* Bad mix of players (e.g. all aggro, all nitty, passive)
* Not enough money / excessive amount of money in play
* Disorganized or unreliable host; bad rulings
* Chip problems (crappy slugged chips, dirty chips, etc.)
* Dinged cards not replaced promptly
* Incompetent self-dealt game, lots of errors
* Too slow / tanking
From this list #3 (bad host/rulings), #5 (bad cards), and #7 (slow play/tanking) are all obvious dealbreakers for me. I see any of these in a game, I have decided it's the last time I am going to sit in the game.
#1 (mix of players) is probably the next most important. I definitely don't want to sit in a game full of nits. I personally don't mind sitting in an aggro game so much. Overall though, I think it's somewhat lazy to assume a "game" is always the same because it's the same host and location. Always evaluate every lineup independently. Even just one or two different players can change the whole dynamic, or for that matter the same players just making adjustments can also have a profound effect.
#6 (incompetent self-dealing) is probably next on the list, but if I know I am going into a self-dealt game, I am already anticipating there will be more patience required than a center-dealt game. Also "lots of errors" is somewhat subjective. Again, I know sitting down I will need to tolerate a lot more in a self-dealt game and understand not everyone is at my skill level for dealing. (Which in all modesty, I rate pretty high for a home game, probably would be average to below average if I were to ever audition at a poker room.) Lower dealing skill is just part of the deal in this situation. So I try and be patient with slow and unsure dealers in a self-dealt game so long as they are trying to get it right. I do mind dealers that directly break protocol for their own motives. (Pre-burning being a particularly egregious example of this.)
#2 (money) is important. I'm more worried about not enough money in play because a game may tend to break early if the wrong players get stacked. And these players that would quit after one stacking tend to be on the nitter side in the first place. I am confused about what a concern about excessive money would be? (Security, perhaps?) My only concern about excessive money in play would be in an uncapped NL game. But even at that, if I just buy in 100BB at a time or whatever I am comfortable with, I am really controlling my own risk level regardless of what the other players are doing.
#4 (crappy chips) this is sacrilege on PCF, but this is something I will overlook if the game is otherwise good and I still feel confident about being paid out. That said I do think this is a sign of lazy hosting at mid to high stakes (say 1-2 and up) if you are not willing to invest in at least semi-customs for the price of 300 big blinds (one bad NLHE night) or fewer.
A guy in my neighborhood used to host a nice 50¢-1 NLHE game with stock scroll chips. (Presently
$40/rack on Amazon. So better than dice chips, but still all of the security vulnerability.) I know I could have screwed him over royally if I ever just slipped a few greens in play, but I never did that and that game ran 1-2 nights a week for a good few years without issues before he moved away.
