For this critical play, I chose to play “247 Free Poker”, an online poker game geared towards novices with bot opponents and fake money. The site contains Texas Hold ‘Em,
and it is created by 247 Games LLC and can be accessed on computer or phone through their website.
This game puts people at risk for addiction by making what is already an addictive game even more accessible online. Poker is like many other probability games, but the perceived involvement of skill makes the user feel they have more agency over their decisions. By allowing the user a large degree of freedom, the randomness feels more controllable but ultimately still dictates a large portion of the game, which feeds into addictive behaviors.
Poker is a brilliantly designed game and has not failed to make people addicted practically since its inception. It blends skill and chance and a potential for outsized reward to create an engaging dynamic that keeps players returning for more, often believing that just one more hand may be their big break. This belief comes from the random chance of poker, where every hand can be a winner. But unfortunately, every hand can also be a loser. In addition, poker’s social nature and needing other players to be functional creates a fellowship aspect that keeps players competitive and returning, further increasing its addictive capabilities.
However, online poker brings this game to a whole new level and puts people even more at risk for addiction by making it completely frictionless and accessible. Some large barriers to getting addicted to poker used to include, but were not limited to, 1) laws in an individual’s state, 2) distance from a casino, and 3) lack of others to play with. However, with the inception of online poker, practically all of these issues are assuaged and the individual is allowed to now play anywhere, anytime. The laws can be bent and avoided with VPNs and other programs, the distance does not play a role online, and there are always others online to play because the whole world can engage with one another.
As discussed earlier, poker is much like other probability games, but one essential distinction is the element of skill that a player can exhibit to change their fate. By bluffing, folding early, or reading other players, the poker player can change their outcome in the game and perhaps win on practically any hand. This ability to take control over one’s destiny in the game no matter the hand you are dealt seemingly crushes the problem posed by randomness, and makes it seemingly less like gambling. And at some level in person, this is true: some of the best poker players can win with any hand, and it is played almost more like chess than slots. However, this is not true on an online platform because so many elements of the human experience are lost, and probability takes a much larger role online. Since you cannot see other players nor understand the dynamics of the table online, you have to rely much more on your cards than your bluffing abilities. While it is still very much possible to win even a bad hand online, there are many social elements of the game that are taken away when ported to the net.
Ultimately, poker has always been a contentious game and has been subject to many a ban over the years. Its controversial nature comes from its brilliant design, blending randomness with agency to create an experience that is social, competitive, and always feels winnable, even to a novice. There is a strong skill progression and very strong rewards, and as such it can get its hooks sunk into practically any competitive person. Online poker makes all of these aspects even stronger and plays into the randomness more, making an addictive game even more addictive by making it easier to play and easier to lose.
