Poker Missions & Challenges have quickly become a very popular promotions on a number of poker sites. The idea is players are given specific tasks to complete in order to win rewards which are great for recreational players and experienced players alike.
Here I have listed the sites running these type of promotions and what you can expect to see there.
Rather than having an ongoing promotion, PokerStars springs Mission Weeks onto all players every once in a while. The most recent involves opting into collecting certain number of VPPs in order to win tickets to an All-In Shootout - essentially a lottery structured as a tournament, where every player is all-in every hand.
Players have to choose one of 3 tiers, Easy, Simple and Possible, each having higher targets and each awarding tickets to different shoot-outs. The idea is the Easy shootout will have the most entrants with numbers reducing on the next two levels. The prizes on offer come from a $350,000 prize fund put up by PokerStars.
Other Mission promotions have included playing at a cash table, playing Omaha or participating in a single real money SNG. Prizes have varied from freeroll tickets, to cash bonuses and entries to tournaments like the Sunday Storm. Be sure to check the Missions terms in the promotional page on PokerStars, as most require a code to be entered on the client.
Party Poker’s promotion is based on putting their players ‘Under the Gun’ and adding a bit more pressure on them by giving a daily task over the month. Actually none are really that tough and by achieving them you can gain up to 20 entries to $1000 freerolls that month. These freerolls run 5x a day giving new players plenty of opportunity to start building their bankroll at zero risk.
Challenges are designed to show recreational players around the site and get them playing with tasks such as ‘make a deposit’, ‘play 5 hands of fastforward poker’ and ‘play 1 scheduled tournament’. You just need to ensure you check to see what is required of you that day as they change daily.
Update: Party have recently introduced special missions which can win you tournament entries where you can try and win tickets to the big summer festivals around Europe.
Unibet have adopted a ladder system to their challenges. Again these challenges run over a month and contain simple tasks. Instead of freeroll tickets players are given cash game credits to play specific games, varying from $4 to $400.
Each level has between 1 and 3 tasks to complete before the prize is awarded. Tasks at Unibet encourage the social networking aspect of the site in addition to simply playing poker, and you will find challenges such as ‘Change your identity by going to "View Profile", "Create New Identity"’ or ‘Change your background by going to "View Profile"’. These are nice twists add a feeling of community on Unibet, something missing in other online poker rooms.
Titan Treasures take a different approach to these challenges. Titan is giving away ‘gold coins’ away when certain achievements are met, which can be used to purchase Treasure Tickets. Here players can win one of many prizes, from T-shirts and freeroll tickets up to a $1000 cash prize and every Treasure Ticket is a winner.
The achievements have far tighter requirements than other sites and are targeted around certain tournaments listed on the promotions web page. These tasks include ‘Finished an MTT one place away from being in the money’ and ‘Make a final table’. You can earn a good number of coins by hitting them however, and you always have the opportunity of trading VIP points for coins in the sites store or taking part in specific tournaments to win coins.
These tasks are enjoyable and can mark achievements for recreational players and they can reward those used to playing on the site too, just by doing what they normally do. If you are a new player these promotions are a fantastic way of seeing what the poker room has to offer you, and could help build your bankroll by awarding you with prizes or giving you the opportunity to cash in a freeroll.
Love Poker? Then Check Out These Great Poker Themed Articles!
Which Poker Format Is Best For Mobile Phones?