yeah zoom hu or extremly tight KOTH (see micro gaming where theres actually a decent amount of HU going on)

There were plenty other suggestions to improve the HU lobby, to just remove HU without trying out any of these suggestions is inexcusable.

I've been reduced to an FTP rail bird these days but feel sorry for everyone for these changes. I guess I shouldn't put anything past FTP, but they clearly tried hard with this one and yet is is going to be terrible. I'm sure they will look at results after the change with rosy colored glasses for awhile but inevitably this is going to make their problems even worse.

I wonder if they realize that many of us made our first deposits on FTP because it was the site to play heads up games. That doesn't just mean for bumhunters or regs but new players as well. I'm sure those who don't play heads up will think this is good for them, but long term I'd guess it's good for no one and that includes FTP.

As for me the railbird, even on Stars I can watch the zoom tables. On FTP they won't even let you watch. Don't they realize a lot of new players like to first observe the games and watch the action in some capacity?

I think HU zoom is pretty bad and it's never going off on Stars but a heads up auto play lobby would be pretty good or just a 15 player cap or something at a stake (I think extreme caps will just be terrible for new players). I just don't think zoom heads up is a good form of poker since most people enjoying heads up like the personal nature of playing one person and developing reads and adjusting.

Sorry to you all.

Like I said, it wasn't a decision we reached lightly. All of the suggestions were discussed. Lots of ideas that weren't suggested were discussed. We had a full specification all written up for the direction we wanted to take HU. The problem was that nothing changed the fact that the more new players play HU, the less likely they are to continue playing. If we wanted to be serious about trying to fix a broken poker economy, we had to find all of the biggest issues and either really solve them, or remove them.

For HU, we came to the conclusion that we couldn't actually solve the underlying issue, so we removed it. For sure it's not going to be a super popular decision, and it's absolutely possible we've made a mistake, but for now it's the decision we feel has the best chance of helping to turn around some of the biggest problems we face and return to growing the site.

So are you saying that if they play hu in their 1st month they're much less likely to return?

I really suggest a koth like on stars, would be fair for everyone. I know some recreational/semi serious players who were always only playing hu.

this is not good for anyone.

If they play heads up in their first month, have you considered that they deposited to play heads up? That it is the game they wanted to play and didn't just magically bump into it? You aren't going to be a growing site if you remove a game that many new players want to play. A lower return rate for future months is a lot better than having that same player go somewhere else to play. Your offerings are what entice new players. The lobby now is not very enticing. It isn't as simple as HU causes a lot of negative problems so let's remove it. There are harder to quantify overall benefits to offering what new players want to play.

The way to grow a site is to get more new players and the changes made do not really achieve this end. They aren't even good changes for the regs that want to battle. I can't even figure out why you've removed the option to play 2 and 3 handed at a 6m table. So many changes that are just bad for all but for the desire to grow, this is a step in the wrong direction.

Probably good changes. Full tilt might be the most well known of the sites that are taking a proactive stance to protecting game quality.

please put filter to the shallow stack tables. its an insult at better places!

Headsup should probably never have been offered on any site imo. Although at Nosebleeds it did serve as a good marketing tool with some of the high profile matches.

paint it anyway you like but for players looking to make money this is a terrible update... Also I'm really looking forward to the news about the rewards program. Will the top 3 players on the LB's still be rewarded as they are now? will it still be possible to get over 60% rb if you play enough?? I better not lose my my rb %.

I'm converting my ftps to cash right now before I get ripped off

Yes, emphasis on the ''much less''.

These changes aren't directed at attracting new players per se, this is about creating an environment they will get a better experience from. The changes that will attract and retain the new players are yet to come.

no you're not. They barely have any value it's unlikely to get worse.

The whole "cleaner lobby" thing is laughable, just cause youre a new player doesn't make you an idiot, any 10 year old can figure out how the old lobby works.

And no more HU4ROLLZ matches??? smh

ftps imo are pretty good, I play 50nl/100nl cash and probably get like $4 per 1k hands played alone from ftps, it adds up overtime. If I'm not mistaken with black card the overall rakeback % is around like 36??

also I'm guessing this is the end of happy hour?

Please don't remove Heads-up Super Turbo SNGs.

They are the best when I need a quick double up. Also no one can decline action.

You do realize the changes don't actually help new players not got their asses handed to them, right? A cleaner lobby is a good thing so long as it isn't coming at the cost of discouraging new deposits but it isn't some end all be all. New players are going to get fleeced in very hard 6m games just like they did before. They aren't going to stay on the site much longer because 'oh hey, i am getting destroyed in really hard 6m games but at least the lobby is cleaner!'.

One of the of the most important solutions is one that almost no one on here wants to hear and that is that recreational players should get a chance to play sometimes with OTHER recreational players. The site should want games to be softer. That is why the private game poker market is so big. It is terrible for them to have only one choice and that be the best players in the world at their chosen game and stake. The cleaner lobby is going to make the table offerings even harder.

the basic view lobby was as straight forward as it can be, these changes were made to stop bumhunting nothing else

I don't get all the hate. This is all very good news.

The 2 clients are clearly targeting different markets.

FTP is re-branding itself as the rec-friendly client. They've taken alot of notes from Bovada and are actively trying to fix the cut-throat bumhunting economy that drives alot of recs away.

If you dont like the changes, theres always PS. You can bumhunt the crap out of whomever you want there.

+1

Well the truth is that their numbers were declining extremely fast and this year it is even worse industry wise. The game is dying. So I appreciate someone trying something even if I don't agree with some/many changes.
The reality is they could either do money grab and just watch their site going completely dead or put a fight and try something.
Besides even if it doesn't work ou,t some changes will turn out to be good. So Amaya/stars will be able to use the data from it and replicate it on Stars. I mean where do you expect them to test new things if not on FTP???

These changes are not going to make rec players win or some other magic turn around, but they will improve the experience to some degree imo.

These changes should massively reduce if not eliminate the hunting of rec players. That is a good thing.

i dont like my stars screename

As I understand it table section is gone therefor weaker players and can play with weaker players and not 5 other regs that have been sat out waiting for them to log in.

At least FTP is trying to fix a broken economy and doing something different. Long term thinking is needed, there are plenty of sites you can declined matches vs -1bb losers HU if you still want to.

No it won't - if my understanding of the new ring games is correct then it will force regs to play each other more often, or to leave the site. Either way this will allow recs to play each other more frequently.

Before these changes, a bad rec would join a 6-max table and 5 regs would insta join. My guess is you are one of these regs and are (understandably) unhappy with the changes as they'll affect your bottom line.