Haywire Poker

Introduction

Haywire Poker represents a variation of video poker that can be integrated into traditional multi-play machines. By betting an additional three coins for each line, players activate the Haywire feature, which can randomly award multipliers ranging from 2x to 12x.

For those already familiar with Moving Multipliers In Haywire Poker, multipliers change positions dynamically, unlike in other games where they remain static after being assigned.

Rules

1. Haywire Poker is implemented into standard 3-, 5-, and 10-play multi-play video poker machines, with the expectation that the player is familiar with the mechanics of multi-play poker.
2. When a player places the maximum bet of eight coins per hand, they will trigger the feature, still wagering five coins per line while the additional three coins serve as the entry fee for the feature.
3. With the feature active, there's an 11.4942529% chance that a multiplier will be assigned to the bottom hand.
4. Possible multipliers on the bottom hand include values of 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 10, or 12, all offering equal chances of occurrence.
5. A multiplier assigned to the bottom hand will transfer to another hand during the next round of play. Each time the multiplier shifts, it will be redrawn.
6. The multiplier will continue to traverse across different hands on the screen, being redrawn every time it moves.
7. After the multiplier has been displayed on each hand on the screen, it will eventually drop off.
8. Throughout the movement of the multiplier, new multipliers may emerge on the bottom hand, allowing multiple multipliers to be present on the screen simultaneously. This means that various hands can possess distinct multipliers during a single game round.

Example

In the example shown, the bottom hand received a multiplier of 5x. I was dealt a strong flush and chose to keep all my cards, so I won't detail the draw's outcome.

On the subsequent hand, the multiplier shifts to the middle hand and registers at 3x.

For the next hand, the multiplier transitions to the top hand with a value of 4x.

Analysis

On average, when a multiplier is in play, it tends to be around 6.25. The precise likelihood of acquiring a multiplier greater than 1 equals 114,942,529 out of 1,000,000,000. While the information screens indicate a chance of 11.49%, the more accurate figure is 11.494252952381%. Taking into account the odds of obtaining a multiplier, the overall average multiplier—including the 88.51% of hands where no multiplier is present—results in an average of 1.603225. Given that winnings are dependent on only 5/8 of the total bet, the overall enhancement in return when compared to traditional video poker equals (5/8) x 1.603225 = 1.002155173. Therefore, you can derive the return in Haywire Poker by multiplying the conventional return by 1.002155173, or for a rough estimate, you can simply add 0.21%.

The table below illustrates the returns for both the standard game and with the Haywire feature, listing various games and pay tables where this feature is applicable. Currently, it does not encompass all Joker Poker pay tables.

Strategy

The strategy remains consistent with that of the standard game and its respective pay table.

Acknowledgements

Thanks to VideoPoker.com Thank you for allowing me to share screenshots from your demo game, the available games, pay tables for this game, and the multiplier probability.

Written by: Michael Shackleford