PokerStars New Rewards Program Somewhat Confusing

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Monday, June 12th, 2017 | Written by Shane Larson

PokerStars has launched its new rewards program in Denmark and Italy, with its gradual roll-out in other countries expected to take place over the summer and fall of this year. The new system called Stars Rewards is part of a total departure from the brand’s previous rewards system that was primarily based on volume, with the latest version instead depending upon randomization and the gaming preferences of players. Explaining the rationale behind the change, Severin Rasset, Director of Poker Innovation and Operations for PokerStars stated:

“Poker is a game of wits with players competing against each other for fun, for competition and for profit. Our goal in managing poker is always to maintain that delicate balance and deliver the best possible playing experience while doing so. Since 2006, our loyalty program has encouraged volume rather than competition. It has been a tremendous success and was the right approach for many years. However, the environment has changed. The game has matured; the profile of our players has changed.”

Stars Rewards

A quick glance at the new rewards program reveals the following points:

– Players will now earn rewards points at a rate of 100 points for every $1 paid out tournament fees or cash game rake. The volume will vary for casino games, though, with lower house edge games providing fewer points.

– While players stack up their points, a progress bar will register their progress, eventually leading to a Chest being unlocked, and personalized rewards being awarded. The value of these rewards depends on a random draw and the type of Chest that is earned.

– The six levels of Chests are as follows: Red, Blue, Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum. Players have to earn four Chests a day in order to upgrade to a new chest, and the higher the Chest level, the more points will be needed to unlock them, but the greater the rewards will be.

– Players will receive a Boost once every eight hours that will double the rate in which they can receive rewards. However, it will be capped off at a designated number.

Further Details

Many people have questions regarding Stars Rewards, such as how many reward points it will take to earn a Chest. While the details remain largely unanswered, it appears that consistency of play is one of the many factors that determine how players unlock these Chests, with a statement from the site explaining:

“Reward point requirements depend on the Chest type you are playing toward, but are also personalized based on your profile. Some of the factors which impact points requirements are recent activity, game-type and net deposits.”

While PokerStars did not give any sort of true data about how hard it might be to unlock one of these Chests, it did let its players know how much each Chest will be worth in US dollars, with the average amount for each Chest type as follows:

Red: $0.13
Blue: $0.40
Bronze: $1.05
Silver: $2.71
Gold: $7.01
Platinum: $21.52

Randomized Paytable

PokerStars has added a layer of randomness by adding rare surprises which it calls “Top Prizes” to any Chests, and as the site explains:

“In addition to your regular Chest rewards, we’ll also be giving away some amazing additional top prizes on a regular basis, divided among a number of random Chests… These top prizes can range from thousands in cash or bonuses and huge amounts of StarsCoin, to live event packages or tickets to online events with big money to be won.”

The only catch-all component of each Chest will be the StarCoins, which are worth $0.01 each and can be used for cash, select events, Reward Store items and qualifiers, similar to the way the virtual currency is already used. What is certain, however, is that this change is going to have a negative impact on high-volume grinders, as PokerStars has indicated that certain players may see their rewards decreased by as much as 85 percent. It is also probable that recreational poker players will be negatively impacted, too. In fact, the rewards for the lower Chests are so little that unless the progress bar for the requirements is just as low, this group of players would be earning more Rake back under the current Chrome Star system. Only time will tell how exactly Stars Rewards will impact the brand’s customers, but in the meantime there is a lot of speculation coming from the poker community as to how it may affect their experience of the online poker room .