A year or two before the release of the ubiquitous iPhone I was hooked on a PocketPC poker game called All-in Hold ‘Em. The game was made by a development company called Birdsoft, and I had not come across poker AI as advanced as that before. Fast forward a few years, and Birdsoft have delved into the iPhone market, bringing us Metal Poker for the iPhone and iPod Touch.

When you start the game it immediately jumps to the game screen with a Options and Help button (after a brief splash screen), a bit disconcerting that there is no menu (perhaps also allowing you to select an avatar) but tapping the help button will produce a basic help guide to the game. Options brings up the game settings allowing you to choose between a Cash Game or Sit n Go and a number of different game options.

It’s worth pointing out that at the moment this is the most extensive list of poker game types in one app, allowing you to play Omaha, Razz, Seven Card Stud, Six Card Stud, FIve Card Stud, Five Card Draw and of course the ever popular, Texas Hold Em. Unfortunately for Hold em, there is only limit poker available, which is strange given that no limit is more widely played but the developer promises this and more in future updates.

Additional options provide you the ability to turn on and off sounds, as well as adjust the starting money “ 50, 100 and 200. I feel here they could have included additional money options, or even allowing you to select your own custom amount to start.

The first thing I noticed when I started playing, is the simplicity of the game graphics, whilst some may hold this against Birdsoft, I have always been a fan of simplicity for poker. Fancy graphics, and cool animations only equate to further waits in a game which is made more exciting because it requires quick thinking and decision-making. A good poker player usually plays a fairly small percentage of hands, so to have to wait for a 3 second animation only kills one ‘s patience.

The next big plus, is that the AI and general gameplay plays a lot more like a real poker game than other iPhone poker titles. The Apple title which was one of the first apps to ever appear on the App Store, I find too easy to beat, once you have figured out the common patterns. Granted I have probably played that one a lot more than Metal Poker at this point, so maybe the pattern of play will become easier as time progresses.

The AI engine seems up to the original PocketPC standards, although I think it can still be improved “ and this is also confirmed by the developer on his site. In fact, the developer seems to have put this out to test the waters, and if the general customer base bites, he will add a LOT more in future updates, including : Pot and No Limit, Advanced AI, Multi table Tournament and career mode, Tips, Hints and Tutorials and new table layouts, and of course multiplayer.

The good

I like the simplicity of the game, no fancy animations causing unnecessary delays, whilst you wait for your turn to play. The variety of game types should cater for every poker fanatic ‘s taste and its definitely the widest variety by far. The AI is superior to other poker titles I have played, including the very well designed Texas Hold Em from Apple themselves giving even a keen poker player a decent challenge.

The bad

I have to knock the developer on not including no-limit in its variations. Whilst it ‘s promised in an upgrade, with it being the most popular Texas hold em variation, it should have been there from the start. Whilst I am happy to overlook the lack of a real menu/intro when you start the game, I feel the game was released prematurely from a polish point of view. The sounds are poor, some of which sound like they came out of a Star Wars movie! In my opinion they should have just been excluded altogether. It also lacks a continuity aspect to the game, without the ability to create an avatar, or start a career mode, its quick, hit-and-run poker.

The verdict

If you ‘re a poker fanatic, especially one who enjoys the different varieties available and wants to be challenged, I would recommend it. But if you don ‘t know the intricacies of Omaha and Seven Card stud and tend to play only Texas Hold Em and its varieties, I would hold out for the upgrade.

The game comes in at a reasonable price point of £1.79 / $2.99.

[iTunes link]

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