PARTY POKER Independent
Party Poker was one of the first major online poker rooms and is part of the trusted Party Gaming family – one of the world’s leading online gaming companies since 1997.
The software at Party Poker is excellent. The lobby area is clean and easy to use, although if we’re honest, it can be a bit unstable from time to time. But the table software is great, with multiple betting options and custom avatars (photo upload). To sum it up – the software at Party Poker is super quick and the game play is superb.
While players in the USA can’t play at Party Poker anymore, there is still great value to be had for non-Americans. They have a long standing reputation of having some of the worst poker players, and even subtly advertise this as fact on their website. If you’re a good poker player then you’ll love the action at Party Poker, and there are serious profits to be made. Sure, there are probably fewer fish than the days when they accepted U.S. players, but there really is still a huge amount of soft games to be found.
In addition to a good choice of cash games, they’re perhaps best known for their excellent multi-table tournaments. And with their excellent ongoing promotions and rewarding VIP club, you’ll really enjoy playing at Party Poker. Highly recommended!
More info about this great bonus offer
SCORE SUMMARY
PRO’S & CON’S
Established & reputable
Excellent poker software
Very soft competition
Ongoing promotions
Regular reload bonuses
Closed to U.S. Players
PARTY POKER REVIEW:
Software & Features
The software at Party Poker is great; starting with the lobby, which is easy to navigate and find the right game, especially if you use the quick search feature.
As for the table software, you can choose from the classic Party Poker table or their “ergonomic and modern” version (their words). The newer table design also allows you to upload your own player image to Party Poker and use it as your avatar. Although many of the players at Party Poker are still using generic images, but I’m sure there will be more using their own image as people start to switch to the new table design.
More importantly – the Party Poker software is very speedy. While the software can be quite memory intensive, which can affect the lobby area, the game play is so fast. It’s not uncommon to see over 80 hands per hour on full 10 handed ring games. This is a huge difference when you consider that under the same conditions, some online poker rooms run at around 60 hands per hour. There’s no hanging around after each hand is complete and the software moves swiftly onto the next hand, meaning a much more enjoyable experience.
The software at Party Poker is definitely one of the best, if not the best. It’s not really a surprise that Party Poker has excellent software, seeing as they’ve been in the business since 1997 – they’ve had plenty of time (and money) to develop a winning formula.
Join the Party and see for yourself: Play at Party Poker
Player Traffic / Ease of Competition
Before the US anti-gaming legislation back in 2006, Party Poker was the world’s most popular online poker room. Unlike their major competitors Poker Stars and Full Tilt, they had little option other than to withdraw from the US market, primarily because Party Gaming is a publicly listed company (on the London Stock Exchange). This was obviously a massive blow to Party Poker since a large amount of their regulars were forced to jump ship and find a new home. Alas, Party Poker is no longer the most popular online poker room in terms of player traffic. However, they still have a lot of players and are still a high traffic site with a strong player base in Canada and across Europe.
Party Poker has a long standing reputation as being the home of some of the worst players in the history of online poker. Many would say that Party Poker is a complete fish magnet. They even boast about this on their website, and I quote “an independent opinion poll of poker players shows it’s easier to win at Party Poker than at any other online poker room”. Is this true? Well I don’t think there are as many fish as when they accepted U.S. players, but there are certainly a lot of bad players remaining. If you pick the right games and play smart, then you should do well at Party Poker.
Find the fish: Sign up to Party Poker
Cash Game Action
Party Poker has a wide range of cash games to choose from. And with the excellent lobby area, finding a game is a piece of cake. Here’s a rundown of what’s on offer and what you might expect to find:
No-Limit Hold’em ($0.02/$0.04 to $25/$50): As you’d expect, there is lots of action at all levels up to $5/$10, and half a dozen full tables at the maximum of $25/$50 during peak hours. You’ll find that 6 handed games are by far the most popular with the higher stake games. You won’t be bored at Party Poker if you’re a no limit hold’em fan.
Limit Hold’em ($0.05/$0.10 to $250/$500): You’ll find lots of limit hold’em action at Party Poker, all the way up to $15/$30. Beyond this you’ll also find some interest in the $20/$40 limits, and occasionally higher during peak hours.
Pot Limit Hold’em ($0.10/$0.25 to $10/$20): There is very little action on the pot limit tables, even during peak hours. If you’re lucky you might find a few games but there never seems to be any games running above $0.25/$0.50.
Limit Omaha, and Hi-Lo ($0.50/$1 to $30/$60): There’s not much to be found here, other than maybe half a dozen at the $0.50/$1 limits.
Pot Limit Omaha, and Hi-Lo ($0.10/$0.25 to $10/$20): This is much more popular with lots of low to medium limits, and even the odd game at $5/$10 and above. This should keep pot limit Omaha fans occupied.
7 Card Stud, and Hi-Lo: Traffic at these tables is low, and you might find half a dozen tables at $0.50/$1, including a few of the Hi-Lo variation. During peak hours you might find the occasional game above this, but don’t expect much action.
If you play cash at Party Poker then one of the first things you’ll notice is the jackpot tables. Party Poker runs a special progressive bad beat jackpot, with a massive prize pool. If you play on a jackpot cash table and get four of a kind (8’s or better) cracked by a better hand, then you’ll win the jackpot. Actually you get 50%, the winner of the hand gets 25%, and the other players on the table share the remaining 25%. The only downside is that $0.50c is taken from each raked hand to contribute to the jackpot. But you can choose from regular tables or a jackpot tables – I guess it depends if you’re feeling lucky (or unlucky)!.
Choose your game: Sign up to Party Poker
Multi-Table Tourneys (MTTs)
Party Poker is well known for providing some of the biggest and best multi table tournaments in the online poker world. They have a great selection of scheduled tournaments, and cater for all budgets. Beginners will be pleased to know that Party Poker run a whole host of freerolls as well as a large number of low buy-in tournaments from as little as $1. These attract huge numbers, providing big rewards for such little risk.
You’ll find the usual mix of regular, speed, and rebuy tournaments, many with big guarantees. The regular $6, $11 and $22 tournaments seem the most popular, but they also have a selection of scheduled tournaments with buy-ins up to $500, which should suit those poker players with slightly bigger bankrolls. Plus there’s nearly always a big event to play for such as their latest “King of the Table” tournament, which had a whopping $2m guaranteed prize pool. You’ll also see regular promotions for big live events, with plenty of low buy-in satellites where you can win your seat.
One of the most exciting tournaments at Party Poker is the “shootouts”. The Party Poker shootout tournaments run daily from $6 up to $33, and they’re really fun as the tournament play tends to be faster and more importantly, more players get paid.
Grab your seat today: Sign up to Party Poker
Sit & Go (SNG) Selection
You’ll find plenty of Sit &Go tournaments at Party Poker, with games starting from as little as $1. The most popular tend to be the $6 and $11 games, but the $22 level also attracts a lot of players. There are certainly fewer games above $55 than you’d find at Poker Stars or Full Tilt Poker, but there’s nearly always some games available at the higher end, particularly during peak hours.
The Party Poker “Steps” tournaments offer an interesting twist on the standard sit & go format. This format contains 6 steps, which have buy-ins of $3, $10, $30, $70, $170, $500. You can start where you want and pay the buy-in, and the top 2 from each game can progress to the next step, with 3rd and 4th getting the opportunity to repeat the same step (i.e. get their money back). Even 5th to 7th get some back, pushing them down 2 steps, unless of course they started at the $3 level. These tournaments are really good fun, and you can choose to just take the cash instead, rather than work your way up through the levels.
Get in on the SNG action: Join Party Poker Today
Bonuses / Promotion
The Party Poker sign up / first time deposit bonus is a very generous 100% up to $500 – just follow our links (see bottom of page) and use the bonus code POKEROLOGY when prompted. You don’t get the bonus immediately, but you didn’t expect that, right? You have to earn the deposit, but unlike a lot of other online poker rooms with similar bonuses, this one is achievable. To clear the bonus you need to earn five times the amount you deposited in Party Points within 90 days. So if you deposited $50 then you need to earn 250 Party Points to get your full $50 bonus. If you deposit the maximum $500, then you need to earn 2,500 Party Points for the $500 bonus.
How do you earn Party Points? You earn them from the raked hands in real money cash games or from tournaments. For tournaments you get 2 points for every $1 in tournament fees, and for cash games it varies depending on the limits you play. If you play at $0.50c/$1 then you’ll earn 3.5 points for every 20 raked hands. If you play below these limits then it might be best not to go for the full $500 bonus, as you might find it tough. But you should know that this isn’t an all or nothing bonus, as it’s released in 5 stages. To be honest, it’s a very good bonus and you won’t find many better sign up bonuses than Party Poker’s.
In addition to the generous sign up bonus, new players also have the chance to enter the many freerolls and bankroll builder tournaments. Party Poker hosts over $100k worth of free to enter tournaments each month, including the weekly $1,500 beginners’ freeroll. This represents excellent value and it’s a great reason to sign up to Party Poker and make a first time deposit. There are a whole host of other promotions on offer at Party Poker, and they do a really good job of keeping you informed. As soon as you login, you can clearly see what promotions you’re eligible for, and check your inbox for new messages.
If you play regularly at Party Poker then you’ll be automatically entered into their in-house loyalty program. They have developed a system that combines the standard Party Points, which are then multiplied depending upon your loyalty points and whether you hit your weekly goal, which are then turned into reward points. You can use reward points to enter tournaments and even convert into cash.
Claim your $500 sign up bonus: Sign up to Party Poker
Customer Service
Unlike many online poker rooms, Party Poker offer telephone support. Their staff are well trained and seem to know what they’re talking about. Of course you can also get support via email, and it’s usually a good service.
The deposit and withdrawal methods at Party Poker are very good. Remember, Party Poker have been in this industry for a number of years now, so they know how to handle the key issues. In short, they offer excellent customer service.
Party Poker Sign Up Instructions
Follow these 3 simple steps to sign-up to Party Poker and claim your 100% first time deposit bonus of up to $500.
STEP #1 – DOWNLOAD THE SOFTWARE
To download and sign up for our offer on Party Poker, click on the link below of use this link. It will take you to the Party Poker website.
Click on the “Download” link from the Party Poker website and follow the instructions to download and install the software.
STEP #2 – CREATE AN ACCOUNT
Once you have installed the Party Poker software you’ll be asked to create an account and register your details. When prompted enter POKEROLOGY as the bonus code.
STEP #3 – LET US KNOW YOU SIGNED UP
This form is optional but it’s helpful for us to know that you signed up via Pokerology.com and we may also have some special offers you’d like to here about in future (you can of course opt-out).
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