Premise

In Blackjack, you and the dealer (the computer) are dealt two cards to start. The objective of Blackjack is to accumulate cards that add up closer to 21 than that of the dealer's cards, without going over 21. Cards are worth their face value with the exception of Kings, Queens, and Jacks which are each worth 10 and Aces which are worth either 1 or 11. If the value of your hand is closer to 21 than that of the dealer you win. If the value of the dealer's hand is higher than yours you lose. If the hands are of equal value the deal is a push and your money is returned. If you have a total of 22 or higher (a busted hand), you lose regardless of whether the dealer also busts.

Summary of Rules

• Six 52-card decks are used
• The deck is re-shuffled after each hand (the shuffle is not visually represented in the game)
• Dealer stands on all 17's or greater
• No re-splitting of cards allowed
• No surrender
• Only one additional card allowed on each Ace when splitting a pair of Aces
  • • Winning Hand 1 to 1
    • Blackjack 3 to 2
    • Insurance 2 to 1
    • Blackjack (after splitting) 1 to 1

  • How to Play

    Blackjack is played with six fifty-two card decks. After each game has been played, the used cards are shuffled back into the deck. All face cards are valued at ten and the cards from 2-10 are valued as indicated. Aces can be valued at either one or eleven; if counting the Ace as eleven would put the hand over twenty-one, the Ace is automatically counted as one instead. You do not need to specify which value the Ace has as it's always assumed to have the value that makes the best hand. The value of a hand is the sum of the values of the individual cards. For example, a hand containing a Jack, 3, and 4 has a value of 17.
    
    Betting: Your chips are stacked by denomination (£0.10, £0.20, £0.50, £1, £2, £5, £10, £25, £50, £100, £250, £500) at the bottom of the screen. Select the amount you would like to wager on a given hand by clicking the left mouse button on the chip of that denomination. Each time you click the left mouse button you will add a chip from that pile to your planned wager amount. You must wager at least the minimum amount specified in order for the cards to be dealt.
    
    To start: You begin a hand of Blackjack by placing a bet on the table as described above. After clicking the "Deal" button, you will then receive two cards face up. The dealer will receive one card face up and one face down. Once you have been dealt your two cards (and based on the nature of these cards) you can do the following.

    Hit

    Requests another card. You can request a hit as many times as you like, but if your total goes over twenty-one, you will "bust" and lose the hand.

    Stand

    Requests that you receive no more cards. The hand as it currently stands will be judged against the dealer's.

    Split

    If you have two cards of the same denomination, a Split button will be available. This option will only be active immediately after you receive your first two cards. You can split your cards into two hands and play each hand separately. Your original bet will be duplicated for the new hand. Each hand will be played out as usual except when splitting Aces, where only one additional card per hand is dealt. The split option can only be used once per hand - you cannot split part of a split hand. Any winning 21 obtained after splitting a pair is paid 1-to-1.

    Double Down

    If you select this option, three things will happen: you will get exactly one more card, your turn will end, and your bet will be doubled. This option will only be active immediately after the first two cards of a hand have been dealt. You cannot therefore double down on a hand that you have already Hit.

    Insurance

    Whenever the dealer's up-card is an Ace, the player has the option of taking insurance for half the amount of the bet.
    
    When you buy insurance, you are effectively betting on the fact that the dealer's down card is a ten or face card, i.e. a natural Blackjack.
    
    If the dealer does have a 10 ranking card, the player is immediately paid 2-to-1 on the insurance bet, but the original wager is lost unless the player too has a Blackjack and pushes with the dealer. If the dealer does not have a natural Blackjack, the rest of the hand is played out as usual, and you lose your insurance money.
    
    If you eventually win the hand, you will get back your original bet plus the same amount in profit.
    
    If you don't buy insurance and the dealer has blackjack he will automatically win the game. If you don't buy insurance and the dealer does not have blackjack the game will continue as normal.

    Payoffs

    If you win with a natural Blackjack, you will be paid off at 3-to-2 odds, which means you get your original bet back plus 150% profit. (So if you bet £50 and win with a natural twenty-one, you get £50 (your bet) plus £75 (your bet plus half of your bet), which totals to £125).
    
    

    Betting Limits

    For bet limits please refer to the game screen.

    Return to Player (RTP)

    This game is regulated by the Alderney Gambling Control Commission. The theoretical average return to player (RTP) is 99.7%. This RTP represents the long-term expected payback of the game which has been calculated by an independent testing company in accordance with AGCC regulations.

    Malfunction

    In the case of any malfunction, all bets and winnings are null and void.