Gnuf Poker, which started in 2006, is yet another member of the Microgaming Poker Network family of sites (formerly known as Prima). It is a medium to large network with about 20k total players on at peak times. If you have played at any of the skins from that network such as Royal Vegas Poker or Gaming Club Poker you will grow accustomed to Gnuf Poker quickly, as they share the same software platform.

The game quality in general is about average with Short Handed No-Limit Hold’em being on the softer side. The Short Handed Pot-Limit Omaha action is very good. As for the rest of the Omaha games, they are average to scarce.

The Microgaming Poker Network offers a full line-up of casino games as well and players can transfer funds from one central account to the poker room or to any of the casino games such as Blackjack, Craps, Roulette, etc. So if you are looking for the full casino experience online this could be the place for you.

Gnuf Poker Game Types:

Gnuf Poker offers No Limit, Pot Limit, and Fixed Limit Texas Hold’em, Pot Limit and Fixed Limit Omaha Hi and Hi/Lo, 7 Card Stud, and 5 Card Stud. Stakes range from micro ‘’Beginners Games” for a nickel all the way up to $100/$200 for both Fixed and No Limit games. Most of the Fixed Limit Hold’em action is at the $0.50/$1 through $2/$4 tables, whereas No Limit players primarily stick to $2/$4 and lower. There is almost no action at the Fixed Limit Omaha tables – if you are looking to play Omaha at Gnuf Poker, you will need to stick with Pot Limit with good action at the lower limits, because above $1/2 the action is very scarce.

Gnuf Poker also has plenty of tournaments from which to choose. Many Sit and Go options are available, from standard 10-person contests to short-handed, heads-up, and multi-table games. Additionally, Gnuf Poker has “Rounders” tables, special Sit-and-Go’s which give players the chance to win big money for a small buy-in. The Rounders tournaments consist of five levels – the top finishers in one level advance to the next and some players are able to redo a level (depending on where they finish) while the rest have to start over. Players can also buy-in directly to any of the levels: Level one is only $5 + $0.50, but if you make it to level five, a $550 + $55 buy-in, you can win up to $3,000. They also offer an ‘Extreme Stack’ Sit and Go format where the starting chip count is 2,000 and stakes increase every 10 minutes.

Multi-Table tournaments are also plentiful at Gnuf Poker. They have guaranteed prize pools all the way up to the big $200k ‘Sunday Showdown’, as well as re-buys, freezeouts, and freerolls. The structure at Gnuf Poker is good, too – players start with 1,500 chips and blinds only go up every twelve minutes, so there is plenty of time to play. Like most online poker rooms, Gnuf Poker holds tournaments in which players can win seats to prestigious live poker events. Satellites, in the form of both Sit-and-Go’s and Multi-Table tournaments, are running around the clock. Gnuf Poker offers a great line-up of World Series of Poker (WSOP) satellites with several launching daily. In addition to awarding seats at the main event, players will have the choice to compete for seats into other events, such as stud and Omaha. They also offer several daily WSOP Ladies satellites.

Gnuf Poker Software and Features:

Gnuf Poker software is just average. The dealer action is smooth but not particularly fast. There is a text history account of the table action that scrolls up the right side of the card room, which can help you follow the game more easily. The sound effects are clear and do not take away from the game. On the poker table, they display in text form what your hand rank is i.e. “One pair- Six’s”, a useful feature for beginners. The tables are 10 player max and they offer short handed 6 player tables as well. The card room graphics in Gnuf Poker are clear and easy on the eyes, even if the blue and black color scheme is a bit off , but the blue table top is large and the player’s seats are well spaced. There are no avatars available nor coffee tables or plants to distract from the game. The card room in general is very sparse and professional looking, so if you like a room with a bunch of graphics you may be disappointed. They also offer an easy to use player chat window.

One feature that separates them from many other poker rooms is the ability to create your own private games. You can set up cash games, SNG’s and Multi-Table tournaments.

The main lobby is very well laid out, with a left navigation tree to help you locate just what you are looking for. The lobby filters are very easy to use and players can navigate through the game selection with minimal effort. The lobby game columns provide as much information as any other site with sortable fields like player/flop, average pot size, and hands per hour. They also offer a Bad Beat jackpot with a running, real time accumulated total which can be quite inspirational as it is often well over $10k. At least you have the chance of cashing if you take a bad beat!

Statistics and note-taking are available at the tables, and hand histories can also be requested and stored on your hard drive. While Gnuf Poker has a player search function, it does not have a buddy list feature.

Gnuf Poker offers OK initial deposit bonuses, for example 100% up to $70, but they tend to be very, very hard to clear.

Customer Service and Security:

Gnuf Poker offers customer service via e-mail and toll free telephone numbers from a host of countries. Customer service representatives are generally helpful and friendly when dealt with on live chat, but there have been some quality issues with e-mail responses (although response time is usually fast).

Gnuf Poker uses 128-bit encryption technology when transferring data over the Internet. The way this top-of-the-line system works to keep players and their money safe when playing at Gnuf Poker, is by issuing each player with a unique account number, which is protected by a secret password that they alone can access.

Like all Microgaming rooms, Gnuf Poker’s software is secure and no customer information is ever available outside of Gnuf Poker’s internal network. Microgaming and Gnuf Poker have developed algorithms to help detect collusion at the tables and Gnuf Poker also employs agents who proactively seek out cheaters.