Dracula Poker, a skin on Playtech’s iPoker network that catered primarily to Romanian and Hungarian players, has abruptly slammed shut its coffin lid and redirected its traffic to fellow iPoker skin Titan Poker. Attempts to access Dracula Poker produce only an invitation to join Titan. No explanation has been provided for the shutdown, although unconfirmed rumors claim Playtech bigwig Teddy Sagi was spotted roaming the Transylvanian countryside clutching a stake and mallet. Titan has also absorbed iPoker skin Celeb Poker, which issued a note to affiliates (h/t to OnlinePokerReport.com) saying the merger was the result of iPoker’s imminent division of its network into two separate liquidity pools. Celeb apparently recognized that come Sept. 1 they’d be relegated to the lesser ‘grinders/net withdrawers’ pool, and thus wouldn’t have access to certain tables enjoyed by the ‘net depositing’ pool, leaving Celeb no choice but to accept Titan’s ‘come with me if you want to live’ invitation.
Invitation-only sportsbook Heritage Sports has decided to launch an invite-only online poker room. SportsBookReview broke the news last week that the VIP room will operate on the Winning Poker Network – formerly known as Yatahay – which features sportsbooks such as BetCRIS, Bookmaker and 5Dimes, plus poker outfits like Americas Cardroom and True Poker. Heritage provided a safe landing for US sports bettors when sportsbooks BetJamaica and TheGreek decided to exit the US market in July 2011.
PKR, the UK poker room that believes two-dimensions are for dinosaurs, has added a “How to Play” video series to its Raise Your Game tutorial section. The knowledge-for-noobs offering includes basics on the various poker hands, the best hands to play, and big mistakes you’re likely making. Sadly, there’s no video that details the legend of how PKR lost its vowels…
PokerStars, which recently acquired the assets of former rival operator Full Tilt Poker, is set to revive FTP’s popular ‘run it twice’ feature. (Credit where credit is due: the feature originally debuted on Merge Gaming back in 2008.) If you’re not aware, the feature is an option presented when two players go all-in before the river and, should they both agree, allows the rest of the action to play out twice. If each player wins one of the two hands, they split the pot. Room manager ‘PokerStars Stefan’ told poker forum 2+2 that players would be able to test a prototype of the feature later this month, and depending on how stable the prototype proves, it could move to the main software clients in due course.
Of course, if you play a particularly memorable hand (i.e. one that makes you look good), you’d love to be able to run that twice, thrice… in perpetuity. Media outfit Hall of Hands has introduced a free poker app that records your poker play hand by hand. If you identify a particular hand you’d like to immortalize, one click will transform the hand into a video – featuring “real life actors” and running commentary – that you can share via email or social media. Hall of Hands marketing VP Bat El says his company “expertly equips players with what they covet most – bragging rights.” Frankly, we’d have said ‘scads of someone else’s money’, but to each his own…
