The game of poker is one of the most popular games in live and online casinos and it is also one of the newest. Video poker games did not come about until the late 19th century, but in only a little more than one hundred years have evolved and grown into a casino essential.
The first video poker machine was invented in 1891 in Brooklyn by the Sittman and Pitt company. Sittman and Pitt’s machine was a far cry from the video poker machines of today. The game was more similar to a slot machine with five reels. Each machine contained a 50-card deck, with the 10 of Spades and Jack of Hearts left out. Players would spin the reels and cards would fall into place. If they spun specific poker hands they would win. Generally these early machines were found in bars and rather than paying out cash the prize would be cigars or drinks.
Although the original video poker machines built by Sittman and Pitt were the first gambling machines related to poker they still were more similar to slot machines than to the video poker games of today. However, in 1901 Charles Fey, the inventor of the slot machine, made an improvement on the poker machine that made it much more like today’s modern video poker games. Fey added a “Hold” feature to the poker machine that allowed players to spin all five reels and then hold one or more reel to spin again and try to improve the hand. For the first time elements of poker strategy knowledge of poker hands were a part of the machines.
Draw poker machines became a popular entity in live casino gaming. However, it was not until 1970 that the first electronic video poker machine was introduced. Dale Electronics introduced a machine called the Poker-Matic and it was an instant hit in the casinos of Las Vegas. This was the first video poker game on a screen. Reels and drums in the world of video poker were history.
The advent of online gaming in the 1990s gave video poker even more of a push. Gamblers from around the globe began to realize that they didn’t have to travel all the way to a live casino to play video poker. All they needed was a computer and an Internet connection to play all sorts of video poker variations.
Today millions of people enjoy playing video poker games in live casinos as well as on the Internet. Some of the most popular variations include Aces Wild, Joker Poker, Deuces Wild, Jacks or Better, 10s or Better, Aces and Faces and more.