Last updated: 04 October 2026
Video poker emerged in the 1970s as advances in electronic gaming made it possible to combine poker-style decisions with a self-contained casino machine. Early experiments had limited success, but improved displays and electronics helped the format become established in casinos by the end of the decade.
This guide follows video poker from those early machines through the growth of new variants, strategy analysis, online casinos and mobile play.
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Video poker's biggest innovation wasn't putting poker on a screen - it was giving machine players meaningful decisions to make. Choosing which cards to hold or discard created something slots couldn't offer: a game where strategy could directly affect the long-term return.
That distinction still defines video poker today. Screens, touch controls, multi-hand games and online casinos have changed enormously since the first machines appeared, but the basic appeal has survived remarkably intact: simple rules, visible paytables and a genuine choice on every hand.
These casinos offer real money video poker, with differences in game selection, regional availability and payout speed.
iNetBet
Lucky Elf
Decode
Winz
Early video poker machines appeared around the turn of the 1970s. Dale Electronics' black-and-white Poker-Matic was one of the earliest examples, although accounts differ over its exact introduction date. These machines showed that poker could be adapted to an electronic screen, but video poker initially remained a niche casino game.
The major breakthrough came later in the 1970s. William "Si" Redd, who had worked in Bally's Nevada distribution business, pursued video gaming through the company that became SIRCOMA. Working with technology developed by Fortune Coin, the business helped turn draw poker on a video screen from an experiment into a commercially important casino game. SIRCOMA was renamed International Game Technology (IGT) in 1981.
Video poker offered something unusual for a casino machine: the player's decisions could affect the long-term return. After the initial deal, choosing which cards to hold and which to discard changed the probabilities of the possible final hands.
The paytable also made the rewards for each hand visible before play. Different paytables could produce different theoretical returns, while the correct hold or discard decision depended on both the cards dealt and the rules of the game. This eventually made video poker particularly suited to strategy charts and mathematical analysis.
Video poker became commercially important in the late 1970s. SIRCOMA's Draw Poker machines gave players the familiar choice of holding or discarding cards while handling the deal and payouts electronically. The format gradually gained a following on casino floors and helped establish video poker as a distinct category of machine gaming.
By the early 1980s, video poker was becoming increasingly popular. SIRCOMA became International Game Technology (IGT) in 1981, and video poker played an important part in the company's early growth. Different variants and paytables followed as manufacturers expanded on the basic draw poker format.
Later machines benefited from improvements in displays, controls and computer hardware. Multi-hand formats expanded the original single-hand game, while the arrival of online casinos eventually moved video poker beyond physical casino machines.
Dale Electronics developed Poker-Matic, one of the earliest electronic draw poker machines. Sources differ over its exact introduction date, but the machine demonstrated that poker could be adapted to electronic casino equipment before video poker became commercially successful.
Improvements in solid-state electronics, microprocessors and video displays made more sophisticated casino machines practical. Fortune Coin developed video gaming technology during this period, including a colour video draw poker machine in 1977.
Si Redd's business developed draw poker machines that proved far more commercially successful than earlier experiments. His company became SIRCOMA in 1979 as video poker began gaining a stronger foothold in Nevada casinos.
SIRCOMA was renamed International Game Technology (IGT) in 1981. Video poker had become an important part of the company's rapid growth and continued to gain popularity in casinos during the 1980s.
The basic draw poker format developed into a wider family of games. Jacks or Better, Deuces Wild and bonus-style variants offered different rules and paytables, giving players more reasons to compare games and study strategy.
Ernest Moody's Triple Play Poker introduced a successful multi-hand format in which one initial hand could be played across several draws. IGT licensed the game, and multi-hand video poker became an established extension of the traditional single-hand format.
As online casinos developed, video poker made the transition from dedicated casino machines to computer software. The familiar deal, hold and draw format was well suited to digital play, while online casinos could offer several variants without requiring separate physical machines.
Browser-based and mobile casino technology brought video poker to phones and tablets. Modern versions retain the same basic decisions found in earlier machines while adding features such as multi-hand play, different stake ranges and a much wider choice of variants.
One of the important early changes was lowering the minimum paying hand. Earlier draw poker machines could require two pair or better, while Jacks or Better returned a payout from a pair of jacks. That apparently small change helped create the basic version of video poker that later variants could build upon.
Other games changed the formula more substantially. Deuces Wild made all four twos wild, creating different winning combinations and strategy decisions. Bonus Poker and later bonus-style games adjusted the rewards for particular four-of-a-kind hands, while Joker Poker introduced a wild joker.
These variations also made the paytable increasingly important. Two machines based on the same variant could offer different payouts for hands such as a full house or flush, producing different theoretical returns. Changes to the rules or payouts could also change the mathematically correct decision about which cards to hold.
As video poker developed, its combination of fixed paytables and player decisions made it particularly suitable for mathematical analysis. Writers began publishing strategies showing which cards to hold for different games, helping turn video poker into one of the most closely studied casino machine games.
Lenny Frome was an important early video poker strategy writer, analysing numerous games and publishing books including Winning Strategies for Video Poker. Stanford Wong also contributed to the early strategy literature and developed computer tools for analysing video poker.
Later writers brought these ideas to a wider audience. Bob Dancer became known for specialist video poker books, strategy guides, software and teaching, while Jean Scott combined video poker strategy with a broader approach to lower-stakes casino play and promotions. Their work helped make paytable comparison and game-specific strategy familiar concepts to generations of players.
Moving online changed how video poker was distributed more than how it was played. Instead of a casino needing separate physical machines, an online casino could offer several variants through the same website, giving players easier access to different rules and paytables.
Mobile technology extended that change to phones and tablets. Touch controls suit the familiar deal, hold and draw format, while modern software can support single-hand and multi-hand games across different screen sizes. Despite those technological changes, the central decision remains much the same as it was on early machines: which cards to keep and which to discard.
For more background on video poker, its gameplay and modern casino machines:
Use game-specific strategy charts for Jacks or Better, Deuces Wild and other common video poker variants.
Read GuideCompare the rules, paytables and strategy differences between Jacks or Better, Bonus Poker, Double Double Bonus and other variants.
Read GuideLearn how to read video poker paytables and how different payouts can affect theoretical RTP.
Read GuideSet a playing budget, choose an appropriate stake and understand how variance can affect your video poker bankroll.
Read GuideLearn how video poker works on phones and tablets and what to check before playing on mobile.
Read GuideAvoid common mistakes involving strategy charts, paytables, stake sizes and bonus terms.
Read GuideEarly electronic poker machines appeared around the turn of the 1970s, including Dale Electronics' Poker-Matic. Video poker became commercially important later in the decade as improved electronics and video displays made more sophisticated machines possible.
There is no simple answer because video poker developed through several early machines and technologies. Dale Electronics produced the early Poker-Matic, while Si Redd's business later helped turn video draw poker into a commercially successful casino game. His company became SIRCOMA in 1979 and was renamed International Game Technology (IGT) in 1981.
Video poker combined the convenience of a casino machine with decisions that could affect the long-term return. Players could choose which cards to hold or discard, while visible paytables showed the rewards for different winning hands.
Fixed paytables and repeatable decisions made video poker well suited to mathematical analysis. Writers including Lenny Frome and Stanford Wong published early strategy material, while Bob Dancer and Jean Scott later helped bring paytable comparison and game-specific strategy to a wider audience.
Video poker moved online as internet casinos developed during the 1990s and 2000s. The deal, hold and draw format translated naturally to computer software, allowing online casinos to offer several variants without requiring separate physical machines.
Displays, controls and computer hardware have improved considerably, while multi-hand games, online casinos and mobile play have expanded how video poker is offered. The central decision remains familiar: players still choose which cards to keep and which to discard.