Full Tilt Poker launched rush poker almost two months ago and the game has become for ring tables what turbo tournaments are for online poker tournaments. In addition to fast timing, in rush poker players change opponents after every hand, whereas in turbo tournaments the game is rapid, but always against the same competitiors.

In addition to attracting a growing number of players, rush poker raises many “philosophical” questions in regards to the characteristics of the game. What is the interest of playing so many hands with random players? Isn’t this game just a more extreme version of turbo tournaments? What happens to the psychological component of the game when opponents change with every hand?

One of the major characteristics of poker is the need to implement strategy and psychology while playing. Without strategic and psychological capabilities, it is not possible to become a champion. To develop these capabilities, players must study opponent behavior, which is nearly impossible in rush poker.

While playing rush poker the “creativity” of the player is reduced to zero. The important thing is to follow the rules in the shortest possible time. In other words players end up behaving like robots. This is a completely different take on the game and if players see only their cards and nothing else isn’t this a wilder take on video poker?