Customer Reviews

Poker Academy V2 (Win/Mac)

5 star:		(40)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Poker Academy V2 is a must buy! I have been playing poker all my life, but only recently have I focused on Texas Hold Em. Each time I play, I increase my skills, but I don't play often enough against quality opponents. When I came across Poker Academy V2, I was skeptical about how much it would help me learn the game. Well, let me tell you, I am significantly better than I was before.

Not only are the computer opponents better than any other poker game out there, but the program allows you to see every statistic possible about your cards, the pot odds, and how you bet overall. For example, I learned that I was very passive pre-flop but very aggressive post-flop. I also learned what happens when I call to see a flop with the various different card combos and how many outcomes are possible. The programmers, who have set up an extremely complex algorithm to run the game, give you access to all the components that make up that code so you can get a better idea of all the odds and percentages of everything that happens in a round of poker. When you watch on TV and you see people call "time," they are calculating in their head the pot odds, which includes how much they have invested in the pot compared to the total number of cards that will help them win or lose. Poker Academy V2 does this as well, so you can begin to pick up patterns with certain hands, which translates into better and smarter betting on a real table.

The best thing I can say about this Poker training tool (I think of it more as a tool than a game) is how well I have done at a real Texas Hold Em table. During my most recent trip, on a $3/6 Limit Table, I won over $280 in about 2 hours by using all the knowledge I have gained about how to play Texas Hold Em and about how I play my game. In other words, the more I know about my skills, the better I act at the table. For the price Amazon sells this product compared to how much I won on my last trip, I would say Poker Academy V2 is well worth it. Spend the money now, learn to play the game better (no matter what your experience level is), and go win at a real table.

This software came out of research at the University of Alberta in Edmonton. The limit artificial intelligence opponents are widely considered the best in the world. The no-limit opponents are okay. They are fantastic for training up as a beginner, and the developers keep improving them. Playing against computer opponents I can easily get through 300 hands an hour. This software has improved my game about 10-fold.

Poker Academy (PA) has the best artificial intelligence that will challenge even great players. Unlike most other poker programs that use canned strategies, this software actually learns and adapts to your play. As you improve, PA will also improve, challenging you to continue to play better to win. PA offers several no-limit and limit AI engines to give you experience against a variety of playing styles. You can practice new strategies that you may have learned from a book (Good poker books are also listed in the help section of the software), and see if these strategies work for you without having to risk any money. There are many statistical tools available with this software to help you analyze your play, including a showdown calculator. The interface is also very user friendly with convenient action buttons and hot keys.

The customer service is superb! If you have any questions, the PA support team will work with you and answer quickly. The PA team is the most dedicated software team I have ever seen! They continually release updates to the software, and you can even play with them online!

The community forum at www.poker-academy.com is very helpful, and the software developers are very active on this forum. Also check out the pro version 2 of this software on the website. It gives you even more advanced software analysis tools and additional AI engines to help you further analyze and improve your play.

The online play is fun, and it is a good way to get playing experience against real people without having to risk real money. The developers host weekly free-roll tournaments, where you can win a free, high-quality PA polo shirt!

I had also purchased DD Tournament Poker in the past. DD does not even come close to PA. The AI in DD is weak and predictable, the interface is uglier, and DD lacks the powerful statistical tools that PA has to offer.

In conclusion of my long review, if you are serious about poker or just want a fun experience, Poker Academy is the software for you and is worth your money many times over!

The artificial intelligence in this Poker simulator is light years above anything else available. Originally developed by computer scientists at the University of Alberta, some of the poker "bots" in this game are self teaching! They actually learn to play against your style by analyzing the entire history of hands you have played. If you know how to play fairly well, you'll win pretty steadily at first - but the opponents get tougher and smarter over time, forcing you to improve and to vary your game. Different artificial opponents have different styles - some are super skilled, others a little crazy - just like the real world!

The smooth play, variety of opponents, hand analysis tools, and - most important - the complete hand history lets you see exactly where you make your big mistakes and your big wins! Play 10,000 hands or so and you will find the holes in your play and improve your game many times over.

Some previous reviews state that there are only a limited number of different hands being played over and over. These poor souls are using an early demo version of the software. One can only assume they didn't register or enter a license key to unlock the full program. In the earlier demo version of the game, this was the intentional demo limitation - it dealt the same 100 hands over and over in the same order.

I'm a software developer myself, and this is a beautifully designed and implemented poker "system" - far beyond the typical cheap computer card game. The smooth play, clean graphics, wide variety of game structures and opponents, and the many educational features all contribute to a fun learning experience. And yes - those computer science professors do know how to generate randomly dealt hands!! Use the program for 15 months and over 15,000 hands as I have and see your poker skills grow and grow.

Poker Academy is a great way to improve your game. V2 is well worth the extra money. One very Big word of warning! Do not purchase the so called addon called online pokibot. It is a scam, and you will waste a lot of money. This program has nothing to do with the developers of Poker Academy, (even they are trying to trace these people without much success). Online pokibot is full of bugs, it will not even raise preflop, and if you contact support, you will receive no reply. Oh! and forget about a refund, they only accept paypal as payment, and as a few of you are aware, paypal has a strict policy against chargebacks. Paypay will tell you that your purchase is classed as VIRTUAL, whatever that means. Maybe they will let us pay with virtual money? If any of you are non believers, try the poker academy forum. Anyway, Poker Academy is a great tool. ENJOY!

If there is a better software on the market to truely improve your game, I haven't found it. I own at least 6 softwares which I can no longer use because they can't beat me after using this software for about 60 days. Honestly, buy this software if you want to really compete in Texas Hold'em.

When I was in the market for poker software, I sifted through dozens of online reviews. I considered price, game play, AI of computer opponents and online play. Poker Academy was far and away my first choice, but I also bought EAGLE GAMES Tournament Poker, because I found it for a great price. Although EGTP is good, in my opinion, it doesn't compare to Poker Academy. The AI isn't nearly as strong and there is no online option. The computer opponents in PA are very challenging and the format is great. There are many ongoing statistical categories which break down your playing style and tendencies. The feature that really seperates PA from the rest is the online game play. This alone is well worth the purchase price! You can play both ring games and tournaments for the PA currency, which is called PAX. The great thing about this is that you have to earn every cent of PAX. You aren't given anything to start, so you must either win or place high in games/tournaments to earn it. Games vary from .05/.10 games, up to $50 tournaments. There are roughly anywhere from 40 - 80 members at Poker Academy Online at any given time, so there's always a game to be had. Because PAX is paid out in very realistic amounts (approx. $35 for a tournament win of 10 people,) it really feels like you're playing with real money. This fact causes me to appreciate the "currency" much more than I would if I could go to the cashier and instantly grab another $1,000 every 5 minutes. I really can't praise this game enough, and I haven't seen anything else (especially for under $18) that comes anywhere close to Poker Academy V2. Career mode in a future edition would really put PA over the top, but it's terrific as it stands. I highly recommend it.

I've used pretty much every decent poker package out there and Poker Academy 2 is by far the best. Their online structure with tiered ring tables and player ratings makes for better online poker than any I've experienced for real money (Stars, Party, etc)...

This has not only entertained me greatly, but it's improved an already pretty good poker game.

And as for support... It's the best I've ever found for any software. The developers play with us online and are constantly taking suggestions on the forum. They're continually making the game better and listening to feedback. If you ever need to move an install to another PC, they're very responsive and helpful.

(SandMan)

The best hold'em training software on the market, period. If you are serious about improving your game, this product is a must have. I have been using it for 6 months, and my game has improved dramatically as a result. The analysis tools, competitive online play, and ability to practice with world class artificial intelligence, are only a few of the tools you'll enjoy when you use this program. The developers of Poker Academy are the most responsive and customer oriented I have ever experienced for any product at any time.

Poker Academy is a valuable tool, those new to poker can learn the game in mere weeks against the world class artificial intelligence.

Those with poker experience can perfect and study their game against the AI offline or against a wealth of constantly improving talent in the online version of the game.

The AI is truly top class, with around 15 years of academic research into the math and playing strategies that make up this very complex game.

The other great aspect is the community and the user/developer interaction is second to none.

get on board today!