PokerStars Launches Not One but Two New Poker Variants!

PokerStars Launches Not One but Two New Poker Variants! November 21, 2019 November 21, 2019 Carolyn J Dawson https://www.poker-online.com/author/carolyn
Posted on  Nov 21, 2019 | Updated on  Nov 21, 2019 by Carolyn J Dawson

pokerstars tempestThe PokerStars platform is always looking for new and exciting ways to tantalise its players and fans, so it’s little wonder that it has recently come up with yet another enticing addition to its poker room. And PokerStars isn’t one to do things by halves, which is why it has launched not only one new poker variant, but two!

Granted, these new poker variants will only be available at the platform for a limited amount of time, but it’s likely that they will draw in poker fans new and old alike. The games, titled as Deep Water Hold’em and Tempest Hold’em, come as just two of the new innovations that the platform has chosen to add to its poker room within the last two years. With their introduction, the long-standing Power Up hybrid that merges poker with eSports, has been removed from the main lobby.

Speaking of their introduction to the PokerStars platform, a spokesperson for the brand said that their aim is to “satisfy those who may be hungry for a deep strategic challenge”, whilst also catering to those players who want something that’s quite simple to access, too.

Both games are being trialled in real money versions in the United Kingdom, whilst also being accessible in free play mode at the .net version of the client. It is thought that Tempest and Deep Water will become available for other marks to access too, including the global sites. Tempest will be accessible by fewer markets than Deep Water, though.

What Do the Games Provide to Players?

There are some similarities between both new games, such as the fact that they’re both played as 6-max No Limit Hold’em variations of poker. However, they also have certain features which PokerStars says have never been seen before. These features include something known as the Giant Blind, which is an extra blind that is posted by the player Under the Gun, acting as the third blind in the game. It is this one that operates as a blind that is twice the size of the big blind.

To add to this, every player at the tables is required to post an ante, with the size of this increasing through every proceeding hand until a showdown occurs.

Despite their similarities as far as gameplay is concerned, Tempest Hold’em offers a preflop-only push or fold shallow stack game format for players to involve themselves with. In this respect, players only have two options preflop, which are to go all-in or fold. Call and check buttons are removed.

Furthermore, every pot has a cap to it in Tempest Hold’em, meaning that the maximum that a player is able to wager per hand is 10 Giant Blinds. This means that even if stack sizes grow, there isn’t any kind of deep stack strategy to use. Players are also able to buy-in for between five and 10 Giant Blinds.

Tempest therefore marks the first ultra-simplified cash game from PokerStars, with every hand being decided preflop. The only other platforms that are known to offer something similar are 888Poker and the GGPoker Network.

Carolyn J Dawson is a professional freelance poker writer. She specialises writing content about poker/ bingo / blackjack/ etc. as well as breaking poker news. Carolyn has been freelancing for us over a number of years and writes high quality articles. Visit her google + page here