Poppin' Multipliers Poker

Introduction

Poppin' Multipliers is a video poker variant with multipliers randomly given after both the deal and draw. The price for the feature is the player must bet 8 credits per play, instead of 5. The additional three credits is a non-refundable fee to invoke the feature.

Rules

1. The game is played as an optional feature to conventional mutli-play video poker.
2. If the player bets one to five credits per play, the game plays as conventional video poker.
3. If the player bets eight credits per play, then the feature shall be activated. Any wins are based on a five-coin bet. The other three coins pay for the feature. The rest of the rules apply to the feature only.
4. There is a 1 in 8.24 probability that the player wins a multiplier immediately after the deal. This multiplier would apply to every play. The average such multiplier is 3.64. The possible multipliers are all integer values from 2x to 10x, except 9x.
5. If no multiplier was awarded after the deal, then any individual play may earn a multiplier after the draw. The probability and average multiplier are the same as after the deal. This is true even if the player holds all five cards after the deal.

Examples

In the image above, a 2x multiplier was awarded immediately after the deal.  After the draw, I had four two pairs, one three of a kind, and one full house.  Before the multiplier, these hands each paid 10, 15, and 45 respectively.  Thus, my total win for the hand is 2*(4*10 + 15 + 45) = 200. 

 

In the image above, I earned two multipliers after the draw.  One was a 3x in the upper-left play, which was a losing hand, so it didn't help.  The other was a 7x multiplier in the third row from the top, middle column.  This hand was a jacks or better, which normally pays 5.  I also had three more jacks or better hands, which did not win a multiplier.  Thus, my total win was 7*5 + 3*5 = 35 + 15 = 50 credits. 

Analysis

This game was quite easy to analyze. To get the return with the feature, multiply the return without the feature by 1.001184.

The following table shows many common games and pay tables used by Action Gaming, the makers of Poppin' Multipliers, and returns both with and without the feature.

Written by: Michael Shackleford