Ultimate X Poker Slots
Ultimate X video poker is a game where you get the chance to double your bet. If you get a paying hand, you win a multiplier which will go into effect on your next hand. Ultimate X video poker is available in both a single-line and multi-line version.
Ultimate X and spin poker- finally got a hand dealt on triple hand spin. Ultimate X Poker was created by IGT, and utilizes a format that’s very similar to their popular Triple Play Draw Poker machines. The electronic game actually offers nine different forms of video poker, each of which can be played in standard or Ultimate X modes.
How to Play Ultimate X Video Poker
Ultimate X video poker plays in a similar manner to other variations. In fact, the “Ultimate X” is an option—it’s not something that you take advantage of in every hand. If you skip that, you’re just going to be playing a regular video poker game.
You’ll find detailed instructions on the various kinds of video poker elsewhere on the site, but in case you missed one of those pages, here are the basics:
The game is similar to a slot machine, but instead of having spinning reels, you have 5 spots where playing cards are dealt. It’s a video game, so those cards are just animated, but the odds of getting those cards are the same as they would be if you were playing any other card game.
Video poker uses a RNG (random number generator) which is programmed to duplicate the odds of a regular deck of cards. And that is, indeed, the major difference between video poker and slot machines. Both games have payouts based on combinations of symbols.
But in video poker, you know what the odds of each of those symbols coming up are.
Ultimate X Video Poker Pay Tables and Strategy Tips
All video poker games feature a pay table which details the payouts for the various combinations you might receive. These payouts are based (generally speaking) on the relative rarity of the poker hands they represent. In fact, the only difference between most games is the payout structure.
For example, in Jacks or Better, you get paid even money for a pair, 2 to 1 for 2 pairs, 3 to 1 for 3 of a kind, and so on, up to a royal flush—which pays off at 800 to 1. In most games, the royal flush is the top hand, and it almost always offers that 800 to 1 payoff, but there’s a catch:
You can bet between 1 and 5 coins per hand in most video poker games. If you want the 800 to 1 payout for the royal flush (and you should), you have to place the max bet—5 coins. If you bet less than that, the hand only pays out at 250 to 1.
The other major difference from one game to another is the lack or presence of wild cards. In Joker Poker (or Jokers Wild), the game is played with a virtual 53 card deck—the extra card is a joker. It can be used to “fill in” or “substitute” for any card you might need to complete a particular hand.
In Deuces Wild, all the 2s are wild. This means that the average strength of a hand goes up considerably, so the payoffs reflect this. In fact, in order to win the 800 to 1 payoff for the royal flush, you have to get a “natural” royal flush. There’s a smaller payout for a “wild” royal flush.
Because the variation is an option that’s added on top of other variations. You might be playing Ultimate X Jacks or Better, Ultimate X Deuces Wild, or Ultimate X Bonus Poker, or one of another dozen or so variations.
To activate the Ultimate X feature, you have to place the max bet—in this game, it’s 10 coins. If you play for fewer coins than that, the Ultimate X feature isn’t activated, and the game plays just like its base game.
When you do activate the feature, if you get a paying hand, you also get a multiplier which increases the winnings on your next hand.
Here’s an example of how that works:
You’re playing Ultimate X Jacks or Better, and you place the maximum bet. The multipliers vary based on which hand you wind up with—this can vary from machine to machine, but here’s a common example, by hand:
Note that those AREN’T the payouts for those hands—the standard payouts for each hand apply. A royal flush still pays off at 800 to 1, a straight flush at 50 to 1, and a 4 of a kind at 25 to 1.
Those are the MULTIPLIERS that apply to your winnings on the next hand. Depending on the machine and how many hands you’re playing at once, these multipliers might vary. For example, if you’re playing a 10 hand version of the game, the multiplier for a royal flush might be 7X instead of 2X.
When you play the next hand in the sequence, you get to apply the multiplier even if you don’t place the max bet. You only have to place the max bet in order to activate the multiplier.
Once you’ve done so, the multiplier applies to the next hand.
Let’s say on the first hand you get a 3 of a kind. You get the standard payout for 3 of a kind (3 to 1). But you also get a multiplier on your next hand of 4X.
On your next hand, you’re dealt a pair of jacks. That normally pays off at even odds, but since you have the multiplier from before, you get paid off at 4 to 1.
In some video poker variations that have multipliers, it’s hard to calculate the odds because you don’t know what the odds are of getting certain multipliers. But in Ultimate X, you know which hands create which multipliers.
This is one of the fundamental differences between video poker and slots, by the way. One is a game of incomplete information (slots) and one is a game of complete information (video poker). In both games, you know what the payoffs are for the various combinations. But you need more information than that to come up with a payback percentage and/or a playing strategy. You also need to know the odds of getting each hand.
You can find Ultimate X versions of the following games:
- Bonus Deuces
- Bonus Poker
- Bonus Poker Deluxe
- Deuces Wild
- Double Bonus
- Double Double Bonus
- Jacks or Better
- Joker Poker
- Triple Double Bonus
The payback percentages for all these games vary based on the pay table and the size of the multipliers. For example, an 8/6 Jacks or Better game with the multiplier schedule we included above has a payback percentage of 99.42% if played with the correct strategy. (An 8/6 Jacks or Better game pays off at 8 to 1 for a full house and at 6 to 1 for a flush.)
Most online casinos do not offer this variation, but you can find a free version of this game at VideoPoker.com. It’s not a play-for-money site, though—you play for credits which have no actual monetary value. On the other hand, the games are realistic—with the exception of the Ultimate X game. The multipliers on that game are especially generous.
How To Play Ultimate X Video Poker - Strictly Slots Magazine
Conclusion
Ultimate X video poker is one of the better variations of the game. Many games, especially those which require you to play for additional credits, offer worse odds or a payback percentage that can’t be calculated. But in this case, with a minimal amount of research, you can determine which pay table you’re facing.
Strategy varies only slightly from the original versions of the game. One strategy that works for Ultimate X that isn’t available on other games is the “vulturing” strategy. You search the casino for games which have unclaimed multipliers available. Since someone else won the multiplier, you’re often playing with a big edge against the casino—you didn’t risk anything in order to get such a multiplier.
This is a legitimate way to get an edge against the casino, but it’s not something you could do consistently enough to make a living. But as an occasional means of getting a little extra edge against the casino, it’s worthwhile.
How to Play Ultimate X Video Poker
By Henry Tamburin
In previous articles in Strictly Slots, I wrote about the six-coins-per-line games Super Times Pay and Quick Quads. This month, I’ll describe the mother of multi-coin-per-line games known as Ultimate X.
Ultimate X is available as a multi hand and single hand video poker game. If you wager ten coins per line instead of 5 coins, you will earn a multiplier, not on the current hand, but on the following hand (i.e., betting 10 coins per line puts you in the Ultimate X mode). Essentially, you are doubling your initial bet in the hopes that you will get a greater payout on the following hand.
The easiest way to show you how Ultimate X works is to play a few hands. (The game is Triple Play Bonus Poker.)
Suppose on the first hand you wagered the maximum of 30 coins (i.e., 10 coins per line) to activate the Ultimate X feature and are dealt the following hand:
Notice on the bottom right of the screen, the “Ultimate X Poker” logo shows that it is active (because you wagered the maximum of 30 coins). On the first line, you hold the pair of 4s. The 4s will appear in the same card position on lines #2 and #3, and each line will receive three draw cards. The result of the draw gave you these final hands
You wound up with two pairs on line #1 (pair of 4s and 8s) but you didn’t get a winning hand on lines #2 and #3. Our winning two pair on line #1 paid 10 coins (which is a standard payout for two pairs for a traditional five-coin wager). The 10-coin winning payout appears in the “Win” meter at the bottom left of the screen. Likewise, the 10 coins won increased the “Credit” meter (lower right) by 10 coins. Notice that to the left of line #1 (i.e., bottom hand), you’ll see “Next Hand 3X.” This signifies that the payout for a winning hand on Line #1 on the following hand would be multiplied by 3.
On the next hand, you are dealt:
Notice that “3X” appears to the left of line #1 (to signify whatever the payout is for a winning hand on line #1, it will be multiplied by 3). You hold the single ace, hit the draw button, and wound up with a pair of Queens on line #1 and a pair of Aces on line #3.
The payout for a High Pair is five coins but on line #1, the payout is multiplied by 3 (because we had a winning hand on this line in the previous hand). Therefore, your total payout was 20 coins (5 coins for the pair of Aces on line #3, and 15 coins for the pair of Queens on Line #1). Since you have a winning hand on Lines #1 and #3, the screen shows that you will have a 2x multiplier on any winning hands on lines #1 and #3 on the following hand.
On your third hand, you were dealt two unsuited high cards (J-Q) on Line #1, you held them, and ended up with:
Double Bonus
Unfortunately, you didn’t get a winning hand on lines #1 and #3 (with the 2x multiplier from the previous winning hands on these lines) but you got a winning hand on Line #2 that gives you a 3x multiplier on this line for the following hand.
On the next hand, you were dealt two pair:
Bonus Poker
You hold the Two Pair, say a silent prayer, and after the draw ended up with the following hands:
Unfortunately, you didn’t get a full house or three of a kind on any line on the draw (darn!) so your final result was two pair on all lines. The payout was 10 coins on line #1, 10 coins on line # 3, and 30 coins on line #2 (because of the 3x multiplier from the previous winning hand line #2). Notice also that on the following hand, you will have a 3x multiplier on all three lines.
I hope after playing these sample hands, you get the gist of how the game plays and how fun and lucrative it could be if you get a winning hand on one or more lines followed by another winning hand on the same line(s).
The amount of the multiplier that you receive for any winning hand depends on which game you are playing (e.g., bonus poker, double double bonus, etc.), what the winning hand was (see below), and how many lines you played (e.g., Triple Play, Five Play, or Ten Play.). The multiplier is always 2 xs for winning hands higher than a full house. As an example, the multipliers for the Triple Play Bonus Poker game are:
Notice that if you get a full house or flush on any line, then on the following hand the payout for any winning hand (on the same line) would be multiplied by 12 and 11 respectively. (My biggest winning hand to date playing Ultimate X was when I got four 3s with a 12x multiplier (the payout was a very nice 2400 coins or $600 playing quarters).
Keep in mind that when you activate the Ultimate X feature, you are doubling your bet (betting 10 coins per line instead of 5 coins) in return at a potential shot at a bigger payout on the following hand. Because you are betting a total of 30 coins per hand on a Triple Play Ultimate X game, the volatility is very high. Let me repeat this because it’s important: The volatility is very high. This means that if you are not lucky and don’t get a winning hand followed by another winning hand, your bankroll will head south very quickly. This greater volatility requires a much bigger bankroll to withstand the big bankroll swings that will occur with this game. (Psychologically, you also have to be prepared for the negative swings.)
According to IGT, there are nine game families on the Ultimate X platform, mostly on Three-, Five- and Ten-Play machines, although a single hand version is offered on their bundled-theme Five Star Poker. The highest return Ultimate X game that is offered is 9/6 Double Double Bonus Poker on Ten Play (99.87%, assuming perfect strategy). You can review the returns for other games on the Ultimate X page at www.wizardofodds.com.
If you want to know which casinos in Las Vegas offer Ultimate X, go to the Best Video Poker Page on www.lasvegasadvisor.com. You can also go to www.vpfree2.com and use the search function to find out which casinos in different regions of the U.S. offer Ultimate X, or use the “Find in Casinos” function on www.videopoker.com. If you want to play Ultimate X for free, go to www.videopoker.com. (I highly recommend you do so to get a feel for how the game plays and the size of the bankroll swings.)
Final Tip
When you play Ultimate X, you are paying more on the current hand in the hopes of getting a multiplier on the following hand. Therefore, on your last hand before you quit playing, you should only bet five coins per line (i.e., don’t activate the Ultimate X feature on the last hand because it has no value since you won’t be playing another hand). Also, before you start playing, check the screen on different Ultimate X games to see if a previous player left a multiplier on the game. If you are lucky to find one with a multiplier, jump in and play the hand with only a five coin per line wager. As always, but even more so with Ultimate X because you are betting twice as much per hand, play each hand with perfect basic strategy. Good luck!