For me it's...

1. Releasing an update to address known issues/bugs that have been published on the official website since February.

2. Removing the "BETA" classification, which allows RIO Poker to accept real money deposits w/o being liable for a "fully-launched" product -- giving it an unfair advantage over its competitors in some regulated markets. Maybe add overall compliance/licensing/accessibility to this point as well. Existing and future regulations are an issue that all licensed poker sites face.

3. Need more players. Tournaments? More innovative games? Phil Galfond marketing push? I dunno. At the moment I'm typing this, there are a total of 16 players in the NLHE lobby and 33 in PLO (all playing lowest-stakes €10 buy-in).

If enough hatchet and character assassination posts are made casting doubt on the integrity of the people behind the site, or suggesting it's going to fail, get your money out now, that can lead to a place being undermined, and increase the chance of it failing. Given the quality of the hatchet posts compared to the quality of the constructive criticism posts, I think there is little chance of that. The trolls have drawn the intelligent ones out to make an appearance and say "hang on a minute."

Hackprotech is thinking along very similar lines to myself. As far as 8gameisfun's improvements go, it depends on perspective. I shall answer not from what I want to see improved, but from what I think is good for the site.

1. Bugs - everything leads from there. Without fixing bugs they can't have tournaments or different games, and having more players would lead to more problems for customer support to deal with.

2. Crypto + better easier ways to deposit and withdraw. A must. I'm from the UK and have no problems, but we need more players on the site from many countries, and this would make a big difference.

3. Get licenses for more countries. It's costly and difficult I know, so it would probably have to be very slowly.

I'm going to be cheeky and add another. I wasn't sure what was more important at number three, whether it was this or the one below at number four.

4. Tournaments + different games like stud and plo8, different levels of cash.

Ouch, that's brutal.

1 A wider choice of games. I play fixed limit Omaha high low, which isn't on offer at RIO, or many other sites. RIO offers the same games NLHE and PLO that other sites already offer, so it would be good if they offered a wider range of games, to have more of a unique selling point, as at the moment they offer what others already offer, bar the debatable lower rake.

2 A more striking appearance for the tables. The colours are so drab and layout so similar to existing sites, it doesn't stand out at all as unusual, it needs to look brighter and different to stand out as unique.

3 Option to play hidden removed, the arguments for having players identity revealed far outweigh the benefits of hidden play. I said ages ago hidden players risked collusion in small player pools, and they currently have small player pools, so have identity showing now, maybe move back to hidden later when pools get larger, but it is hard to see why hidden is better.

It's personal but I don't like the graphics, so agree with the more striking and well defined graphics thing. I'm not sure how much appearance has in a site's success, but I would imagine it's quite important. I have once or twice downloaded software I don't play on just to see what I like about the appearance of the lobby that is different. I am totally bereft of any artistic qualities, being number oriented myself, so it's hard to say, I just know I don't like it, and would like to see it improved. Brighter, more well defined, more fun, more colour.

Jay Why
This message is hidden because Jay Why is on your ignore list.

Feelsgoodman.

Bugs are number one for me. I play just cash and don't play with coins so really don't need anything else than a working client. It's 2019 and rio released a client that has tables you can't even resize. And a better deck. Theu current one is just ugly and hard to read the suits. One real full 4 color deck ty. Like any other site offers.

I don't play PLO and bellow is just my experience from playing NLHE on the site the last few weeks and then stopped a little over a week ago.

I had big hopes for the site and really wanted(ed) it to succeed but I am starting to get pretty indifferent at this point. There isn't anything big about the site or the direction that makes it more reg and poker friendly than other sites. Software is different and more rec friendly than many other sites but for regs I think no screen names and the different visual stuff is very close to net zero and probably slightly negative. For example t's annoying playing 3-4 tables with the same regs and a few recs and having to figure which seat on each table is the same reg. I don't mind HUD-less but full anon is not preferred for me. Ability to change screen name once a day or a week or something would be more ideal for me personally.

Games not filling or stakes not running is also a bit disappointing and it often takes 30min+ to get a game going, and most of the time you get it going it's just 3-4 regs that would beat one stake higher on other sites playing a for like short while unless a weaker reg or recreational reg joins (not many whales like you see on stars or unibet joins). I could stand going through that routine and try to help things get off the ground and play zoom on the side or something, but they charge 5,75% rake with cap as high as the softest sites so the shorthanded reg action is next to unbeatable. I also don't see the site heading in a direction it would be worth sacrificing time and $EV to help them right now. Cut rake or give some other incentive without requiring me to stream and I'd be more incentivized to try to get this thing off the ground.

It's due time for RIO to stop leaning on the community and say: "If everyone were just to show up the games would run". My experience has been that regs have shown up and tried to start tables. Playing shorthanded with massive rake without recs showing up often enough and after a few days and maybe even weeks of that they stop bothering.

Splash the pot is not the reason they dont have traffic.
Dont be so clueless.

At this point Splash the pot is basically the only reason anyone would play there, other then to support Phil

Completely agree with this. Everyone wanted RIO to be some sort of saviour poker site based on the **** people have had with Stars and other sites over the past few years but I really don't see anything that's showing me it's going to be any better. As someone that never participated in the initial testing I must admit I was shocked at the state of the software when it was first released in February given how long this had been in the making. There's just so many features we take for granted such as resizing tables and sitting back in that 3 months later still haven't been fixed.

On top of that I was told as a UK resident I couldn't apply for their StreamR additional rakeback (god knows why) and I also got stung on depositing/withdrawing because the account is in euros and there's no way of depositing in GBP.

I want(ed) this site to work as much as anyone but goodwill will only lasts so long. For me, I never deposited again after I withdrew my balance because of the exchange rate differences, just a personal thing because other sites have no issue in having a GBP account to deposit into when the site is in EUR. For other people, they're probably getting bored of no traffic, lack of recs, no MTTs etc. There was a massive hype in the first week but Phil must really be starting to worry now.

I hope it works out for him but I can't help but feel the dev team just don't have the resources if they still haven't sorted some of the issues out by now.

Not sure if many actually decide to play on RIO because of STP, and if the number of people who decide not to play there because of STP isn't higher ... time will tell; after the main bugs are fixed, there surely will be some market research campaign undertaken.

The second reason you state is the one why many people had been so excited for over 2 years: to support Phil. I personally, and I suppose many others, imagined something like Stars, just better (i.e. primarily: lower rake and a better culture of communication with its customers). With anon tables (I take it that bugs will be fixed eventually; possibly only after drastic changes in programming and / or management staff), it's far from being that "second coming of Stars", and not what Phil himself had when he climbed through the ranks, living "the dream"

Serious TRUTH.

When software's fixed the main issues, and Phil officially launches the final product while cutting rake on or below Stars Levels with STP 51% rakeback on top do you guys think people will come?


I assume most casual player 2p2 posters play micros
Feels like to get small stakes and higher running Phil needs to do something radical so regs can play each other
When he doesn't spend millions of marketing like other sites to get casuals to play

If you need the fixed rb to play doesn't mean everybody else does.

What the hell are you writing?
Do you even read comments at least trying to think them through, or just randomly mashing buttons on your keyboard?

I assumed you and the other players who don't like the stp are bad players and need the fixed rb. I was right I see. You need to be like world champion level of idiot if you really think the stp is the biggest reason over bugs they don't have players. Time to ignore you allso.

I think we can all agree that Phil is a great guy, and almost everyone wanted him to succeed.

Unfortunately -- and I've been saying this from the beginning years ago -- this site is launching at the wrong time and to the wrong market.

In 2006, this thing would have had a ton of potential.

In 2019, not so much.

A new, non-US-facing poker site only has limited potential these days. This especially becomes true when they lack a proper marketing budget.

Sure, they're doing some innovative things by having streamers (very cheaply) market for them, but again, that only goes so far.

A poker site is not like a local restaurant. A restaurant's customer doesn't care if the place is empty or full. He only cares if he can get a seat and eat a meal at a reasonable price. A poker customer usually only plays if he sees games running. Thus, you need customers (or the appearance of customers) to get more customers.

Once you have a lot of activity, the site almost markets itself, as action leads to more action.

I can't tell you how many times people ask me where they should be playing online as US customers. I usually answer, "America's Cardroom or Bovada." People ask, "Why? Are those good sites?" I reply, "No, they both have a lot of problems, but they have the most games running, and they pay you reliably."

A site without activity has no potential. It could be the best software in the world, with the most innovative promotions and gimmicks in the world, with the best customer service in the world, and none of that will matter.

Without a fair number of existing games running, the site will die. Potential customers will open the software, see no games running of the type and limit they want to play, and they will close the software and never come back.

I honestly don't see this site ever blowing up. The shine is already starting to wear off. Between the bugs, lack of basic features, and lack of activity, even the biggest Galfond supporters are starting to question why they're continuing to bother with it.

Things aren't hopeless just yet. But they need to change their direction and focus pronto. The question should be, "How do we get butts in seats here, and how do those butts stay planted in enough seats to where the average n00b will want to sit and play?"

Totally agree! In my opinion the regulars (and by regulars I don`t mean only winning players, I mean all poker players who are passionate about poker, who study, play a lot aso) are the ones they need the most right now to get things going yet everything they do/every decision they have made so far is to make sure that regulars would win less and keep the winrates as low as possible, so recreationals could have „GOOD TIME“. The list is endless - table cap, no hud, anonymous poker, high rake, no rakeback program, more variance, excessive gambling to lower your rake at the same time paying more rake, STP (uncapped big flips for rb) aso. At the moment it looks like it`s gonna be yet another rake trap for FUN seeking players. Serious poker players are not playing to just have fun, they play to win money. Poker is about going up against other players and trying to win. At the moment the site unfortunately has nothing to offer for regulars because rake aware players get very similar or even a lot better RB deals on other sites without excessive gambling.
It`s time to end this #F*ck the pros/regulars attitude and start doing something that would attract/benefit ALL passionate poker players. They want players to support them then better start treating everyone equally and let the poker to remain a game of skill as it supposed to be. Yes recreationals need protection – from bots, huds, other illegal software being used, high rake trap sites; but certainly not from regulars. Its is a competitive game after all – better players who work hard on their game are supposed to make money not only poker sites.

Kinda nails it for me. Play when I can outside of work and given the traffic and available games it just isn't viable for me. I understand their still working out the kinks but until there are actually games running it's pretty hard to support them.

Hate or love MTT's they drive traffic so I guess I'll check back in at that time.

I keep looking at the site but I want to trial the software before i deposit.. i think their conversion rate for players who download the client and then deposit within 24 hours is very low..
When youlogin you are presented with two game types, games are in Euros and the lowest limits are 4NL and 10PLO.

If you just want to download runitonce and play some play money games or 1/2c stakes to play around with without committing large sums you can't. If i wanna watch NBA playoffs and **** around with a couple of 'fun tables' while i try it all out I can't.

2NL just seems to need to be a standard buyin for them to give as an option as its the best feeder for higher buyins and bigger deposits.

I think I have downloaded runitonce 3 times now and i look around to see if there is some way to play quickly, have fun and see if i can get hooked... but you get hit with a deposit wall straightaway and because the initial buyins are low stakes not really micro, the deposit wall is very high which just ruins conversions rates i imagine...

Props for giving it a go Phil, but your software team isn't good enough and you aren't listening to the critics who would like you to succeed. Such a shame.

Are we to believe that their ability to catch bots and collusion is top-notch even though their client is bug-ridden? I mean, their coders can't fix a major bug where, when a player sits out to go pee, he/she/they can't sit in again, but these same coders have written impeccable code to stop cheaters? I don't think so.

Fair point. FWIW, I don't think BOTS are of any concern. Not for the moment at least... there are only 14 total players across all stakes/games.

RIO Poker NLHE LOBBY

€4 buy-in - 3 players
€10 - 0 players
€20 - 0 players
€50 - 4 players
€100 - 1 player
€200 - 1 player
€500 - 0 players
---

RIO Poker PLO LOBBY

€10 buy-in - 1 player
€20 - 1 player
€50 - 3 players
€200 - 0 players
€1,000 - 0 players

This project was just poorly managed. That's the unfortunate truth.

After three years of development, there are major bugs, no MTTs, no resizable tables, and very little traffic.

Reminds me a bit of Ultimate Poker.

They were obsessed with constantly developing new gimmicky features, and didn't seem at all concerned with boosting traffic or slowing down to create a more stable product.

You saw where that ended up.

This project never had any coherent direction, nor did they ever really understand the necessary order of doing things.

You can't treat a new poker site like a software project, or it will fail.

It's part software development, part design, part marketing, part operations, and part understanding the community you're developing for.

Phil is a tremendous poker player, but I always suspected he wasn't completely in touch with the wants and needs of regular grinders, nor do I think he really understood what recs are looking for in the game.

He had a lot of people giving him good advice in this thread, but most of it fell upon deaf ears.

Jeff Bezos became the richest man in the world because he had an excellent understanding of what the typical online shopper wanted, and the type of website they were looking for. Notice Amazon was never flashy nor exciting. In fact, the Amazon website you see today looks and functions fairly similarly to the one we saw 15 years ago. Often just creating a solid product/service everyone wants, making it easy to use, and marketing well, is enough.

Run It Once Poker is sadly looking like an exercise where innovation and indecision trumped intelligent market analysis, robust product development, and basic feature completion.

Maybe I'll turn out to be wrong, but I'd be surprised.

Ruin it once poker-poker-the site where you have to pay to test a software.