is ranked according to expected value. Play the highest hand on this list that applies. Remember that this is only a list of general guidelines. An expert player will vary his playing strategy according to the game he is playing. For example, suppose that you are playing the progressive jackpot machine and the four of a kind jackpot has reached a very high level. It would then be profitable to break up a full house to try for the four of a kind. With Poker Galore, you can develop your own playing strategy on your personal computer. The player statistics will help you keep track of how well you are doing. HOW TO CALCULATE EXPECTED VALUE _______________________________ The expected value is the average return on a hand and can be calculated statistically. Here is an example of how you can calculate an expected value. Suppose you have been dealt the following hand: 10H JH QH KH 6C You have 4 cards of a royal flush, the 10, Jack, Queen, and King of hearts, and you also have the six of clubs. You wisely choose to discard the six of clubs. There are 47 cards left in the deck. What is the expected value of this hand? to get you need chances payout expected value ______ ________ _______ ______ ______________ royal flush AH 1/47 250 250/47 straight flush 9H 1/47 50 50/47 flush any heart 7/47 9 63/47 straight any 9 or ace 6/47 4 24/47 jacks or better J, Q, K 9/47 1 9/47 ______ 396/47 The total expected value is 396/47, or $8.43 for every dollar played. Expected values for the other hands can be calculated in a similar manner. Optimal playing strategy dictates that you play the hand with the highest expected value. Detailed tables of expected values can be found in the references. TIPS AND HINTS ______________ Here are some more suggestions from expert players: Remember that you are playing against a machine, not another person. You can not bluff your way out of a bad hand, nor can you fool the computer into thinking that you have a good hand by refusing to draw cards. Never keep a "kicker" (a lucky card, such as an ace) when drawing to a pair. This substantially lowers the expected value of your hand. Never draw to an inside straight unless at least one of the cards is a high card (jack or better) and you are playing a game that pays on jacks or better. If you have a worthless hand, discard all 5 cards and draw a new hand. Keeping one card in hopes of making a pair (or a straight or a flush) will not improve your odds. If you have a worthless hand containing wild cards, discard all but the wild cards. STATISTICS __________ The progressive jackpots and player statistics are kept in the POKER.DAT file. If you delete the POKER.DAT file, you will erase all the statistics for all the players and reset all the progressive jackpots. If Poker Galore does not find the POKER.DAT file, it will create it. Warning: if you attempt to modify the POKER.DAT file, you may get unpredictable results! If the game does not seem to behaving properly, try resetting the game by deleting the POKER.DAT file. TERMINOLOGY ___________ Ace: a card whose value is one, although sometimes it is treated as a face card whose value is greater than a king. Casino: house of entertainment where gambling is allowed. Deck: a collection of 52 cards, except when a joker is present to make 53 cards. Deuce: a card whose value is two. Expected value: the average payback on a hand. That is, if you bet a hand and play a hand the same way over and over, the average amount you get back should be equal to the expected value. Flush: five cards of the same suit. Four of a kind: four cards of the same rank. Full house: a hand consisting of three cards of one rank and two cards of another rank. High card: any jack, queen, king or ace. Jack: the lowest face card. Jacks or better: this hand consists of two high cards of the same rank, for example the queen of hearts and the queen of spades. On most machines this is the lowest paying hand, but there are many exceptions. Joker: a card with no rank or suit, with a picture of a court jester on it, which can assume the rank and suit of any other card. Kicker: an extra, unpaired card before the draw. King: the highest face card, with a rank above that of the queen and below that of an ace. Low card: a card valued 2 through 10. Meter: device to display a progressive jackpot amount. Payout schedule: each machine pays on certain hands according to the payout schedule, which is usually posted in plain sight on the front of the video poker machine. Progressive: a jackpot which goes up a little bit every time a certain amount of money is put into the video poker machine. On some video poker machines, only the royal flush jackpot is progressive; on others, there may be multiple progressive jackpots. Queen: a face card ranking above a jack and below a king, the only female face card. Rank: The value of a card from 1 to 14, with the deuce having the rank 2 and the king having the rank 13. An ace may have a rank of either 1 or 14, depending on the context. Royal flush: a hand consisting of the 10, jack, queen, king, and ace all of one suit. Straight: five consecutive cards of any suit. An ace-low straight would consist of ace-two-three-four-five, while an ace-high straight would consist of ten-jack-queen-king-ace. A hand such as jack-queen-king-ace- two is not a legal straight, unless deuces are wild. Note: a straight does not have to be in ascending or descending order, as long as all five cards are there. Straight flush: a hand which is both a straight and a flush. Suit: a deck is divided into four suits: clubs, diamonds, hearts and spades. The suit of a card can be determined by the shape and color of the symbols which appear on it. Three of a kind: three cards with the same rank, sometimes called "triplets". Two pair: a pair is any two cards of the same rank, so two pair means you have two unique sets of matching cards. For example, you may have a pair of aces and a pair of eights. If you had two pairs of aces or two pairs of eights, you would not get paid for two pair, you would get paid for having four of a kind. Wild: a card is considered to be wild if it can represent any other card. The most common wild card is the joker, which is always wild in video poker. A Deuces Wild video poker game is also available, in which case any deuce may represent any rank and any suit. REFERENCES __________ BEATING THE POKER SLOT MACHINES, 1981, R. Carl Cohen, author and publisher, P.O. Box 14495, Philadelphia, PA 19115. BEATING THE JOKER POKER SLOT MACHINES, 1989, R. Carl Cohen, author and publisher, P.O. Box 14495, Philadelphia, PA 19115. EXPERT VIDEO POKER FOR LAS VEGAS, Lenny Frome, 1989, Compu-Flyers, LF-425, 5025 S. Eastern Ave #16, Las Vegas, NV 89119. HOW TO WIN AT VIDEO POKER, David R. Gerhardt, 1985, 1987, Gerhardt Software, 32600 Concord Drive, Dept. 401, Madison Heights, MI 48071. PROFESSIONAL VIDEO POKER, Stanford Wong, 1988, Pi Yee Press, 7910 Ivanhoe #34, La Jolla, CA 92037. VIDEO POKER PLAYING TO WIN, David Gerhardt and Tony Korfman, Gaming Books International, Inc. 1512 E. Fremont, Las Vegas, NV 89101.