Musashi Wins!
FLAWLESS VICTOLY!
So I picked up World Championship Poker 2 for PSP (though I think it was released on all consoles) and I thought I'd highlight it a little because it does some things right that the deluge of card games in the last year have always gotten wrong. I don't know why it's been so difficult to get a compelling game of poker, especially for my handheld where it makes sense, but when we've seen this genre tried again and again since the beginning of video games and I've still been stuck playing Hoyle Casino on GBC you know there is some room for improvement.
First of all...you can play Texas Hold 'Em. In fact there is a multitude of poker games (14 I think) to choose from, including all the popular and niche variations you're likely to run into in the casino or playing among your friends. Why companies release a card game at this point that doesn't include this game I'll never know since it's obviously the most popular variation going and for good reason since in my opinion it does get pretty boring playing old crap hands of 5 or 7 unless it's for a little variety which this game certainly has.
Second (and of far more importance) it has GOOD SINGLE PLAYER AI, which has been like the holy grail of non-pc poker games. It even bests Hoyle which while decent, had too many of the cardboard variety of players who stuck to even the dumbest of tendencies in a way that was rotely mechanical and not even represenative of a bad poker player so much as boring programming. This game is filled with unique players that not only play with a particular style, but do so in a much more human manner. They have variation without mechanical faults that are easy to exploit and running away with a game really seems to demand you bring your A game to the table. It's a real blessing so far and I can't think of another recent poker release that comes close.
Another reason this game is so interesting is that it finally approaches the creation of a Poker Player RPG. Completely? Not by any means. But if you want a good game of poker that is worth investing in for more than a few minutes at a time they've attempted to add some more meat to the package. While there are single game modes, small to large tournaments, etc. that you can set up to play, there is also a fairly compelling career mode. From there you create a character basically living in his basement poker parlor to a high roller participating in high stakes tournaments around the world. Along the way you can acquire furnishings, customizations, etc. that can be bought and sold (as the situation requires) from the local pawn shop. There is a lot of game variety in this mode and you will have to beat certain locations with a particular profit margin to proceed in world map.
A few interesting facets of gameplay...in career mode you can boost your stats by impressive tournament wins. While none of these attributes effectively let you cheat the game, they will give you little bonuses...perhaps a mathmatical breakdown of opening hand strength in hold em, etc. They can be quite useful without breaking the skill involved and add a bit of carrot to the career besides building the bankroll and opening venues. Also, even the PSP game features online play and your career is effected by your play online. You have the ability to save 5 separate players in memory to use how you see fit.
One controversial addition...when playing a particularly strong or weak hand the game will occasionally ask you to play a small timing based minigame that determines whether you bluff, stay poker faced or give the table a tell as to your hand. In single player it can be an ok break in the action, but I imagine online it might become a signal or tell itself as to the imbalance of your hand. Of course at that point, you could essentially play the mini-game to another level of deception, but it's still a tell to other players that should have been removed for multiplayer. I haven't found an option to remove it. Whether this is simply an aggravation or a game breaking impediment online I've yet to really test.
In closing...great ai and a great single player game of poker. Perhaps not perfect for everyone as it's not the fastest moving game and some could be more annoyed than not by the additions of the "rpg-lite" mode, but there are plenty of options to suit most players. I'm hoping the mini-game doesn't kill the multiplayer as it doesn't the single in the least, but I've been looking for a competent computer to play against for some time. This game makes me feel like I'm improving my poker skills and despite its faults...that praise is long overdue in the genre.
First of all...you can play Texas Hold 'Em. In fact there is a multitude of poker games (14 I think) to choose from, including all the popular and niche variations you're likely to run into in the casino or playing among your friends. Why companies release a card game at this point that doesn't include this game I'll never know since it's obviously the most popular variation going and for good reason since in my opinion it does get pretty boring playing old crap hands of 5 or 7 unless it's for a little variety which this game certainly has.
Second (and of far more importance) it has GOOD SINGLE PLAYER AI, which has been like the holy grail of non-pc poker games. It even bests Hoyle which while decent, had too many of the cardboard variety of players who stuck to even the dumbest of tendencies in a way that was rotely mechanical and not even represenative of a bad poker player so much as boring programming. This game is filled with unique players that not only play with a particular style, but do so in a much more human manner. They have variation without mechanical faults that are easy to exploit and running away with a game really seems to demand you bring your A game to the table. It's a real blessing so far and I can't think of another recent poker release that comes close.
Another reason this game is so interesting is that it finally approaches the creation of a Poker Player RPG. Completely? Not by any means. But if you want a good game of poker that is worth investing in for more than a few minutes at a time they've attempted to add some more meat to the package. While there are single game modes, small to large tournaments, etc. that you can set up to play, there is also a fairly compelling career mode. From there you create a character basically living in his basement poker parlor to a high roller participating in high stakes tournaments around the world. Along the way you can acquire furnishings, customizations, etc. that can be bought and sold (as the situation requires) from the local pawn shop. There is a lot of game variety in this mode and you will have to beat certain locations with a particular profit margin to proceed in world map.
A few interesting facets of gameplay...in career mode you can boost your stats by impressive tournament wins. While none of these attributes effectively let you cheat the game, they will give you little bonuses...perhaps a mathmatical breakdown of opening hand strength in hold em, etc. They can be quite useful without breaking the skill involved and add a bit of carrot to the career besides building the bankroll and opening venues. Also, even the PSP game features online play and your career is effected by your play online. You have the ability to save 5 separate players in memory to use how you see fit.
One controversial addition...when playing a particularly strong or weak hand the game will occasionally ask you to play a small timing based minigame that determines whether you bluff, stay poker faced or give the table a tell as to your hand. In single player it can be an ok break in the action, but I imagine online it might become a signal or tell itself as to the imbalance of your hand. Of course at that point, you could essentially play the mini-game to another level of deception, but it's still a tell to other players that should have been removed for multiplayer. I haven't found an option to remove it. Whether this is simply an aggravation or a game breaking impediment online I've yet to really test.
In closing...great ai and a great single player game of poker. Perhaps not perfect for everyone as it's not the fastest moving game and some could be more annoyed than not by the additions of the "rpg-lite" mode, but there are plenty of options to suit most players. I'm hoping the mini-game doesn't kill the multiplayer as it doesn't the single in the least, but I've been looking for a competent computer to play against for some time. This game makes me feel like I'm improving my poker skills and despite its faults...that praise is long overdue in the genre.
