Well I’m taking a coding and dev boot camp online during this shitty shitty period. Maybe I can design a solution myself. I mean it’s so ****in easy I can’t believe it’s not out there and yet more complicated (ie rake taking) versions are.

Where my 'home game' is right now....



We used PokerStarsNJ Home Game (HG) years ago (2016) and when I first looked into it again, it wasn't working 100%. It's fixed now, but the gang has moved to other options. FYI, another group is using PS.net HG and I had to download the setup from someone else for my NJ desktop. New account created for the .net version, and play money only.
PokerStars rakes. Tough for cash games. No big deal for tourneys. Still, it's free. HG does not run on mobile devices.



One of our friends was using Pokerist (Texas Poker). A few of us joined, it works across multiple platforms and you can create private tables. Some of the platforms limit the options when setting up the table (ie Millionaires setup high stakes, beginners setup lower stakes). No private table rake. Allows going north/south between hands. FREE.



Another friend played with another group on Pokerrrr 2. He said it worked well, and now a few of us joined there. Initially didn't work on my android phone, but did work on iPad. Seems stable now on android, have heard desktop isn't stable. There is a club feature and hosting private club games is "free-ish". So far, to host a game there is a free period (20-30 minutes from what I've seen so far) and then it charges gold coins to the host (3-6 per hour from what I've seen so far). New accounts start with 10 gold coins, I got another 10 linking to facebook. You can collect 1 per 24 hours as a bonus. There may be other ways to earn (referrals, joining clubs for host) and you can buy them (I think $3 /18 coins is the lowest cost, but you get a better price per coin buying in bulk). Lots of game options, settings can be tweaked. It tracks player results per session and saves it for multiple (but not unlimited) sessions. Easy to see who is up/down, even if players re-buy.

Hey OP - I didn't notice this in the replies. It's been lights out for my home game for a single-table tourney or cash games. Add a Zoom call and it's like you're all together.

https://www.pokernow.club/

Is there a platform where you can play home games with play money for no rake??

I have some friends that play on www.pokermaven.net. It’s a one time fee to buy the software (three levels of access, we bought the middle one). The software feels like it’s from 2003, but it allows you to play non-takes cash games and tournaments. Has a mix of games, etc. make sure the person that buys the software knows a bit about software or is patient, because it’s tedious to get the settings right.

Fyi:

I have been using PPPoker which apparently is the original version of PokerBros (I think PokerBros is a skin of PPPoker). It's free to set up your own "poker club" which all your friends can then join. It takes a little bit of playing around with it in the beginning to understand how to set up tables and transfer your friends play money chips. Once you are up and running its great. You can customize everything (blind structure and minutes per level for tournaments).

I highly recommend PPPoker if your goal is to play online with your friends. Handle all real money outside the app with Venmo/PayPal transfers.


NOTE: Many people play on PPPoker for real money in real poker clubs, but you can completely ignore all that and have your own free poker club if that is your goal. That's what my friends and I do.

A skin is a different site on the same poker network where multiple sites pool their players together at the tables.

PPPoker and PokerBros are 2 completely separate apps. They don't share the tables with each other. PokerBros is the newer app which copied a lot of what PPPoker already had going well for it.

I want to play cash games with friends and be able to determine the starting stacks and blind structure. Tried https://www.pokernow.club/ and it's not bad. There's no rake, and it doesn't require you to download software or create an account. So very nice for people who play with more casual folks who don't want to deal with new accounts. Would be nice if you could play more than just Holdem but until I find something better I think this will be my go to home game program.

Here's another one: https://playcards.live/

I'm pretty sure https://pokerclub.now is what you're looking for.

I just tried it tonight, and I'm impressed.


Benefits:

--Runs in a browser (no download)

--No rake

--No one needs an account to join the game (or even to host the game)---you just send them the private table link to join.

--No chance of strangers joining, even if the link leaks, because the host gets to approve each person who tries to join, and set their stack size.

--Reasonably slick and polished interface (keyboard shortcuts for check/raise/fold/call)

--Game host completely controls adding chips to someone's stack (so they can't just rebuy using some play money pool that they have without paying you via PayPal first for the rebuy). And they don't need to have a certain play money balance built up in their account to join your table---this is a HUGE weakness of PokerStars.

--Host control can be passed to someone else mid-game (like if the host needs to leave the game for some reason, someone else can take the reins)


Drawbacks:

--Cash game only, no private tournaments

--NLHE only, no other games


According to the Patreon account for PokerNow, the popularity has been growing by leaps and bounds during the COVID shutdown, with 1000 simultaneous games running at one point a few days ago.

Pokerstars has the ability to create poker clubs but the min buy in is 20,000 and the max. free play chips is 15,000 and I know a lot of my friends wouldn't pay to top up their play chip balances. Anyway around this ? Or, is there another site I can host a tourny on?

I've designed a new home game format that I call CoroNoHoldem.

It's to be played online between experienced poker-playing close friends at low stakes, without using any poker software.

First, you all need to have the same app that allows a "conference" call between the players. I think Zoom could be the best?

You set up your cameras to show you and the table in front of you, at all times.

Each player has their own deck of cards and a notebook. The host deals and calls out some cards, saying in the order that play actions will be made, "Al - 8; Ben - 2, Charlie - Jack". Etc. The player who has received the highest card is the Dealer and Virtual Banker for the first hand.

Everyone shuffles up to deal and cuts his own deck, clearly, in full sight. The BB tells the SB to burn 1, 2 or 3 cards and deal himself the next card. UTG tells the BB to burn 1, 2 or 3 cards and deal himself the next card. And so on, round the table twice - the person immediately after the one dealing a card to himself is always the one controlling that burn.

Betting as normal, only verbally, precisely and clearly, with the Dealer keeping the appropriate tally, carefully in his notebook. Others may choose to keep their own notes.

BB tells Dealer to burn 1, 2 or 3 cards and deal the flop.

Etc; etc.

Obviously, you'll notice that it's possible that two or more players could end up with exactly the same hand. However, each person's odds of achieving any hand is the same as usual, and it's quite unlikely that hands will be exactly the same at the actual showdowns. If they are, they split the pot.

It seems perfect to me. What could go wrong?

*

[It might be sensible and easier in practice for the Dealer not to be in "his" hand, as he's dealing the community cards and keeping score. The players can tweak stuff like that to suit their own game.]

Needs some very patient friends, but could work for the olds

Hi all,

Looking to play a home game with friends. Which sites can you play home games on?

I can’t get on my Stars account, and they don’t respond to emails so looking for another option.

Thanks,

TGSM

https://forumserver.twoplustwo.com/2...eeded-1764673/

Literally on the first page of the forum

Ah yes. Sorry I tried to delete this thread but can’t find the function.

Looking at the other thread, nobody has mentioned 888poker. Can you not play home games on that site?

On the weekend, we played Catan with our daughter. She has a game there at our condo near her university, and we have one here. Unlike poker, there's very little information that's secret from all. When she drew development cards, we would show them to the camera without looking ourselves, and put them aside. However, that requires some trust, as it would be visible to us in a very small screen; when playing card games for money, this might not work out so well.

Hi All,

Forgive me if this has been asked before - had a quick look and couldn't find anything.

We can't play online (easily) or play live in Australia atm and I thought about kicking up some live games with mates via video chat and just transfer real money before and after games via Paypal etc. I saw someone use "Pokerface" on facebook. Has anyone had experience using this or other similar video chat software? Is this one the best or can someone recommend a different one? Any advice would help. Cheers.

NVM - I had a look into it and it's about as basic as you can get and really just novelty software. 5 players max . My thread got moved here is at least I see other suggestions above now and will check them out. Don't bother with Pokerface anyway.

Trying to join a home game on pokerstars.bet in Pennsylvania but it's not on the PA pokerstars site and it's impossible to access pokerstars.bet without being forwarded to the PA site. So frustrating. Any help, thanks.

Ask one of the players who isn't in a pokerstars.state to send you the pokerstars.bet file.

I'm in NJ, so I had to download a pokerstars.notNJ file. It wasn't .bet

BetOnline Home Games

Where can I set up a private table or tournament so I can play our home games online with buddies in US who are home due to coronavirus?

Preferable for real money is possible.

If you are in a legal online state (pa, nj, we, NV) use something with play money and use venmo? I've been doing it through pokerstars pa for some friendly home games