Psykoboy2
03-21-2011, 11:46 AM
Full House Poker Review
Title: Full House Poker
Platform: Xbox Live Arcade
Developer: Krome Studios (http://www.kromestudios.com/)
Publisher: Microsoft (http://www.microsoft.com/games/)
ESRB Rating: Teen (Simulated Gambling)
MSRP: 800 MS Points ($10.00)
Editor: Scott "Psykoboy2" Benton
What's Hot: Another rejuvenating shot in the arm at online poker on the 360. Texas Heat sessions and really big ranked tournament mutliplayer modes.
What's Not: There's very little to complain about here. It can be hard to get poker wrong. Other types of poker would be nice. The inclusion of AI opponents in the Texas Heat sessions are a little disappointing and frustrating.
Full House Poker from Krome Studios (published by Microsoft) is an avatar based poker game and the latest in a long line of poker titles to hit the 360 (if you count the variations on the theme in both the Arcade and Indie games), but only the second to offer straight-up Texas Hold’em style play to the Xbox Live Arcade. It’s also considered the spiritual successor to the much-loved 1 vs. 100 MMO trivia game, but more on that a little later.
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5015/5543758472_7c95bc7050_z.jpg
While the name doesn’t imply it, Full House Poker is strictly Texas Hold’em. It offers some variations on the limit (pot, spread, no limit, etc.), but there is no Five-Card Draw or Omaha Hold’em. It offers single, multiplayer, and ranked multiplayer options, all of which offer standard or tournament play (up to 30 players over multiple tables). Regardless of what you play and if you win or lose, you’ll earn XP and level up in the game, unlocking various awards and customizations.
In single player, the choice is yours on everything from the style of play to the color and types of chairs you sit in to clothes for your avatar in-game. Most of the aesthetic customizations are unlocked as you level up in play. Full House Poker takes the stand of giving you XP as you play. Every hand dealt will give you XP, even if you fold before the flop (even that gives you XP if it was worthwhile in the end). It’s easy to earn and the awards come flowing after every game giving you a good sense of feeling like you made progress, even if it was minimal.
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5136/5543177975_6d033bc9ac_z.jpg
As you level up you’ll get the option of facing some of the pros. These are a selection of types of players who you can play in a one-on-one setting. They are AI controlled and range from players who are loose-passive to tight-aggressive to shark. Beating these pros will give you plenty of XP, increase your bankroll, and unlock certain customization options only available from beating that pro.
The main attraction of Full House Poker comes from the Texas Heat mode in multiplayer. This is where the spiritual successor to 1 vs. 100 comes in to play. It’s also where I had the most fun playing (not to say the other modes were boring). Texas Heat is a scheduled 30-minute game session played over 3 types of tables; single diamond, double, and triple. These sessions are held at specific times throughout the week. You can check in game for the schedule but there’s no game time reminders like there were for 1 vs. 100. In each session, your goal is to win, obviously. After a certain amount of time, the chip leader in your table will be promoted to a higher table with a larger bankroll and higher blinds and antes. Should you lose all your money at a table, you’ll be demoted to a lesser table and try to work your way back up. Once a session is over, you’ll see the progress you made and the best players from your table will be highlighted along with the best players overall. At one point in the evening, I was playing with over 10,000 other people with a community jackpot of over 15 million chips (split at the end of the session between players with the best hands played). Now, while it did say I was playing with over 10,000 other people, it annoyed me that at most tables I was at, I was playing against many AI counterparts, namely the pros. This means their play style was also in effect, eliminating that feel of playing against other members of the Xbox Live community.
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5294/5543759260_0d01d90ef2_z.jpg
The game is also available for Windows Phone 7 and your stats, progression, and bankroll carry over so you can play on the go and come back to it on either platform with consistency of where you left off.
From an objective eye, I don’t expect to see nearly the draw 1 vs. 100 had. There’s not much push for it on the dashboard like there was with 1 vs. 100. No real world prizes being given out (there’s always a possibility that could change). Plus, there’s a big difference in the learning curve between trivia and poker. Although Full House Poker provides tutorials on every aspect of the game and usually those are video based tutorials, which is a nice touch. Still, it can be hard to remember on the fly if a straight beats a flush or even what those two kinds of hands are to begin with.
From a fan of poker, I really hope to be playing this many months from now. I hope Texas Heat sticks and continues for many seasons to come. I hope my friends who enjoy poker pick this up so we can play together. It’s the most fun I have had playing poker on the 360 since Texas Hold’em was released all the way back in 2006.
Score: 4 out of 5 CoGs
http://www.colonyofgamers.com/images/CoG4.png
Scott says, "There isn’t much else to say here. This is poker, folks. If you’re a poker fan, then yeah, you might want to jump on now while it’s still a pretty hot title. These games tend to lose steam pretty quick, but hopefully the Texas Heat mode of community play will keep things going for it."
Title: Full House Poker
Platform: Xbox Live Arcade
Developer: Krome Studios (http://www.kromestudios.com/)
Publisher: Microsoft (http://www.microsoft.com/games/)
ESRB Rating: Teen (Simulated Gambling)
MSRP: 800 MS Points ($10.00)
Editor: Scott "Psykoboy2" Benton
What's Hot: Another rejuvenating shot in the arm at online poker on the 360. Texas Heat sessions and really big ranked tournament mutliplayer modes.
What's Not: There's very little to complain about here. It can be hard to get poker wrong. Other types of poker would be nice. The inclusion of AI opponents in the Texas Heat sessions are a little disappointing and frustrating.
Full House Poker from Krome Studios (published by Microsoft) is an avatar based poker game and the latest in a long line of poker titles to hit the 360 (if you count the variations on the theme in both the Arcade and Indie games), but only the second to offer straight-up Texas Hold’em style play to the Xbox Live Arcade. It’s also considered the spiritual successor to the much-loved 1 vs. 100 MMO trivia game, but more on that a little later.
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5015/5543758472_7c95bc7050_z.jpg
While the name doesn’t imply it, Full House Poker is strictly Texas Hold’em. It offers some variations on the limit (pot, spread, no limit, etc.), but there is no Five-Card Draw or Omaha Hold’em. It offers single, multiplayer, and ranked multiplayer options, all of which offer standard or tournament play (up to 30 players over multiple tables). Regardless of what you play and if you win or lose, you’ll earn XP and level up in the game, unlocking various awards and customizations.
In single player, the choice is yours on everything from the style of play to the color and types of chairs you sit in to clothes for your avatar in-game. Most of the aesthetic customizations are unlocked as you level up in play. Full House Poker takes the stand of giving you XP as you play. Every hand dealt will give you XP, even if you fold before the flop (even that gives you XP if it was worthwhile in the end). It’s easy to earn and the awards come flowing after every game giving you a good sense of feeling like you made progress, even if it was minimal.
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5136/5543177975_6d033bc9ac_z.jpg
As you level up you’ll get the option of facing some of the pros. These are a selection of types of players who you can play in a one-on-one setting. They are AI controlled and range from players who are loose-passive to tight-aggressive to shark. Beating these pros will give you plenty of XP, increase your bankroll, and unlock certain customization options only available from beating that pro.
The main attraction of Full House Poker comes from the Texas Heat mode in multiplayer. This is where the spiritual successor to 1 vs. 100 comes in to play. It’s also where I had the most fun playing (not to say the other modes were boring). Texas Heat is a scheduled 30-minute game session played over 3 types of tables; single diamond, double, and triple. These sessions are held at specific times throughout the week. You can check in game for the schedule but there’s no game time reminders like there were for 1 vs. 100. In each session, your goal is to win, obviously. After a certain amount of time, the chip leader in your table will be promoted to a higher table with a larger bankroll and higher blinds and antes. Should you lose all your money at a table, you’ll be demoted to a lesser table and try to work your way back up. Once a session is over, you’ll see the progress you made and the best players from your table will be highlighted along with the best players overall. At one point in the evening, I was playing with over 10,000 other people with a community jackpot of over 15 million chips (split at the end of the session between players with the best hands played). Now, while it did say I was playing with over 10,000 other people, it annoyed me that at most tables I was at, I was playing against many AI counterparts, namely the pros. This means their play style was also in effect, eliminating that feel of playing against other members of the Xbox Live community.
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5294/5543759260_0d01d90ef2_z.jpg
The game is also available for Windows Phone 7 and your stats, progression, and bankroll carry over so you can play on the go and come back to it on either platform with consistency of where you left off.
From an objective eye, I don’t expect to see nearly the draw 1 vs. 100 had. There’s not much push for it on the dashboard like there was with 1 vs. 100. No real world prizes being given out (there’s always a possibility that could change). Plus, there’s a big difference in the learning curve between trivia and poker. Although Full House Poker provides tutorials on every aspect of the game and usually those are video based tutorials, which is a nice touch. Still, it can be hard to remember on the fly if a straight beats a flush or even what those two kinds of hands are to begin with.
From a fan of poker, I really hope to be playing this many months from now. I hope Texas Heat sticks and continues for many seasons to come. I hope my friends who enjoy poker pick this up so we can play together. It’s the most fun I have had playing poker on the 360 since Texas Hold’em was released all the way back in 2006.
Score: 4 out of 5 CoGs
http://www.colonyofgamers.com/images/CoG4.png
Scott says, "There isn’t much else to say here. This is poker, folks. If you’re a poker fan, then yeah, you might want to jump on now while it’s still a pretty hot title. These games tend to lose steam pretty quick, but hopefully the Texas Heat mode of community play will keep things going for it."