Full House Poker

I’ll say this now, I’m no poker player. The only card games I know are 21, Snap and Magic. But I’ve always wanted to learn and what better way then through a computer game? Poker is getting more popular and I feel like I’m missing out. Ok, I’m no chips wizard, but I’m getting there, slowly. Another reason the game appealed to me is because it’s an avatar game and the last one I enjoyed was 1 VS 100. With no sign of a second series of that on the horizon, Full House Poker gives the player a chance to show off the trendy and crazy threads they spent their Microsoft Points on!

Full House Poker is the final game in the Xbox House Party series and costs 800 Microsoft Points. You can either play online with people and friends across the globe, or stick to the single player tables and compete against computer rivals. When you load the game for the first time you are presented with a video tutorial giving you the low down of how to play the game. These video tutorials are always available in your menu in case you need to recap on anything. Everything is explained from Texas Hold ‘Em rules down to the chip tricks your avatar can perform at the tables. So you wont be thrown into a game blind and unsure of how to play. Your career stats are also available in your menu to see how well you’re progressing through the game. Items of clothing and furniture are unlocked as you earn exp. This lets you dress your avatar, or when creating your own game (earning you 5G right there!) customise the room with the funky items you’ve unlocked. Also, you can check your gamescore on the leaderboard with friends and see your worldwide rank.

Your game choices are single player, ranked multiplayer, and multiplayer. All three offer standard or tournament play. The rank you have when you leave the game detemines how much exp and chips you walk away with. Leave first to get some awesome exp and chip amounts, but being bottom rank leaves you with low exp and barely any chips. So, choose your moves carefully. Each hand you play earns you exp, so it’s not difficult to level up at the start of the game. For more exp, you need to start folding at the right time and making sure you get some good cards.

Texas Heat Mode is the most fun I’ve experienced so far with the game. 30 minute tournaments are held at certain times during the day and you can find out when they are happening via your main menu. This part reminds me alot more of 1 VS 100, but you don’t get a reminder of when the next tournament starts. The aim is to of course to win, and to win big! Big wins on small tables mean moving onto bigger tables with more exp and bigger pots. However, with big pots comes big responsibilities. What can be misleading sometimes is the fact you’re playing against A.I. pros and not actual people. There aren’t many amateur poker playing A.Is, so you have to be careful.

The game is also avalaible on Windows Phone 7, but it doesn’t have all the features the Xbox 360 version does, like the multiplayer. But you can earn chips on your phone and when you access your game on Xbox, the chips are there waiting for you to use. Good old Xbox 360 integration. Everything is shared between both devices, so it’s worth looking into.