Despite the name, Superslots online casino isn’t just about slots.  The site offers a variety of casino games to play, including, of course, video poker.  Hey, I wouldn’t be writing about them if they didn’t.  But better than just offering some video poker games to play, Superslots also offers video poker tournaments for the dedicated video poker player.  So, if you’re a tournament style player, this will be a casino you want to check out. 

The game offered for tournaments include Deuces Wild and Jacks or Better and the buy in is just $5.  The prize pool is the pot after everyone buys into the tournament.  Keep in mind that in a tournament, you play on the money provided to you by the casino and rack up as many points as you can. At the end of the tournament, the players with the most points win prizes determined by the prize pool.  So, you don’t win the amount of money that you gather during your playing, but rather the established prizes. 

If tournaments aren’t  for you, Superslots also offers a variety of a video poker games for you to play on regular stakes.  The casino also offers a 100% deposit bonus up to $2000 on your first deposits. But remember to check out the terms of play at Superslots as well as any online casino you play on before you take advantage of the deposit bonuses.  Often the play through for those only counts if you play through on slots games.  But if you’re the type of person who likes to mix a little slots play in with your regular play, the bonuses might work for you.

Online Vegas s a boon for Video Poker players because they are one of the few casinos out there that hosts online video poker tournaments.  In fact, they offer four tournaments a week.  So many that you might need  a calendar to keep track of which tournament s you’ve registered for.  Well Online Vegas doesn’t want you to miss any opportunities to play, so they had a calendar feature on their site. When you sign up for a tournament, you can use the feature to add the event to your personal calendar.  The site lets you choose from a Google calendar, Yahoo, Outlook, and others.  So you can add it to whichever calendar you prefer and keep up with your tournaments.    

The video poker tournament games are affordable with entry being just $1.99 for 100 credits to play on.  Prize pools run $2,500 and the game of choice is generally Deuces Wild. If you aren’t a Deuces Wild expert or want to practice before a tournament, you can always practice on the sites free game mode.  Or play any of a selection of real money video poker games on the site if you aren’t interested in a tournament. 

The regular games offer you more freedom to play on your own schedule but of course, you’ll have to pay as you go.  But then any money you win is yours to keep.  So check out Online Vegas Casino for some great Video Poker play.  The site runes on Vegas Technology and certified by Certified Fair Gambling and licensed from the gambling jurisdiction of Curacao.

Or check out casino reviews for a selection of online casinos from Online Casino Project.

Playing video poker depends both on skill and luck, but a good strategy and a bit of skill can give Lady Luck a little boost.  But while players learn to depend on strategy cards and printed material, I find it helpful to track down and consider some over all tips for the game because I never know when I’ll need to play a new type of game either because a real world casino doesn’t have any other machines available or just because I’m tempted by something new at the casino.

Playing a new game? You should always start by playing the lowest number of coins possible while you learn the game.  Then up your money as your skill increases.  If you’re playing at a real world casino, you can always look for nickel or quarter machines, but if you play an online game, consider playing in the practice play mode.  Most casinos offer these and if your favorite online casino doesn’t, you might want to consider registering at a new casino.

Whether you’re playing at a real world casino or an online casino, remember you are playing against a machine.  So take your time when considering your options. Remember, machines don’t get bored. So unlike a table of hungry Texas Hold ‘em players, a Video Poker machine will wait until you decide the next move.

Don’t be afraid to toss all the cards and draw five new ones.  With some hands, this is always the best decision and with some games you’ll discover, as I have, that you spend a lot of time tossing everything away and drawing fresh.  It’s not a weakness. It’s a strategy. 

So get out there and explore the new video poker games, but hmm, perhaps during a free or practice play session first.

Villento Vegas offers a lot of interesting Video Poker games, including a variety of bonus, double and joker games.  They even offer All American Poker though ironically, they  didn’t accept players from the USA until now.  But Villento Vegas has announced a new gambling platform just for USA players and are now expanding their business into the US market. 

Players from the United States who join the site can take advantage of the bonuses and promotions that others have enjoyed including the $1000 welcome bonus for new players.  Though admittedly part of the bonus is geared to slots players.  But we’ve become used to that as Video Poker players.

But here’s the bonus breakdown.  On your first deposit, you get a 100% match bonus of up to $150. This is followed by a 30% match bonus on your second deposit for up to $255 in bonus money. On your third deposit you’ll enjoy a 50% match bonus up to $105 in bonus money. 

The rest of the bonus is geared to Slots players as part of the Terrific Tuesday Special.  Players who deposit and wager a minimum of $100 each week will receive 40 free spins on the selected slot of the week for 52 weeks.  That’s a whole year of free slots spins.   But no free video poker hands.  Drat.

The site is also big on Slots Tournaments and now through Sunday, June 6, invites players to celebrate  Environment Day with an Avalon Slots Tournament  featuring \$3,000 in prizes and give aways.  But I love the mystery symbol contest because you you can win part of the prize money just by spotting the symbol on the site.  Today’s symbol appears to be a green beetle with some fairy lights.  Can you find the mystery symbol?   (Hint, check out the slots and look for a Catapillar.)

Ruby Royal is a good site for some of the most common video poker games available. It doesn’t offer many of the strange options I see coming out these days like Mystery Bonus Poker, but it does offer Jacks or Better and most of the basic players are familiar with.  So it isn’t difficult to find a game to play and enjoy. 

But now through May 31^st, the folks at Ruby Royal are making some great bonus offers to tempt you to play with them.  What I like is that they offer you three choices of sign up options.  So, if you haven’t signed up on the site yet, take a look at these.

Your first option, just make your first deposit and claim a 100% cashable bonus back on your money.  Or try option number 2 which is a 150% bonus plus $15 free to play on.  And option number three will give you a 100% back with a low play through rate of just 15 times.  So, you’ll be able to get that money out of your account sooner. 

However, if you want to make your first deposit by Saturday May, 29^th, you can claim another $25 free to play on from the casino.  So, are you worried about losing?  Here’s your Memorial Day special.  On Monday May 31^st, you can login to your account and claim 25% cashback on any losses you had between May 27^th and May 30^th.   

So, check out the video poker options over at Ruby Royal and start your Video Poker adventure.

Have you ever thought of video poker as a form of meditation?  There are days when I find that it helps me when I need to still my mind or even focus my attention.  Both video poker and regular poker focus on cards, strategy and money. But with regular poker, players focus not only on their cards but on the other player and the competition.  Games can be intense and competition is tough.  But though there is a focus, it isn’t particularly zen like.  

But video poker is different.  I need to focus on my strategy and on the cards in front of me, but there are no other distractions.  In fact, if I let my focus wander, I find myself losing concentration and missing a good hand.  So, I have to focus on the cards and the simple action of deal, hold, reveal.   Plus the action of watching my money as it goes up and down. 

With a good game of video poker, I find myself falling into a meditative state.  I focus on my cards and my game and the world sort of fades away.  Which means my stress level drops.  Okay, maybe it doesn’t drop if I’m losing too much money, but sometimes I play a new site in the practice mode so that money is just a virtual concern. 

There have been studies out there that suggest that gambling actually helps people reduce their stress levels.  Perhaps it’s this focused concentration that’s responsible for the reduction rather than the actual winning of great amounts of money.  Though, over all, perhaps winning great amounts of money would also lower my stress.

Yet another casino wants to give you a taste of what It’s like to play with real money on their site.  I’m seeing more and more of these offers to tempt players into the game.  And there’s no reason not to take advantage of them since they really do allow you to start playing on the casino’s money. If you don’t meet the play through on the promotional offer, you’ll lose the free money in your account, but that isn’t money out of your bank account and if you find you don’t like playing video poker online, you can always quit with no penalties. 

Today’s offer popping into my main box is from Online Vegas.com.  They want to give players $25 to begin playing on the site.  All you have to do is create a real money account and use the code OVF007 to claim your money.  You’ll need to call a toll free number - 1-877-516-6686 or contact their live chat support to claim the money. 

Online Vegas offers a nice selection single hand and multi hand and even mega multi hand games to tempt you to play.  They do stick with the standard video poker options such as Jacks or Better, Dueces Wild, Aces and Faces, Joker Poker and a handful more.  While they don’t offer the strange variations I’ve been finding like Mystery Bonus Poker, I’m not sure playing those games really improves your chances of winning money, so the standard games may be better for your bankroll. 

Online Vegas also offers slot and table games in your want to take a break from video poker. Though fair warning — the odds on slots are never as good as the odds on Video Poker played with a good strategy.

Okay, let’s get down to it. You want to play video poker and you don’t want to drive to a casino. So you’re thinking about playing online, but you’re hesitant.  Why? Because you aren’t sure of the process. Because you don’t know if the sites are legitimate or you just aren’t ready to hand over your money yet.  I mean, it’s not unusual for us to want to “try before we buy” especially when stepping into a new environment.  And I’m not going to tell you it’s easy to overcome your hesitation and jump into the world of online casinos.

Except — when it’s easy to overcome your hesitation and jump into the world of only casinos.  Because Box 24 is making it easy.  All you have to do is sign up for an account with them and they will give — yes, give — you $24 to beginning playing on.  This isn’t a matching deposit on money you put into the site but actual money given to you to begin playing on. 

The reason Box 24 is doing this is that hesitation that people feel when they think about playing online.  By allowing you to play at their site completely free but with real money, the site gives you a chance to become familiar with how they work. The casino hopes that you’ll continue to put more money into the casino when your $24 runs out.  You of course hope that you’ll make enough money from that $24 that you don’t have to put more money into the casino.  It’s possible. It’s always possible.  And all you stand to lose is the casino’s own money.

Be sure you check out the terms, conditions and play through on the offer before signing up. Though the offer for the money is legitimate, there are deadlines on the play through which mean you’ll want to sign up when you’re ready to spend some quality time playing on the site.

I’ve been playing Pick Em poker over on Silver Oak Casino, which is the one site I frequent that I’ve found it on.  I decided to give it a try because I wanted to play something a little different, and when it comes to Video Poker, Pick Em Poker certainly is different.  The problem is that so far, I haven’t discovered the appeal of the game. 

Pick Em Poker strikes me as a video poker game trying to cash in on the Texas Hold ‘em poker craze.  Most video poker games are played more like 5 card draw where you are dealt five cards and decide which to hold and which to discard and then pick up some new cards.  But Pick Em poker deals you four cards, the two to the left of the screen work more like the community cards, which means you can’t discard them, no matter how bad they are. 

You also have two revealed cards that sit on top of pre-dealt stacks of three cards. You choose one of these stacks and the other two are revealed, showing you your hand.  So, when you look at the four cards you have in front of you, you have two that you can’t discard. Then you have two of which you can only keep one. 

The lowest winning hand is a pair of nines or better, which might sound like good news.  But overall, this is a game that just doesn’t work for me.  Essentially, you choose once in this game and don’t have the control to hold or discard that you do in other video poker versions.  It may be designed to feel a bit like Texas Hold’em, but there is no opponent to outsmart or out bluff.  Just a machine. If you play this one, I recommend starting with practice games for no money.  Then decide if you want to risk your real money on it.

Interested in playing in a video poker tournament?  VIP Casino currently has three offerings to tempt you to play with them.  You can check out Weekend Deuces Wild Face Off which runs Friday through Sunday or join in a Jacks or Better Challenger event that runs Monday through Thursday or even check out the May 100 hand Deuces Wild tournament that is running now through May 31. 

These are all low fee tournaments with a buy in of $5 and a prize pool of combined money from the buy in pot.  So for tournaments still open for registration, you won’t know the real prize amount until the casino knows how many players it has.  Generally you can expect more money than the entry fee, but I don’t think video poker is as popular as slots yet.  Which means many video poker players aren’t familiar with tournament play.

So, here’s the deal with a tournament. When you play Video Poker as a regular player, you play the money that you have in your account and win or lose the amount shown on in the game.  But with tournaments, you pay a fee and are entered to compete against other players to see who can make the most money during the tournament play time.  If you play the Weekend Deuces Wild Face Off, you’ll pay $5 to enter and be given a balance of $100 to play with.  Then you’ll put your best strategy forward and try to win more money than anyone else in the game.  If you succeed, you win the prize determined by the prize pool.  Often there are various levels of prizes to encourage people to keep coming back.  But keep in mind, you win the pre-determined prize — not the amount that you won while playing the game.  To win (or lose) that amount, you’d invest a hundred dollars of your own money to play on. 

Tournaments are popular at casinos because the small entry fee usually gives players a chance to check out their favorite games with a chance to win more money than they would have just by playing the entry fee amount.  With slots, players have to depend on luck, but with Video Poker, you can still play with your best strategy.