Playtech’s Live All Bets Blackjack : Exploiting uneducated casino players everywhere.
Earlier this year, Playtech lauded the release of an all new live blackjack game. They call it ‘All Bets Blackjack’, heralding it as “exclusive”, “innovative” and “engaging”. To kick off the release, the game was designed as bespoke title for GVC-owned bwin, and has since been launched across all Playtech-licensed .com casinos.
The key to designing a truly innovative blackjack game is to give players something they’ve never had before. It could be a new feature, a new side bet, new rules or payout structures. In this case, it’s a combination thereof. The game features all Playtech’s blackjack side bets, with a special feature that gives players the options to place each and every side bet – hence the name ‘all bets’ – with the single tap of a button.
Live All Bets Blackjack a Side Bettors Dream
No doubt, any blackjack fan that’s partial to side bets will love this new live blackjack game. It features five different side bets, with payouts scaling anywhere from 2 to 1, up to 2,000 to 1, should the player get lucky enough. The eligible side bets, their conditions for winning, and house edge, are as follows:
Buster Blackjack
This is a bet that the dealer will bust. The number of cards the dealer busts with determines the payout. Busting with 3 or 4 cards awards the smallest payout of 2:1, scaling up to 250:1 for an 8-card bust. The highest payout of 2000:1 is awarded for an 8-card dealer bust when the player is dealt a natural blackjack. House edge = 6.17%
Lucky Lucky
The player’s first two cards and dealer’s up card are combined. If the total is 19 or 20, it’s worth a payout of 2:1. An unsuited or suited total of 21 is worth 3:1 or 15:1 respectively. 6-7-8 and 7-7-7 are worth even more, with a suited 7-7-7 paying the highest 200:1. House edge = 3.9%
21 + 3
The player’s first two cards and dealer’s up card are combined to form a 3-card poker hand. You’ll need a three of a kind, flush, straight, or straight flush to get paid. Best of all is a suited three of a kind, paying the highest 100:1. House edge = 3.7%
Top 3
Again, the player’s first two cards and dealer’s up card are combined to form a 3-card poker hand. It’s similar to 21+3, but with fewer winning combinations and higher payouts. Only a three of a kind or straight flush get paid, with a suited three of a kind being worth 270:1. House edge = 9%
Perfect Pairs
One of the most common blackjack side bets of all, Perfect Pairs requires the player’s first two cards – or the dealer’s first two cards – to form a pair. If that pair is of the same color, or same suit, the payouts grow larger, up to 25:1 for a suited pair. House edge = 4.10%.
Exploiting the Uneducated Blackjack Players of the World
The vast majority of blackjack fans choose the game because it offers the lowest house edge of any game in the casino (depending on the specific rules of the game). Playtech’s Live All Bets Blackjack has a base-game edge of 0.54%, which equates to a theoretical return to player (RTP) of 99.46%.
All blackjack side bets, including those detailed above, come with terrible odds. Any educated blackjack player knows to avoid side bets at all cost, as they only diminish your odds of winning. As noted above, the house edge on side wagers in All Bets 21 ranges from 3.7% up to 9.0%. Thus, placing these bets only stands to ruin the 0.54% edge players can achieve by employing basic strategy.
Long story short – if you have money to burn and like taking big risks, go right ahead and tap the All Bets button with each new hand. Otherwise, ignore the side bets, make smart decisions, and enjoy the base game for what it is.
