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2012 Pokerstars review
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2012 poker stars bonus and review - marketing & bonus code
Updated In February, 2012 - Pokerstars has been at the top of the online poker food chain for several years. Even after banning U.S. players in April 2011, Poker Stars continues to enjoy its premier status virtually uncontested. The insane traffic at Pokerstars is a product of excellent software, game variety and the most rewarding promotions ever offered by an online poker room. Millions of poker players from around the globe play at Pokerstars on a daily basis and the gap between them and other online poker sites continues to grow. In 2011 Pokerstars celebrated their 10th anniversary and over the past decade they have set a number of world records including the largest poker tournament (149,196 players) and the largest weekly tournament prize pool ($11,825,600). This Pokerstars review will cover bonuses, promotions, traffic, software and banking. This 2012 Pokerstars review will cover some of their newer features and a special bonus offer.
2012 Pokerstars marketing code - sign up bonus code
The bonus deal that we have worked out with Pokerstars is truly one of a kind. It is 3X better than any other poker room bonus because you will receive 100% match bonuses on three deposits instead of just one. There are two codes that need to be entered. The first is the 2012 Pokerstars marketing code PSP11820. After visiting Poker Stars and downloading the software you will need to create your account. The final page of the sign up process is where this marketing code has to be entered at, as shown above.
The next step is to enter the 2012 Poker Stars bonus code STARS600 on your first, second and third deposit. Micro and low limit poker players will benefit the most from our special bonus package at Poker Stars because they will finally be able to claim a large bonus even if they only make three small deposits. The cap for this triple bonus package is $600. Poker Stars will credit the bonus money in $10 installments so you will probably receive your first payment by your second or third session.
Pokerstars card games & traffic
Pokerstars bounced back quickly after they stopped allowing Americans to play for real money back in April of 2011. In 2012 Poker Stars is averaging 175,000 players during peak hours. They have separate rooms setup for Italian, French and other European players so if you factor this traffic in the peak numbers exceed 400,000. That works out to 20-25X larger than Party Poker, their closest rival. Pokerstars has little trouble filling up real money ring tables for every card game that they offer. This is saying a lot because Pokerstars has a massive selection of games including many uncommon poker games that you won't find anywhere else. Here is a list of the uncommon games available at Poker Stars in 2012. I've left out games like online Texas Hold'em, Stud poker and Omaha since every poker site offers them.
Uncommon card games at Pokerstars:
Special features at poker stars in 2012
Pokerstars really enjoys inventing new ways to play poker. The software is loaded with cool features but I'm going to focus on the ones that concern how poker is played. The newest addition at Pokerstars is Time Tournaments. This new tourney structure is not available at any other poker site. When you play in a Time Tourney there will obviously be a time limit. These limits range from 15 minutes to 180 minutes. Once the time runs out each remaining player will win part of the prize pool. Payouts will be based on the number of chips you have. You are not going to win a massive amount of money with these tournaments but you can consistently win small amounts with relative ease if you play smart. Time tournaments are also the fastest way to earn VPPs and FPPs at Poker Stars. This is just one of many innovations available at Pokerstars. They also boast:
- Double or nothing sitngos
- Hyper-turbo MTT's and sitngos
- Pokerstars Home Games - Setup your own private poker games with friends and family at Pokerstars. The Poker Pots Poker League will utilize the Home Game platform for some of our tournaments.
- Visit Pokerstars
2012 Poker Stars VIP club - A guide to Pokerstars VPPs and FPPs
The Pokerstars VIP Club is really what separates them from other rooms. This VIP program gives you back the majority of your rake and sometimes it feels like you actually get more back than you put in. This loyalty program is very complex but that is what makes it rewarding. As you play at real money tables you will earn Pokerstars VPPs and Pokerstars FPPs. This program has six levels and there is a multiplier effect on FPPs so that is why they use two different point systems. the first thing you earn at the tables will be VPPs. VPPs are very important at Poker Stars. They use them to determine how many FPPs you receive, clearing bonuses, VIP level calculation, Stellar Rewards, Milestone Cash Credits, Pokerstars VIP store access, freerolls and several other things. Here is a general overview of the main benefits offered by the Poker Stars VIP Club in 2012.- VIP levels (Bronze Star > Supernova Elite) - Four of the six levels are based on the number of VPPs you earn on a monthly basis. The remaining two levels are based on how many you earn yearly. Each level has some very cool perks but the FPP multiplier is definitely one of the most important. The first level will credit you with 1 FPP for each VPP you generate. Higher levels provide the following ratios; 1.5:1, 2:1, 2.5:1, 3.5:1 and 5:1.
- 2012 Stellar Rewards - There are 20 different Stellar Rewards at Poker Stars in 2012. These rewards are basically just cash gifts they give you when you have reached certain benchmarks throughout the year. There is a total of $2,600 available per year. Even 1-2 days/week microstakes players claim most of these each year. The typical small stakes and medium stakes player will receive all 20 rewards by September. There are five $10 rewards, nine $50 rewards, five $100 rewards and one $200 reward. To claim them all you need to average around 1,900 VPPs per week. These are not bonuses, you can cash them out of play with them without worrying about clearance requirements. Each one of these
- 2012 Milestone Cash Credits - Milestone Cash Credits are the backbone of the VIP Club at Pokerstars. They provide around 75% of the overall value to players. In the past each cash credit would cost tens of thousands of FPPs. In 2012 they only cost 1 FPP each. Milestone Cash Credits can be broken down into two categories: Supernova and Supernova Elite. There are seven Supernova cash credits totaling $23,200. When you have reached 200,000 during the course of a year you can buy a $2,600 credit for 1 FPP. These go all the way up to $4,200 @ 800,000 VPPs. The Supernova Elite credits dwarf these. There are 9 in total and a total of $113,600 can be claimed yearly. The first is available at 1,000,000 VPPs. This is a great way to welcome you into the Supernova Elite club. This benchmark releases a $20,000 cash credit. All future credits alternate between $9,200 and $19,200. Remember, this is based on how many points you earn in a year so it may look impossible in January but when your sitting pretty at 750,000 VPPs in October you will have a much better outlook.
- Rewards Bonuses - These are given out as cash in 2012. They come in six sizes:$25, $50, $300, $650, $1,500 and $4,000. You can buy them as often as you like. Prices range from 2,500 to 250,000. This is where earning up to 5 FPPs for each VPP really comes in handy.
- VIP Store - There are over 300 items in the Pokerstars VIP store. I've played at virtually every major site and done research on the ones that I haven't and this is the best VIP store in the online poker, casino and sports betting industries. They have iPads, Pokerstars T-shirts, luxury cars, tournament tickets (live & online), precious metals, customized items, poker items and much more.
Pokerstars banking in 2012 - deposits and payouts
Ever since leaving the U.S. market Pokerstars has become one of the fastest paying online poker sites. As the largest poker site, several times over, Pokerstars can take advantage of unique deposit and withdrawal options that other rooms can't afford. This is because Pokerstars can boast massive volume while other rooms would have to pay much more per transaction because of the relatively low volume. With big international sites like Pokerstars it is the processing time that really matters. Once the payment is sent it can take anywhere from minutes to days to reach you depending on what option you use. Most allow you to have the money in hand within 24 hours. Some poker sites make you wait 3-7 days before they even send the money. Pokerstars is much much faster. After submitting a cash out request you will receive an email stating that the payment has been processed within an hour usually.
Pokerstars Support
The Pokerstars support team was one of the worst for many years. They have gotten better but I still put them at around the industry average. Only email support is available at Poker Stars so that is definitely a big shortcoming. Most of the other online poker rooms featured on this site offer live chat, email and phone support 24/7 so this is one area that Pokerstars cannot compete in. Granted, it is basically the only area that they cannot compete in. Response times at Pokerstars in 2012 are between 10 and 30 minutes so that is pretty good but the lack of an instant support tool is inexcusable for the largest online poker room.
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