Playstation Poker
Published: Monday, November 07, 2005 Online-Casinos.com
PLAYSTATION POKER
WPT opens up another avenue of interest
World Poker Tour and 2K Sports have launched a fascinating new poker-related entertainment
using the very popular Sony PlayStation 2 (PS2) and Microsoft Xbox as the medium.
As a video game, World Poker Tour presents all the attributes for which it has
become globally successful - big names, glitsy venues and exciting camerawork
- with the huge attraction that of the player being able to directly participate,
choosing his or her own playing avatar.
There's a good choice of games that covers the popular No Limit Texas Hold 'Em
or one of the 14 variations and other poker games, such as Omaha Hold 'Em, Five
Card Draw, Seven-Card Stud, Pineapple, Tahoe, Shanghai and Billabong poker.
There are avatars of Phil "Unabomber" Laak, Antonio "the Magician"
Esfandiari, Michael "The Grinder" Mizrachi and Erick Lindgren, these
A.I.-controlled virtual players even resemble their real-life counterparts, right
down to characteristics like stretching, shrugging and impatiently tapping fingers
on the table.
Adding to the ambience, the instantly recognisable voices of World Poker Tour
hosts Mike Sexton and Vince Van Patten deliver play-by-play calls and typical
background commentary in six casino settings that include the Aviation Club de
France in Paris, Bay 101 in San Jose, Calif., and the Foxwoods Resort Casino in
Mashantaucket, Conn.
The game also offers the opportunity to play against others on the Internet, provided
they have a copy of the game, too.
Developed by Coresoft for 2K Sports, the game is available at retail outlets in
the States for just on $20. The game includes minitutorials on rules, table etiquette
and chip management, and at any time during the game a list of rules and a chart
of winning poker hands can be called up onscreen. For turbo players, there's even
a "fast forward" function!
