Not So Ugly Deuces Wild Video Poker Pay Tables

The Price of Popularity (and Profitability)

As seasoned video poker players know, Deuces Wild is where the money is. This wildcard game has the largest payback percentage of all at 100.7%. Even though only a few dedicated professionals who play perfect techniques can realize this figure, it is enough for the casinos. Today you will rarely find full-pay Deuces Wild pay tables. Instead you will encounter what are called Not So Ugly Deuces Wild or NSU Deuces Wild and Ugly Deuces Wild.

Pay Table Tricks

When a video poker game is starting to cost them money, a casino has several options:

- It can remove the game from its premises. - It can decrease comps and promos for video poker players. - It can adjust the pay tables.

Casinos may be hesitant to eliminate a video poker game outright if competition between gambling houses in the area is tight. They wouldn't want to just reduce comps/rewards either as this might antagonize valued customers who are not necessarily full-time video poker players. But changing the pay tables can be a very effective strategy if it is done cleverly. Let us explain this a bit.

First of all, why does the casino have to change the pay table of a game they are losing money in? Why don't they just change the odds in the video poker game to make it return winning hands less often? Well, they can't. A video poker game can only use fifty-two cards (or whatever is in the rules for the game) as it has to simulate a real deck of playing cards. It cannot add more cards or it wouldn't be poker. The probability of hands appearing is thus always the same. To change payouts, the casinos have no choice but to adjust the pay table.

Now when the pay table is changed, they will often do so subtly and deceptively. Players must be made to think that the new pay table pays better than the old one, when in fact it does not. For instance, a common ploy is to give bigger payouts for rare hands, and smaller payouts for inferior hands. You might think it's a great deal to be paid more for a straight flush and less for a flush. But since the flush hits more often, you lose more money with that pay scheme.

Not So Ugly Deuces Wild Pay Table

Payback: 99.73

Hand Payout Natural royal flush 800 Four Deuces 200 Wild Royal Flush 25 Wild Five of a Kind 16 Straight Flush 10 Four of a Kind 4 Full House 4 Flush 3 Straight 2 Three of a Kind 1

Ugly Deuces Wild Pay Table

Payback: 97.0%

Hand Payout Natural royal flush 800 Four Deuces 200 Wild Royal Flush 25 Wild Five of a Kind 17 Straight Flush 13 Four of a Kind 4 Full House 3 Flush 2 Straight 2 Three of a Kind 1

As seen here, the ugly version pays more for some high hands. The medium hands are paid less. It looks attractive, but in reality it is disadvantageous for the player. Be very careful when scanning the video poker pay tables. Casinos have made them intentionally deceptive.