The number and type of games that can be found in an internet casino can seem as varied as the number of online gambling sites themselves. While poker and blackjack probably are the most popular and recognized, they certainly are not the only ones. Listed below are some of the most popular games and their variations.

Probably the best known gambling game featured on internet gambling sites is poker. There are many variations of the game, each with its own peculiarities, rules, and wild cards.

In the most basic form of poker, each player is dealt five cards. Once bets are made, players who do not quit, or “fold,” get to discard unwanted cards, usually limited to three or four, and get replacements. There is another round of betting and the player with the best hand wins, based on combinations of suit and number.

The most common form of poker in tournaments, both in person and online, is called Texas Hold ‘Em. In that variation, each player is dealt two cards face down, with four cards face up that are community cards every player can use. There is betting after the two “hole” cards are dealt and after each of the community cards.

Let It Ride Poker is a new game introduced in 1993; players do not play against the dealer or each other. Bets are placed on the possible hands dealt to each player, with higher payouts for greater odds. Players are dealt three cards each, and the remaining two cards are community cards, that every player uses to complete the hand.

Caribbean Stud Poker also is a fairly new game in which players place an “ante” bet, a wager before any cards are dealt. After all bets are placed, each player gets five cards face down. The dealer gets four cards face down and one face up. Players also can place a $1 side bet prior to cards being dealt to participate in a progressive jackpot. The rest of the rules for this game get rather complicated and need to be studied in depth.

Pai Gow Poker is a combination of the ancient Chinese domino game Pai Gow and regular poker. The game is played with a standard deck of 52 cards, plus one joker. In some variations the joker is wild but in most cases can be used only as an ace or to complete a straight, flush, straight flush, or royal flush.

Blackjack is by far the most commonly played game in internet casinos, probably because of its simplicity. The object of the game is to reach 21 without going over, known as “busting,” which automatically loses. Players can ask for extra cards, or “hits,” up to five. Aces can count for one or 11, number cards are face value, and jacks, queens, and kings count 10 points. A player wins automatically if dealt an ace and a 10 or face card, called a “blackjack.” A player also wins automatically is dealt five cards without going over 21,

In internet casinos catering to American audiences, two other types of the game are played. One is called punto banco, a game for 12 to 14 players with relatively high betting ranges. The second is mini-baccarat, an adaptation of punto banco for six players and lower betting ranges. The basic rules are the same for both games. Bets are placed on which hand will be closest to nine, with an ace counting one point, number cards at face value and 10s, jacks, queens, kings counting zero.