December 23, 2008 (InfoPowa News) — Activision has released the latest version of last year's virtual poker game hit "World Series of Poker: Tournament of Champions" to mixed reviews, some of which advise that there are more serious products with better artificial intelligence on the market for the demanding poker aficionado.
The game builds on last year's popular version, taking a story-based approach as it puts virtual players on the WSOP Circuit as a newly turned poker pro under the wing of Chris Ferguson as his protege. Players test their skills against the world's best poker pros in the premier Circuit events in hopes of qualifying for the virtual winner-take-all, invitation-only Tournament of Champions at the Rio Resort in Las Vegas.
Along the way, players face-off against an impressive list of top pros, including Joseph Hachem, the 2006 World Series of Poker Main Event Champion; Jennifer Tilly, the Academy Award-nominated actress and World Series of Poker bracelet holder, and many others.
The game gives advice on the personal tricks and strategies that have made Ferguson one of the world's foremost poker players, with each successful win unlocking valuable tools that help bring a better game to the table, among these checking the odds of hitting various hands at every stage of the deal, checking the rank of hands, and viewing statistics and percentages of the hands of opponents. The dialogue between players is especially noteworthy and entertaining.
Amazon's purchasing offer on the game is interesting — it reveals that after viewing the information on WSOP Tournament of Champions, 61 percent of visitors went for Howard Lederer's Wii offering "World Championship Poker!"