Blackjack, or also referred to as "21" is one of the most popular card games in every casino. The origin and history of blackjack is a highly debated issue. Some believe it was first played in ancient China, but others think it was invented in 18th century France.
These days blackjack is also extremely popular in online japanese casino. Modern technology allows online casinos to perfectly replicate the gameplay and atmosphere present in brick-and-mortar casinos and blackjack games.
Blackjack on the Internet
The first online casinos opened around the early ‘90s and blackjack was one of the first games to be introduced. The first blackjack games were rather sloppy when it came to design and visual effects but gameplay wise they lived up to their offline counterpart.
As technology progressed, online blackjack tables became increasingly sophisticated. These days they use latest technology graphics and effects, resembling more and more with modern video games. There are even several variants of blackjack available on the internet.
Online blackjack can be play both for play money and real money at so-called online casinos. Online casinos are companies that provide online gambling services over the internet. In the mid-2000s online casinos became very popular resulting in what today is known as the "online gambling boom".
Variations of Online Blackjack
Online blackjack has evolved a lot since it had been introduced. The most popular blackjack variant still remains to be regular blackjack that's also being played in land-based casinos, but some online casinos have recently begun to offer various exotic blackjack variants as well.
Regular blackjack
Regular blackjack that's being played in land-casinos is still dominating every online casino. In this variant the game starts with the dealer giving two cards face up to the player after which dealing one card face up and one card face down to himself.
After this, the player may either "hit" which means to request a new card or "stay" which means to refuse to accept a new card. Next, the dealer will reveal his face down card. If the player's hand value is higher than that of the dealer's, then the player will win.
Neither the player nor the dealer is allowed to go over 21. Whoever first goes over 21 will automatically lose the game. Receiving cards that have a total value of 21 will result in instantly winning the game.
Blackjack Switch
Blackjack switch is a relatively new blackjack variant that was invented and patented in 2009. The game is based on regular blackjack but differs in that the player is being given two hands of cards instead of just one.
In a typical game of Blackjack Switch, the dealer will first offer two cards face up to the player. Each of the cards will represent a separate hand. After this, the dealer will give one card face up to himself, after which add two additional face up cards to the player. Finally, the dealer will offer a new face down to himself.
Now, the player will have the chance to switch his top cards. Consider this example: The player is dealt 9-8 and 3-4. – In Blackjack Switch, the player will have the option to transform these hands into 9-4 and 3-8. After these steps have been taken, the game continues according to the rules of regular blackjack.
Blackjack Surrender
Blackjack Surrender is a special variant of blackjack that is offered by some online casino bonuses. Like in normal blackjack, in Blackjack Surrender the player will receive two cards face up after which the casino will give itself one card face up and one card face down.
However in Blackjack Surrender players will have the opportunity to give up their initial hand of cards in case they believe that it's very likely that the round will be lost. In exchange of surrendering players will receive half their bet back. Most commonly in normal blackjack it's not possible to surrender every single initial hand of cards.
Increasing your Odds with Blackjack Strategy
There are many sources on the internet that will claim that blackjack can be beaten. There are indeed some strategies that can either considerably increase your odds or even allow you to beat the system in the long run.
The most popular blackjack strategy is blackjack card counting. Blackjack card counting revolves around observing the value of the cards being dealt over the course of a game. Using mathematical formulas, advanced players may predict what cards are going to be dealt next.
Please keep in mind that blackjack card counting will not allow players to precisely predict which card is being dealt next, it will merely increase the likelihood of players making a correct prediction. Blackjack card counting will not work every time.
Blackjack card counting techniques will only give players a statistical advantage over a very large number of hands played. Card counting cannot be used as a method to "trick the system" over a course of just a few hands. Our additional articles will extensively deal about this and other related subjects.
