Poker

Review

Apart from being one of leading online poker rooms with stable player base outside the US, Party Poker seems to do a good job attracting first-time players. These players are generally very loose, which means the fish-quotient is high…and the action is still pretty hot! Party Poker also has big-named poker spokesmen including the very hot Shana Hiatt, and voices of TV poker Mike Sexton and Vince Van Patten.

Game Action

Apart from the most common games and varying stakes levels, Party Poker offers ‘Beginner’ tables at the micro stakes with ranges for No Limit and Limit Texas Hold’em. These stakes start at $0.02/$0.04 and cap out at $1/$2. They are of course very popular with the newbie Hold’em player. As players gain confidence in their abilities, it is only natural for them to move up in stakes.

The Omaha action at Party Poker is improving due to the fact that they are concentrating their marketing on European players. For Pot Limit Omaha, the table starts at $0.10 and cap out at $10/$20. The action here is stronger than at the regular Omaha tables, however still nothing to write home about.

The Multi-Table tournament line up is extensive. At Party Poker, they offer Regular, Re-buy, Guaranteed, and Speed Re-buy in all kinds of combinations and buy-ins and prize pools. Any player is sure to find a game that they are interested in at just about any time of day

Rakes are average (about 5% or better) though for low-limit pots, they can be as high as 10%. As for bonuses, at the time of this writing Party Poker has a 100% up to $500 sign-up bonus.

Software and Features

While the Party Poker software is nothing special, it is very easy to use and understand. The lobby filter makes it easy to navigate through and players can find the games the are looking for with minimal effort. The ability to sort the columns again added to the overall ease of game navigation.

For players who like to multi-table, Party Poker allows you to play up to twelve tables at once! Players can also adjust the size of the poker room which again is a nice feature for players who are multi-tabling or multi-tasking.

The poker rooms themselves are clean and uncluttered. The cartoon avatars are a bit silly but are not too distracting and you do have the option to turn them off as well. The colors of the room are easy on the eyes and the table cards are big, clear and easy to read. The dealer speed is good and the games seem to move along with out glitches. From that respect, the software is very stable and seldom are there disconnects or application ‘freezes’.

Party Poker offers a loyalty program as well, called the Player’s Club. Players earn points for real money play and can use those points as currency for special tournament buy-ins, cash or gift certificates. The points are about average difficulty to earn.

Behind the Scenes

Party Poker offers professional customer service via 24-hour email and phone support. They do have a reputation of being slower that average in e-mail responses but they are usually accurate and helpful.
As far as security goes, Party Poker’s is top-notch, fully regulated and controlled. They use 128-bit encryption for the “highest level of privacy and confidentiality.” According to their website, their security is so good it has made them a "globally respected benchmark of online poker room operations since 2000."

review credit: pokersource.com