Stacked in Your Favor

If you're playing a poker game and you look around the table and can't tell who the sucker is, it's you.

—Paul Newman

Professional poker player Daniel Negreanu has been winning consistantly since 1997, his total wins in the millions of dollars. Stacked™ with Daniel Negreanu takes full advantage of the expertise he has built up over the years as a winning, professional poker player.

Negreanu (pronounced "neg-rah-noo") not only has put himself on the game, but in it as well. Imagine having a top poker pro there to advise you as you play. Each play comes with a tip appropriate to your current hand. Don't know whether to fold or raise? Daniel helps you out and teaches you a little something while he's at it.

It's all about the moolah, baby. No one wants
glory or fame. They're eyeing your wallet.

Negreanu also teaches a tutorial that you access from the Main Menu. The tutorial explains the game of Texas Hold'em from the ground up, so that even the rankest beginner gets all the information they need to play. For the more advanced player, Negreanu goes into some player strategy and a discussion on bluffing.

Shuffle up and deal!

Small Blind
Stacked is Texas Hold'em with all the intense strategy and quirky table-talk you would find around any well-oiled poker table. The game includes three different environments, two of which you unlock with your skills. Seven professional players can also be unlocked to join your game. I don't know all the professionals who have found their way into the game, but I can tell you that Evelyn Ng, Erick Lindgren, Juan Carlos Mortensen and, of course, Daniel Negreanu are on the list.

Here's a basic introduction to the gameplay. In Texas Hold'em, the dealer deals each player two cards, face down. He then deals three cards, face up, in front of himself. This first three card deal is called the Flop. These are community cards, cards that everyone at the table adds to their own two cards to try to make the best poker hand possible.

The dealer then adds another card to the community, this one called the Turn. Finally, the dealer lays out the River, the last card to join the community hand. Players bet between deals. At the end, the player with the best five-card poker hand, using a combination of his own two cards and the five in the community (disregarding two of the seven) wins!

Check out the cool hat.

Big Blind
Stacked has two modes. The first mode, Quick Play, lets you drop in on a game without the game affecting your point totals in Career Mode. Career Mode, the other mode, tracks your scores and gathers your statistics over your many games. For me, both of these modes will have their place, depending on my mood. If I want a quick game for practice or to pass a little time without making a huge commitment, I'll enter Quick Play.

If, however, I'm ready to advance my career and want to hunker down to a professional game of poker, then I'll play in Career Mode. In Career Mode, win or lose, it leaves its mark on my record.

Tap into the stream of what it means to really play
poker. Your opponents are live players who have their own
strategies, strengths, and shortcomings.

Within each of the modes, you have a number of choices. You can play a Cash Game or enter into either a Single Table Tournament (STT) or a Multiple Table Tournament (MTT). You have all three choices in both Quick Play and Career modes.

In the Cash Game, it's all about the moolah, baby. If you sit down, plan to put some dough on the table. No one wants glory or fame. They're eyeing your wallet. You can choose from a Limit cash game and a No-Limit cash game. In the limited game, the house limits how much you can bet. It sets a minimum and a maximum bet.

In the No-Limit cash game, the house enforces no limits on betting. You, or anyone else, can toss in any amount up to the total in your chip pile. Strategy changes dramatically in a No-Limit game. Texas Hold'em No Limit and Limit are almost two totally different games.

Evelyn Ng, poker millionaire, joins the game.

The Turn
If you're interested in competing as much for glory and fame as for money, play in either a Single Table Tournament or a Multiple Table Tournament. A maximum of nine players can sit at any table, thus the STT has a natural limit of nine competitors. Lose all your chips, and you're eliminated.

A Multiple Table Tournament can have as many as 28 players, seated at four tables. The MTT not only takes longer, but you'll find the competition stiffer. Your strategy may lean more toward longevity, and thus be less aggressive than it might be in an STT.

Stacked handles player turns with smoothness and easy transitions. Watch the faces of your opponents to look for signs of bluffing. When it's your turn, check in with Daniel to see what advice he has on how he would play your cards. If you fold, then you can click the action button (A button) to speed up the turns and whiz through to the end of the hand. The game shows you who won and how even when you're speeding through to the end.

The River
When you play Multiplayer, you tap into the stream of what it means to really play poker. Your opponents are live players who have their own strategies, strengths, and shortcomings. Whether playing your friends in co-op mode or playing against strangers on Xbox Live®, you'll find your poker experience enhanced and enriched. Amidst the online competitors, I suspect, true Stacked legends will emerge, and poker players will repeat the tales for years to come.

Article by Angel Leigh McCoy