Four Unusual Online Poker Games That Didn’t Make It

Unfold Hold’em

In August 2018, after several months of testing and a less-than-positive reception from the poker community, PokerStars finally launched Unfold cash games.

The format worked like this: players sat at an 8-max cash game table with antes and played standard Hold’em, but with the option to “resurrect” their folded cards and rejoin the hand for an extra fee, continuing to compete for a separate “Unfold” pot.

The poker room’s persistence in launching a format — criticized from the very start as a way to siphon recreational players’ money into rake — ultimately failed to win anyone over, and under a month PokerStars had officially bid it farewell.

Pick’em8

In December 2018, following a long period of development and testing, 888poker launched a discipline called Pick’em8 — one that is not strictly poker, yet is based on it.

The game mechanics worked as follows: players sat at the table, and eight cards were dealt out in front of them, from which they had to choose two. Then, five community cards were placed on the table, and the players with the strongest hands split the prize pool.

Ultimately, the game — which many players dubbed “nothing more than a mindless casino gamble” — disappeared from the room within a year. It vanished so abruptly that in 2026 finding information about its cancellation is nearly impossible, as if there had been an attempt to erase it not only from the lobby but also from memory.

HoldemX 

In 2016, Mediarex launched an innovative experiment combining mechanics from Texas Hold’em, Hearthstone, Magic: The Gathering, and Uno. The game HoldemX became available to players in an alpha-test format using play money in February 2016, aiming to bring the fun back to poker while also making it more of a competitive sport.

The game certainly promised to be interesting. At the start of each heads-up match, players selected three xCards — with a combined value of up to 45 points — that they wanted to ban their opponent from using. Afterward, each player assembled their own set of xCards for the match — up to six cards with a total value not exceeding 90 points — and the game began. Play proceeded like standard Texas Hold’em, but players could play an xCard on the appropriate street to boost their own advantage or cut into their opponent’s value.

The game required more strategizing from players and had the potential to become the next big thing in poker, but HoldemX never made it past the alpha stage; the project died quickly, though it did inspire PokerStars to launch Power Up in February 2017.

However, it was short-lived there as well; by November of that same year, the game was removed from the lobby due to low popularity. Players speculated that the key reason for this was people’s inherent reluctance to think too much while gambling.

Beat the Clock

When PokerStars began testing new Sit&Go games in November 2016, they got off to a relatively strong start.

The concept behind Beat the Clock lived up to its name: the tournament was limited to just five minutes, after which it ended and players received prizes proportional to the chips they had accumulated during that time.

Players liked them — even though regulars criticized the 10% rake, which was high for this format — and you could find and play them in the lobby practically 24/7.

So why did they disappear from the lobby as early as September 2017? It all came down to launch timing: Beat the Clock coincided with other “fast” tournament formats — including Knockout Poker and Spin&Go MAX — that effectively overshadowed its unique features. Faced with a market oversaturated by similar formats, PokerStars opted for those that were more profitable, especially since the company was simultaneously investing heavily in the upcoming launch of Power Up.