Behind the Scenes of Leak Buster Limit for Holdem Manager 2

Recently, PokerSoftware brought you a feature article about the rollout of Leak Buster Limit for Holdem Manager 2. Now, you can bust leaks in Limit Hold'em and fine-tune your game like never before. Leak Buster Limit not only shows you your poker leaks, but also advises you on how to correct tHEM. With that in mind, PokerSoftware sat down with Leak Buster's John Anhalt to learn what went into the making of its Limit version for use with Holdem Manager 2. Download Leak Buster today.

PokerSoftware: Talk about the development of Leak Buster Limit for Holdem Manager 2. What went into it?
John Anhalt: With our No Limit Hold'em and Pot Limit Omaha versions, we had to redo the product twice when Holdem Manager 2 first debuted, so we put Limit Hold'em on hold for a bit. We held off on the release until everything was kosher on Holdem Manager's side before we were ready to go. Limit took two-and-a-half months to complete from initial phase to final phase. Leak Buster Limit for Holdem Manager 2 is still technically in beta and the final release is due out soon.

PokerSoftware: What technical work is required in order for Leak Buster to bring a new product to market?
John Anhalt: It's getting it to work with a new interface. Holdem Manager 1 and Holdem Manager 2 have completely different processes, so it's things like how the program stores data. Limit has around 500 different queries and leaks it's looking for, so all of those have to be rewritten and tested in Holdem Manager 2. You have to make sure Leak Buster is accessing the correct information and the data it's getting is working properly.

Literally what we did was take a sample of hands in Holdem Manager 1 we know were working well in Leak Buster and tried to match tHEM with numbers we got when we did the same process with Holdem Manager 2. Our development team has been with us for three years now, so they know the product really well.

PokerSoftware: Do you talk with Holdem Manager about changes to the product?

John Anhalt: Yes, we talk to them. For significant changes they make, they let us know. Then, we have to adjust. Limit is in beta right now, but all of the reports back so far are good. The beta testing we've done looks super solid, so we're anticipating a smooth release. We don't anticipate any other significant changes on Holdem Manager's side based on the communication we've had with them.

PokerSoftware: How much of a change in Leak Buster is required when you move from No Limit and PLO to Limit?

John Anhalt: It was a significant change because the things you're looking for differ between the different games. It's looking for common errors that people do and those are much different for a PLO game than a NLHE game. We have to work with our content people like Bryce Paradis and others who know the games well to develop our product. The post-flop analysis in each game is also a lot different.

PokerSoftware: Will we be seeing Leak Buster roll out support for additional games?

John Anhalt: We've had Omaha High-Low on the table, but it has been a resource issue post-Black Friday and we have been working on support for Holdem Manager 2. We've wanted to do Omaha High-Low and also look at tournaments, but the biggest thing with tournaments is access to content. With cash games, we had tons of data to analyze. You can't do that with tournaments. We're probably at some point going to look at High-Low. That has definitely been on the list, but based on where we are with other products, it won't be for at least six months.

PokerSoftware: Talk about the impact that Black Friday had on Leak Buster.

John Anhalt: Resources had to be cut back significantly after Black Friday. Everyone in the poker community took a big hit and a major market, the United States, has been dwindling ever since. With the product itself, we've tried to make it smarter and more adaptive. In NLHE, there are over 550 areas Leak Buster examines in players' games.

Right now, Leak Buster breaks it into micro-stakes leaks and mid- and high-stakes leaks. It adjusts the priorities of what it's looking for based on the stakes you're playing, so the product is definitely very adaptive. Every area will have more or less significance based on the stakes you're playing.

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