Too Much Information:

Welcome to Holdem 3D, a 3-dimensional game simulation of Texas Holdem poker. If you don't know the rules to Texas Holdem, we'll fill you in. If you do, this game is probably the most natural simulation you'll find. Best of all, it's only a game, and we're not associated with any casino or gambling sites. This means we don't hassle you about gambling real money, plant cookies all over your system, create annoying pop-ups, send come-on emails, or do any of the other harrassing things they do - just enjoy the game. If you like it, you can license it very affordably, and we still won't do any of those things!

There are several variations on the general rules of Texas Holdem poker, to fit different circumstances. We allow some of these variations so you can practice (or just play) a multitude of situations.

Hand rankings: In Holdem, as in most poker games, the objective is to build the best 5-card hand. The poker hands, ranked from highest to lowest values follow:

Royal Flush - 10, J, Q, K, A, all of the same suit (like Hearts).

Straight Flush - 5 cards in numerical sequence (like 6, 7, 8, 9, 10), all of the same suit. Ace can be high or low.

Four of a Kind - Four cards of the same value (like Q, Q, Q, Q).

Full House - Three cards of the same value, and a pair of cards with another value (like 3, 3, 3, K, K).

Flush - 5 cards of the same suit (like all Spades).

Straight - 5 cards in numerical sequence (like A, 2, 3, 4, 5).

Three of a Kind - Three cards of the same value (like 8, 8, 8)

Two Pair - A pair of cards of the same value and a different pair of cards of the same value (like K, K, 7, 7)

One Pair - A pair of cards of the same value (like 5, 5)

High Card - Your hand's highest card value (like in 2, 6, 7, 8, K, the King is your highest card). Ace counts as high.

Betting rounds: Holdem has several rounds of betting. In each round, players can bet on the outcome of the game. During any betting round, you may have several choices. If another player has placed a bet, you may call his bet (by matching his bet with an equal bet of your own), or raise it (by betting more than he bet). If no other player has placed a bet before you, you have the options of checking (betting nothing, but staying in the hand), or opening (betting an amount you decide, not based on another player's bet). If you're not used to playing poker, Holdem 3D can help you get used to when you may do each. Illegal bets cannot be placed. For example, if another player has placed a bet that you have not matched, you cannot check. You must either call or raise his bet.

How hands are built (playing the game): Every player must have at least the minimum bet. In Holdem 3D, this amount is equal to the big blind. A "dealer button" is placed in front of the player that would be dealing if the players were actually taking turns dealing the cards. The dealer has a slight advantage, in that he can watch what all the other players do before deciding what he wants to do.

Small blind: The player to the left of the dealer is known as the small blind. The small blind must bet half of the minimum bet before the cards are dealt (we start the small blind at $5). Every time a player leaves the game, the small blind increases.

Big blind: The player to the left of the small blind is known as the big blind. The big blind must bet the full minimum bet before the cards are dealt (we start the big blind at $10). Any other player will have to match the big blind bet to stay in the hand. Every time a player leaves the game, the big blind increases.

Blind values: The values of the blinds are determined by the number of active players. At the beginning of the game with 8 players, the small/big blinds are $5/$10 respectively. For each player that drops out, the blinds increase. The other levels are: $10/$20, $25/$50, $50/$100, $100/$200, $250/$500, $500/$1000. These increases take place to keep the excitement in the game. For example, when only 2 players remain, they have up to $8000 worth of chips between them. At this level, you wouldn't want to see mere $5 and $10 bets, unless you want to play the same game for days on end.

The deal: After the blinds are placed, each player is dealt 2 cards face-down. In Holdem 3D, you can see your own cards as face-up, but nobody else sees them. These are the players' hole cards, or pocket cards. There is then a round of betting, based solely on the hole cards.

The flop: After the initial betting round is complete, the house deals 3 community cards (house cards), known as the flop. All players consider the house cards as their own. The objective is to build the highest ranked hand based on the combination of your hole cards and the house cards. For example, if your hole cards are A, 10 and the house cards are 3, A, Q, (not of the same suit), your highest ranked hand is a pair of Aces. After the flop, there is another round of betting, based on any combination of your hole cards and the house cards.

The turn: After the flop betting round is complete, the house deals 1 more house card, known as the turn, or 4th Street. Like the flop, all players consider the turn card as one of their own cards. After the turn, there is another round of betting, based on any combination of your hole cards and the house cards.

The river: After the turn betting round is complete, the house deals 1 more house card, known as the river, or 5th Street. Like the flop and turn cards, all players consider the river card as one of their own cards. After the river, there is a final round of betting, based on any combination of your hole cards and the house cards.

The show: Following the river betting round, all remaining players must show their cards. The pot is won by the player (or players) with the highest ranked hand(s). The community cards increase the likelihood of more than one player having the best hand, so the pot may be split between multiple players (with identical flushes, straights, or even full houses, etc).

All-in: If a player bets all of his chips, he is considered "All-in". This creates a side-pot, as he is not able to match any raises beyond this bet. The side-pot created can be won by other players, but not this All-in player - he can only compete for the main pot and any earlier created side-pot.

Side-pots: Side-pots are created when a player goes All-in. A side-pot receives bets following an all-in. On the table, it just looks like one big pot of chips, but the side pots are managed internally. It is possible for more than one side-pot to exist. It is also possible for a player to over-bet a side pot. For example, player 1 bets 500, player 2 goes all-in with 300, unable to match player 1's bet. The extra 200 from player one goes into a side-pot. If no other player matches player 1's bet, the 200 in the side-pot is an over-bet, and will be repaid to player 1 as if he "won" it, regardless of his cards. Over-bets are handled this way because we don't know it's an over-bet until all other players decline to call the bet.

No-limit vs limit poker: Tournament and high-dollar games usually don't limit betting amounts, but a lot of smaller games do. When there are no betting limits, it's called no-limit. When there are limits, they're usually based on the values of the blinds. We let you play both, limit and no-limit. When limits are used, the lowest raise possible is equal to the big blind, and the highest raise is equal to twice the big blind.

Bet limits: In a limit game, we set the minimum bet to equal the big blind, and the maximum bet to twice the big blind. These limits, are of course not in place in a no-limit game.

Raise limits: Going around the table, each player can call or raise another player's bet. It is usual to limit the number of raises allowed per betting round, but the number of raises allowed varies from one house to the next. Because of this, we let you set the raise limit. The most usual raise limit is probably 3, so that's our default. You can set it to anything from 1 to 10!

Kickers: Some Holdem games (as seen on TV) allow an additional hand ranking mechanism called a kicker. Basically, it's your pocket hand's high card. For example, if you and another player both have a pair of Queens, and his high card is a Ten, while your high card is a King, you have a King kicker (higher than his Ten). In those games, you'd win because of your kicker. We don't agree with the concept, and feel strongly that the pot should be split between the two best hands (both with a pair of Queens), so we don't recognize kickers as part of the game.

Chip values: Each player is given $1,000 in chips at the start of the game. The chip values are as follows:

White: $1

Red: $5

Blue: $10

Green: $25

Black: $100

You only need to specify the dollar amount of your bets. The game figures out the chips, and makes change whenever needed.

Player deaths: We don't actually kill the players who run out of chips, we just like the special effects. Any player with too few chips to match the big blind before a hand starts is considered dead. For example, if the big blind is $20 during a hand, and player 5 finishes the hand with $15 worth of chips, he's considered dead after that hand. In another $20 big blind example, player 3 with $30 would be considered dead after the hand if that hand knocked out another player, because the next hand's big blind is increased to $50.

The Players: We put you at the table with 7 computer-based players. We've given them names, but you can easily change these names to suit your preference in the Settings screen.

Graphics: The 3D display looks different from one system to the next. This is because each video display card manufacturer implements DirectX differently. On some systems with cheaper display cards, it doesn't look very good, and on other systems, it looks incredibly good. If you want to see the best your system can show the graphics, check out the video display card section of our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ), accessible through the Holdem 3D window.

Web Updates: Like any other software, Holdem 3D receives occasional changes to fix bugs and add new features. We make these changes available automatically. We don't think it makes sense for you to have to check our website to see what's available, so Holdem 3D does this whenever you start it up. If there are any updates available, Holdem 3D tells you and asks whether you want to update your copy. If so, it makes a backup of your Holdem 3D installation, and performs the update(s). You get the new features and bug fixes without having to go find them.

The Developers: Holdem 3D is 100% made in the USA. We're not getting rich, but we do believe in using local talent whenever possible. We hope you agree and will help us make a living by suggesting friends buy their own copies of Holdem 3D.

Demo vs License: The demo does not expire. You can run it as many times as you like, and the game will be different each time. However, the demo only runs 10 hands, and doesn't allow no-limit games. Once you license Holdem 3D, these limitations disappear, as do our license advertising. If you're like us, you'll probably prefer the no-limit games over limit games.

System Requirements: Holdem 3D is designed for this minimal system:

Pentium 4, 2 GHz Clock (or newer)

512 MB of Memory

DirectX version 9 Video Card (version 8 works, but not as well)

Windows NT, 2000, or XP (we haven't tried it on a 98 system)

We've tested Holdem 3D on systems with lower than the specifications above, and it does run, but not as enjoyably. A DirectX version 8 or 9 video card is an absolute must. Everything else will simply affect your game experience.

We have no connection to casinos or gambing sites...
Just have fun!!!