Atlantic City Blackjack

Atlantic City Blackjack is an American style Hole Card variation of classic Blackjack. The Hole Card variation simply means that the dealer’s first card is dealt face down. The game is played with eight standard decks, and only one hand is played at a time. Atlantic City Blackjack pays out when your hand has a higher point total than the dealer’s hand without going over 21, or when the dealer’s hand goes over 21.

Atlantic City Blackjack Gold is also available on Microgaming software. The difference between the Gold and original versions of Microgaming's Atlantic City Blackjack games is that the Gold is graphically superior, but a little harder to use.

Rules

In Atlantic City Blackjack, the dealer always stands on 17. The dealer checks his Hole Card for a Blackjack on a 10 or Ace. The cost of a Surrender is half of your original bet, and you cannot Surrender if the dealer is showing an Ace. Splitting and re-splitting is allowed, up to 3 times per game, making it possible to have as many as 4 hands at once. You can split a pair of Aces; each Ace then gets one card and automatically stands. Split Aces that receive 10s is not Blackjack, nor is split 10 cards receiving Aces. Doubling Down is allowed on any two first cards, even after a split, but you cannot Double Down if you have Blackjack. You can take Insurance if the dealer’s first card is an Ace, and the bet is half your original bet. You can draw up to 9 cards after your first two. If after 9 cards you do not have 21, you must Stand and the dealer plays his hand.

Wagers and Payouts

Chips come in 8 denominations, from 1 credit to 500 credits. Max first bet for any hand is 500 USD/Euro/GBP. Blackjack pays out at 3:2 on your original bet. If you have a winning hand, but not Blackjack, you are paid out at 1:1 on your original bet. If the dealer gets Blackjack and you took Insurance on his Ace, your Insurance bet (half of your original bet) pays out at 2:1.

Graphics and Gameplay

Atlantic City Blackjack has bright, bold graphics. Realistic chip trays and other item surround a plush, green table. The view is top-down, so you are looking straight at the action from above. All gameplay happens using buttons on the bottom, except for betting, which involves dragging chips from your tray onto the table. The buttons are clearly labeled, but there are a lot of then, so it takes some time to get used to. The game offers Auto Play, which uses the built-in Strategy Table to decide what to do on any possible hand. This table can be edited as you like, so the computer always does what you want it to do.

Atlantic City Blackjack Gold is basically a graphically-enhanced version of the non-Gold version. This version has very realistic graphics. The view is isometric, so you are looking down and across at the table, which is more realistic than the top-down view. All gameplay happens using tiny rollover buttons on the bottom, except for betting, which involves dragging chips from your animated chip tray onto the table. Basically, the Gold version offers great graphics, animation, and even nice background music, but because the screen is full of your view of the table, all the buttons and things you need to click are small and sometimes hard to see. It is a trade off, and since the rules are the same, you can choose which one you want to play.

Tips

Because Atlantic City Blackjack is a Hole Card game, a slightly different strategy will apply than if you were playing two-up Blackjack. Since one of the dealer’s cards is hidden from view until your hands are compared, there is an element of surprise involved. Generally, it is best to assume that the Hole Card is worth 10. This will keep your bets a bit more conservative, and will better prepare you if the dealer has a good hand.

Conclusion

Overall, this is a good, solid Blackjack game. The rules are quite standard, so the only thing that might make this one a little tricky is that it is a Hole Card variation. If you want a good 8 deck game, definitely check this one out!