What exactly is an ante, and how exactly do forced bets impact the overall gameplay?

The blinds and the ante are both examples of forced bets. Both of these decisions have to be taken before the cards are dealt. However, if there are only two players making the blinds (who are sitting left to the dealer), then the ante is something that every player is required to perform. It is more accurate to think of the ante as a kind of fee for participating in the game as well as an element that contributes to the pot. The ante is a relatively modest “payment” that is typically equal to one tenth of the amount of the big blind.
The primary objective of the ante is to eliminate the possibility of the game being artificially stretched out for a longer period of time. Players who, in the absence of the ante, would have routinely thrown away their hands in the hope of finding a better one are now compelled to take part in the betting or risk losing their chips.
Because antes do not appear on every table, it is important to read the table description thoroughly before engaging in gameplay. Games that are considered “casual” may or may not include an ante, while games that use blinds frequently do not have an ante. However, its presence has a big impact on the game. Even at the preflop stage, there is already a substantial pot accessible, which both quickens the pace of the game and makes it more interesting to play. Because of this, ante wagering is common in tournaments, particularly in the later rounds of play. The presence of an ante encourages more players to keep playing with the cards they have been dealt rather of folding, which is beneficial for the ratings in televised poker tournaments. The majority of high-stakes cash games that are shown on television feature blinds and antes.
There is a possibility that the dealer will pay an ante for each player in live cash games when the person serving as the dealer rotates after each hand.