What are the major characteristic differences between Hold'Em and Omaha?

I play hold'em 'cause that's the game I know best (well, the only poker variant I can play ), but I've heard of this game called Omaha. Some of my friends play it and seem to be enthusiastic about it, some people say it's easier to make a living from than is the case with Hold'Em, and now there's even a thread here in the forum arguing whether this omaha thing is the game of the future.

I barely know the rules of Omaha, but I'm not putting up this post with the purpose of learning basic mechanics of Omaha - My question, which I hope some of you multi-talented cardschatters with a deeper understanding of both games can answer - is this:

Apart from the trivial mechanic differences in the way the game is played, what are the major differences in how the game is approached? Are there any differences in the underlying math theory to be applied, are the drivers for game dynamics the same, well are there any traits at all besides of pure mechanics that set Omaha apart from Hold'Em in a big way? or are they just two quite similar variants of the same game, based on similar dynamics?

...and of course this: Is it easier to beat Omaha than Hold'Em at any given level?

I will probably give Omaha a shot one day, but for now it would be very interesting to get a heads up from someone who's been out there in the front line, grinding both games .......anyone?

Um, just try it before asking. Pull up some play money tables to figure out the rules, and then ask people what they think of the differences.

In my opinion, i think as of NOW, omaha is an easier game to beat only because there are many people who aren't very good at it. Of course, that would mean a that it would be harder for you considering u are probably one of those people who aren't very good since u have never played it lol. Anyway, in terms of beginners, i would say holdem is easier to beat only because Omaha keeps you on your toes ALL the time. Even if you flop the nuts, u still remain extremely uncomfortable becuase of the huge draws that your oppnonent may have due to having 4 cards. Also, you should realize that in Omaha, the person who has the draw is usually a favorite so u need to get used to being rivered and whatnot.

Some of the differences I can think of off the top of my head include what constitutes a good starting hand (a big pair should not be overvalued. You want 4 cards that "work together", e.g. have the potential to flop big straight or flush draws), it's more of a post-flop game than HE because of how close preflop equities run (which in turn affects your starting hand selection; you want hands that play well post-flop), and what may be a "strong" hand in HE isn't necessarily strong in Omaha (you often need to make what (from a HE player's perspective) may seem like big lay downs; e.g. trips, flushes, boats). There's much more to it, but the best way to get a feel for the differences is definitely to just give it a go.

I started playing PLO a couple of months ago and really enjoyed it, probably because it was nice to take a break from NLHE. If you think of your 4 PLO hole cards as six NLHE hands, that can be quite useful. For example, KK23 might look good because of KK but remember your hand also includes trash like K2 and K3. So starting hands requirements are different. And while top two pair is great in NLHE, it's far more likely to be behind in PLO.

As far as whether it's easier to beat than NLHE is concerned, I think PLO has far more variance. If you play against people who don't know what they're doing of course there's a chance their junky hand will beat your good hand. I'd be tempted to say you need a bigger bankroll for a specific limit in PLO than you would for the same limit in NLHE.

Main difference: AAAA is a trash hand lol.

It´s the "game of the nuts". And your edge is smaller, variance higher !

Couple cards.

This is the difference.

All of the answers so far are good. You want to have the nuts or draws to the nuts in Omaha. You want to win bigger pots when you have a strong draw. However, you have less playable starting cards than you do in holdem. Especially when you are out of position. Don't play short stacked in Omaha, because you want to be in big pots with the edge or when you need to bluff on the river when you miss your big draw and bluffs don't work with small stacks as well as they do with big stacks. I started playing Omaha in a home game and we played Omaha 8 or better with a fixed limit. It is an easier and less expensive game than Pot Limit Omaha. I agree with the poster who said to start out with play games to learn the ropes. But play the hands the same way as if you were playing for cash, since you can't play the cash games as you do the play games. There is a lot of advice in this forum and elsewhere on the web. Once you understand the game, you can read Jeff Hwang's books. I think they are the best. Good luck.