No Limit Texas Hold'em Tournament Edition 2006
by Encore Software
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Video Game Reviews of No Limit Texas Hold'em Tournament Edition 2006
Customer Review: Good for playing against real people; horrible AI opponents.
Summary: 2 Stars
I very rarely review products, but this one needs it. I primarily got DD Poker to play against live opponents, at which the game is fairly good, if not a bit slow. I did want to practice against AI opponents as well, however, hoping to find some game theory implementation so that I could practice against statistically consistent players of different types. There is nothing consistent about the AI in this game.
The AI can often see the flop (and sometimes as far as the river) before it happens. According to the player type descriptions, a solid-tight AI player will not open with anything worse than A-Q or a big pair. After being a bit confused by some showdowns I was seeing, I turned on the cheat feature to see what these players were playing before the flop (there is a checkbox for "Computer Cards Face Up"). The experience was very revealing.
A solid-tight AI player at my table was tight enough to fold pocket kings to a re-raise pre-flop. That same player took 7-2 off-suit and not only called a re-raise but came over the top all in. The flop came 7-7-2. Curious? I was too, so I kept playing and kept watching. Much of the time, it was obvious that the AI had prior knowledge of the table before the cards came down. A tight player would keep calling and betting pocket 2's on a dangerous board and then a 2 would hit the river. That same player would fold an overpair to a half-pot bet on a safe flop. I could go on and on, but you get the idea.
In addition, I am somewhat sure that the AI could, at least occasionally, see my pocket cards. I was at a table with 2 maniacs who were raising and re-raising every hand for 42 straight hands, with an average of 4 people going to the flop on each hand. I got pocket aces in the big blind, and they walked me. Now, I suppose that is statistically possible, but it happened three times at that same table (2 pairs of aces and 1 pair of kings), each time when I was in position after the maniacs. In every case but those three hands, the blind was at least raised. While this could be a statistical anomaly, it is strange enough to be worth mentioning.
It is obvious that the team who wrote the AI was both lazy and incompetent. I am a computer programmer and a poker player, and I could easily have done a better job than this. They had their computer players cheat because they couldn't figure out how to have them play after the flop or learn another player's betting patterns. They also have no understanding of actual poker play, as evidenced by the "high-skill" players who will call their pocket 5's all-in when someone moves on a board of 10-Q-A suited. This has to be the most disgraceful attempt at poker AI we have ever seen. My wife (herself an excellent poker player who also bought a copy of this game) pointed out that the AI in the Vista Hold 'Em game is superior to that of DD Poker. They should be ashamed.
I am prepared to back up my review with action. Because of this game, I have decided to produce a poker game to compete directly with this one. It will offer most of the same functionality, and the AI will be usable, configurable, and intelligent. I will have it available for sale on Amazon within six months, and I will make the price comparable to the price of DD Poker. I don't care if you buy it, I just want a game to use among friends, and I also want to make sure people have the option to avoid DD Poker.
Customer Review: Quick! Order this if you play Texas Holdem.
Summary: 5 Stars
I can't believe I only paid $5.87 for this winner.
This is a great learning and practice tool for any Texas Hold'em Player.
Lots of options to set. Love the sound of the cards dealing.
Some of the info presented during play: Clock,Pot Odds,Hand Strength,Rank at Tables and your playing style.
Customer Review: best online play
Summary: 5 Stars
I have been playing DD poker live online for a few months now and I can say that the quality and skill level of the DD players is second to none.Definately for the player who is serious about their game.All in all the time just dosn't cut it here.The players host the games and have the ability to ban abusive players.I like that.open and invite only games can be hosted or played,The forums at DD are super.Easy to get involved.Bottom line is the quality of play,excellent options,good practice tourneys and very few poker idiots messing up the games,they dont last long at DD.If you dont care to improve your game,probably not for you.Great group of skilled and helpful players though.Customer Review: Good in some ways but not in others
Summary: 4 Stars
I would like to start by saying this game truly deserves 3.5 stars,
not 3 and not 4.
I liked the original version, DD Tournament No Limit Hold Em
and this new version of the game is in some ways better.
The graphics are sharper,it has a lot of helpful tools for weaker players and even lets you pick which style your opponents will play.
The real problem is there is nothing impressive at all about the AI. A lot of the players make totally awful decisions preflop
and then play the most transparent poker imaginable after the
flop. Much of the time, the weak A.I. will allow itself to call all the way post flop with only King high! This is of course an easy way to win money. The idea of calling a re-raise from a tight player with A.J. offsuit seems bad, but only until a cpu opponent reraises with 52! There is no rhyme or reason to much of the AI betting; Continuation bets and etc, do not exist in this game. If the AI were a bit better, this game would perhaps be able to get 5 stars.
Customer Review: Mixed Feelings
Summary: 2 Stars
I bought this title because it didn't cost as much as some of the other options and because I didn't figure Phil Gordon would endorse anything that wasn't useful.
The poker calculator and tournament timer are great features, although the calculator is painfully slow compared to pokerstove, which is free. The home game I play in uses the tournament timer, although that's all the use I personally have for it at present.
I have not tried playing online through this program, since I play online all the time anyway, so I am not evaluating that feature.
However, the much-vaunted "AI" opponents are just not very good, and one could form some really bad habits by practicing against them. In particular, they check and call too much, and lay down to any bet or raise any time the flop misses them, so you can pile up chips with impunity, and you know as soon as they even call a raise that they have a hand and you can let that one go. You encounter a few players like this in real tournaments, but they usually aren't the ones with lots of chips, and like bank robber Willie Sutton, you need to go where the chips are.
The graphics are mildly irritating, and if the colors are customizable, I didn't find those options.
This might be OK for a beginner to use for a while, but if you're even close to becoming a strong player, I wouldn't expect too much help here.