Looking to put more energy and variety into your poker night but not sure where to start? In these Po-Ke-No rules, you will learn how easy it is to play Po-Ke-No and make your poker night more exciting!
Po-Ke-No is a combination of two classic games: Poker and Keno. In Poker, you must have the highest hand to win. In Keno, you must have a select amount of numbers that match the numbers on your player board to win.
You may choose to simply take score, play with poker chips, or gamble with real money!
Key highlights to this Po-Ke-No rules guide:
- What is Po-Ke-No?
- What you’ll need to play Po-Ke-No
- Po-Ke-No rules
- Po-Ke-No scoring
- How to play Po-Ke-No (Video tutorial)
Learn how to play Po-Ke-No below.
What is Po-Ke-No?
Po-Ke-No is a card and board game that combines two classic games, Poker and Keno. Some may find gameplay similar to Bingo, but instead of calling off and marking numbers, you are marking off cards found in your standard 52-card deck.
Number of players: 2-13
Ages: 7+
Difficulty: Easy
Length of play: 10min (per round)
Category: Card, Board, Betting, Set Collection, Competitive
Similar to: Poker, Keno, Connect 4
Main Objective: Be the first player to achieve a 5 in a row on your player board!
Our Take: It’s fun, fast-paced, and exciting! Also, there are different variations of gameplay to choose from each time you play!
What You’ll Need to Play Po-Ke-No
The following components are found inside each game box:
- 12 Large player boards
- 200 Po-Ke-No chips
- 2 Decks of cards (red and blue) plus a bonus Brybelly deck (red)
Po-Ke-No Rules in Pictures
Step 1
Po-Ke-No is a game for 2 to 12 players. Each player gets one player board and a set of chips.
Step 2
The dealer shuffles the deck and turns the topmost card over, announcing it to the players.
Step 3
Players search for the announced card on their boards. If they find it, they mark it with a chip.
Step 4
A player who collects 5 chips in a row calls “Out!”, ending the round, and counts their score based on their “hand” (in this case, it’s Two Pairs worth 2 chips/points).
Step 5
When you finish the number of rounds you initially agreed on, the player with the highest score (or the most chips) wins the game.
How to Play Po-Ke-No
Po-Ke-No is a straightforward game to play and learn. First, you should decide if you are going to use any real money to gamble with, use chips only, or keep score on paper.
You may also want to decide ahead of time if there will be a set amount of rounds, and whoever has the most money or highest score at the end of those rounds will win. You may also keep playing until everyone runs out of chips/money, similar to Poker.
Whichever method you prefer, these are the basic rules to help you get started:
- The dealer reveals and announces the top card of the face-down deck they shuffled.
- Each player searches for this card on their player board. If they have that card, they place one of their chips on it.
- The first player to connect 5 cards in a row on their board shouts “Out!” and gameplay stops for this round. This player looks at the score sheet for what type of hand they were able to achieve and rewards themselves with money, chips, or simply writes down their score.
- The player who achieved the first 5 in a row becomes the dealer in the next round.
Variations
5 Card Po-Ke-No
You play by the regular rules, but instead of the round stopping when one person achieves 5 in a row, you stop when all players achieve a 5 in a row. The winner is the player who has the highest valued “hand.”
Po-Ke-No Black Jack
The dealer plays their player board against the other players. Once the dealer has achieved 5 in a row, the game round has ended!
All players compare their best row of cards even if they have not achieved 5 in a row. The player who beats the dealer wins the round! If no one can beat the dealer, the dealer wins!
4 Corner Po-Ke-No
Follow the original Po-Ke-No rules with these additional instructions:
- The first player to place a chip on their center/middle space scores 1 point.
- The first player to place a chip on each of the 4 corners of their player board wins 4 points.
- The first player to achieve a 5 in a row will be rewarded 5 points.
- As soon as a player obtains 5 points, the game round ends! This can be achieved by getting a 5 in a row or a combination of a center space and the four corners.
Po-Ke-No Roulette
Each player (except the dealer) is provided with a player board. As a group, players will decide on a pot amount that will be awarded to the player who wins this game.
Then, each player places a chip on one card on their player board. This chosen card sits within two rows (horizontal and vertical), and your goal is to be the first player to achieve a 5 in a row in either of these rows.
You will not place chips on any other rows on your board!
The dealer will reveal 25 cards only. If no one achieves a 5 in a row before the dealer’s cards run out, the dealer wins! Otherwise, the first player to achieve a 5 in a row wins the game!
Po-Ke-No Scoring & Card Rank
There are many different ways to keep score and win in Po-Ke-No. Follow this suggested scoring guideline to help determine what should be rewarded depending on which “poker hands” players have:
- Royal Straight Flush: 9 Chips/Points
- Straight Flush: 8 Chips/Points
- Four of a Kind: 7 Chips/Points
- Full House: 6 Chips/Points
- Flush: 5 Chips/Points
- Straight: 4 Chips/Points
- Three of a Kind: 3 Chips/Points
- Two Pairs: 2 Chips/Points
- One Pair: 1 Chips/Points
How to Play Po-Ke-No (Video Tutorial)
Frequently Asked Questions
Can you gamble with real money playing Po-Ke-No?
Yes! Instead of using chips or taking scores, you can use coins or dollars instead.
How long does it take to play Po-Ke-No?
It depends on the number of players and how many rounds you decide to play. Each round is considered to take around 10 minutes from start to finish.
Is Po-Ke-No considered a board game or does it belong to the card games family?
Although you play Pokeno with both game boards and playing cards, the game does not suit either of these categories perfectly.
Most commonly, people describe the Pokeno game as a competitive card game or a casino-style game.
Can I use my player boards to play Bingo instead of Po-Ke-No?
Technically, yes! Instead of calling out numbers, you will need to use a deck of cards and call out each card individually.
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