The traditional video poker games are very simply structured. Players are dealt a five card hand. They can replace as many cards of this hand that they want. If the final hand ranking is featured in the pay table then the payout is awarded to the player. There are many variants with different payout tables. Some variants allow players to wager on multiple hands at a time. But the essential structure remains the same.

Level Up Video Poker

Microgaming is a leading provider of online casino games. It has introduced two innovative video poker formats. The first of these is called Level Up Poker. Level Up Poker is played over four hands, which constitute different levels. Players can wager at the higher level only if they draw a winning combination in the lower level. If they fail to win at any level the video poker game ends. Identical wagers for each level have to be placed up front. If the player loses the first hand then he forfeits the total wager. If he draws a winning combination at the first level he is paid out as per the payout table, and he moves to the second level. If he loses at the second level he collects the amount won in the first level but cannot play any more. If he draws a winning combination in the second level the payouts are doubled. The Level Up Poker then progresses in this manner. Winning in the third level results in x4 multiplier and winning in the fourth level results in x8 multiplier.

Level Up Poker offers two additional features. The Free Ride Card is randomly dealt and allows the player to progress to the next level even if he has not draw a winning hand. The second feature is the Auto Complete. If a player is dealt a natural royal flush at a higher level, but fails to reach that level then the Auto Complete feature awards a compensatory payout.

Reel Play Video Poker

Reel Play Poker is a video poker casino game with an element of online slots. The main reels are laid out like a video slot game. Along with the number of coins and the coin size, the player has to select the number of paylines. When the player activates the game a demonstration reel is displayed below the main reels and five cards are dealt there. As in the conventional online video poker game, the player selects the cards he wants to hold. When he clicks the Spin button the reels that correspond to the selected cards are filled with those cards. The remaining reels spin and come to rest with cards displayed on them. The winning combinations are evaluated in the selected paylines as in an online slots game and paid out independently. The payouts for each winning payline are added and credited to the player’s balance.

Both Level Up Poker and Reel Play Poker can be played at Microgaming online casinos. Some of the highly rated ones are 32 Red, All Slots, River Belle and Platinum Play. After logging in to one of these casinos, the player should select video poker from the main game menu. He will find one tab for Level Up Poker that offers five variants. The tab for Reel Play offers a single variant as of now. More will be added in the future.