Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Bingo versus Poker: The Different Styles of Play

Even to newcomers to gaming it is clear that poker and bingo are very different, both on and offline. The whole set up of the games – bingo with it's printed cards, balls, full houses and lines; poker with it's “pockets”, “turns” and “rivers” - is opposite. Therefore, it follows that the two games would require very different styles of play. For fans of bingo, there is much to be said for what poker veterans might describe as “fast and loose” play.

They have little to worry about other than the balls that are being called next, and whether or not they have them on one or more of their printed cards. Daubing off the numbers as fast as possible is easily the best strategy, as the faster the numbers go the faster the line is completed, the quicker the player can shout “Line!” or “Full House!” dependent on the stage of the game. In online gaming, this is less of a problem, as many bingo sites use auto-daub, a feature that allows the site to mark off any numbers that are called on the player's behalf. This is obviously a benefit for a player with several cards, and while limits are placed on the total number of cards allowed for purchase, it is not exactly a level playing field if one player has one card while another has one hundred.

Thus it is up to player to give himself the best chance to succeed by purchasing more cards. A recent development in online bingo is instant games, such as the popular title Shaman’s Dream. Bingo no deposit sites offer these games as alternatives to regular bingo games to allow users the chance to try something different, and relax their minds before heading back into the bingo halls.o the bingo halls.o the bingo halls.o the bingo halls. Bingo sites have also recently begun to offer other casino games such as blackjack and roulette, while few have included tables on which players can try their poker skill. Perhaps the most prominent reason for this is the need to understand many elements of the game of poker, where playing in a fast-and-loose style is likely to lose a player her bankroll, and quickly. This is because poker is much more about disguising the way you play, especially online where it is impossible for other players to read “tells”.Instead, they must estimate the cards in the hands of other players based on the kind of bets they make and their playing style – trickery not required in bingo as bingo players are not really playing against each other in any meaningful way, which is quite the opposite in poker.

This is an advantage for online bingo players, who are usually more concerned with the pace of the game than beating their rivals. As it is a first-past-the-post winning system, players enjoy more freedom when their eyes are down, whereas poker requires much more study and guile. Both games have their foibles and both are incredibly popular, though both for quite obviously different reasons.

0 comments: