Pokerstars news: anonymous tables and new Spin & Go format

PokerioSchool.comUpdated 5 February 2020
The PokerStars room is rolling out updates and changes at a rapid pace this year. Many of these changes are designed to create a more welcoming environment for the recreational player, so the changes have received mixed reviews. Just a few months ago, PokerStars restricted maximum number of Cash games tablesand now two more big changes await players: anonymous tables and Spin & Go Flash.

A few days ago Pokerfuseannounced the planned changes to the PokerStars room in an exclusive interview. One of these is already in place - Spin & Go Flash. Flash is an even faster format than the regular Spin & Go:

  1. Players start with 300 chips or 15BB.
  2. Blinds are appearing every minute.

Many of these tournaments last just a few minutes. The PokerStars room was inspired by Winamax, who launched Expresso Nitro a few months ago. The Nitro layout and game structure is identical to Flash.

The ultra-fast structure of Spin & Go makes the game easier for recreational players, as this low stack depth results in a much higher number of all-in pre-flops. Some Winamax regulars claim that the introduction of Nitro has had a negative impact on the fields of all Express (Spin & Go) limits. It is likely that the Spin & Go Flash will also affect the regular Spin situation in the Pokerstars room. For Spin & Go and Expresso players, it is still not fully clear whether the new games are profitable, as the potential advantage of a good player in Nitro and Flash is very small.

The second big news for PokerStars room players is that, for now, only Cash games have anonymous tables. The exact date of this update has not yet been specified, but it is known that, at least for now, it will be a test run for the Cash format, which will be called Stealth Mode. "Players who select the Stealth Mode option will have their nicknames (as well as those of their opponents) hidden. Pokerfuse doesn't have exact details on how the anonymous tables will work, but speculates that it will be a per-player choice, unlike other rooms such as Run It Once. PokerStars announces that Hand History will still be available on anonymous tables, but nicknames will not be revealed until 24 hours after the hand has been played. No information is provided on changes to the tracking applications (Hold 'Em Manager 2 and PokerTracker 4).

PokerStars is making its first major change to online poker this year, likely driven by financial statements published at the beginning of the year. PokerStars is experiencing stagnation in the poker industry, while competitors are experiencing strong profitability growth. It is clear from the constant updates and changes in the company's strategy that this room is trying new strategies to stay on top of the poker industry. These strategies are aimed at attracting new players. Attracting new players should stimulate the poker economy, which will allow PokerStars to remain the most profitable and well-known among poker providers.