European Blackjack Gold Series
The Gold Series from Microgaming is considered by many to be the definitive series of casino table games online. Likewise, the European Blackjack Gold Series tables are consistently the top-rated no-peek style games that you can find in the overall blackjack genre.
Casinos with European Blackjack Gold Series
An Introduction to European Blackjack Gold Series
Different types of players enjoy all different types of games. When it comes to blackjack as a genre, you’ll still find players who prefer one set of rules over another. However, in many cases, this preference is largely regional. We believe this to be the case with the European Blackjack Gold Series game produced by Microgaming.
This title centers completely around the European no-peek rule, which drastically changes blackjack strategy in many key situations.
The idea here is that Microgaming wants players to be able to focus on the game in front of them. Therefore, they created the Gold Series that’s all about having a great presentation for a wide range of different table games. At this version of European blackjack, you’ll have a great table layout. It features the classic green felt with a spotlight on the cards in play. Additionally, the dark wooden and black leather rail really add to the high-class nature of the presentation.
In terms of gameplay, the pace is really up to you. With the regular game speed activated, you’ll have a moderate pace where the cards aren’t dealt in a way that makes you feel rushed. However, if you want all of the animations sped up, then the “Quick Deal” option will do just that. It seems that Microgaming knows exactly how to cater to a wide range of preferred play styles. Simple options like this that allow you to customize aspects of your experience go a long way.
Rules and Gameplay for the European Blackjack Gold Series Game
On the one hand, you have rules for blackjack in general that players need to know for this game. On the other hand, you’ll have the particular rules that make this title different. If you aren’t familiar with both sets of rules, then you can find yourself having a hard time getting started. To this end, we want to make sure that you’re comfortable with what’s happening by breaking down everything from A to Z about this game in the following.
The Essentials Every Player Need to Know
Overall, on the most basic level, this is a game where you’re trying to get a higher total than the dealer. However, if you go over a total of 21 (ie: 22 or higher), then you lose. Each of the cards in the deck are worth their face value with jacks, queens and kings being worth 10 each. Additionally, the aces can be worth 1 or 11. That value can change at any time in the hand, but it will automatically update to be the best option for the player at all points in the hand. Also, if you have an ace in your hand that counts as 11 specifically, that’s called a soft hand. All other situations are called hard hands.
If you go over a total of 21, that’s called busting out. The dealer can bust out for the same reason. However, if you bust out, then you lose even if the dealer busts as well.
In some hands, you’ll be dealt a total of 21 with the first two cards. This is through a combination of an ace and a 10-point card. You’re immediately given a 3:2 bonus payout (if the dealer doesn’t also make their hand this same way), and this hand is appropriately called a blackjack. However, all other wins in this game pay at 1:1.
Playing Through a European Blackjack Gold Series Hand
The easiest way to really get a feel for learning how to play this game is to walk through a hand. That’s exactly what we’ll do here from start to finish:
- Using the chip selection in the bottom-left corner, you’ll start out by choosing your total bet size. From there, the cards are dealt.
- You are dealt two cards, face-up. Additionally, the dealer receives a single card that is also face-up.
- At this point, you are allowed to choose from a number of strategic options to play your hand. We cover the details of how these work down below.
- If you go over 21 points, you lose the hand immediately, and the dealer’s hand doesn’t matter.
- Otherwise, once your turn is over, the dealer will then begin to add cards one at a time. This continues until the dealer’s total is 17 or higher.
- If the dealer busts with 22 or more points, you win right away.
- In the case that neither of you bust, the highest total wins. Additionally, ties are a push, and you simply receive your bet back.
The process of playing this game is actually a bit more simplified compared to many styles of blackjack out there. With a lack of an insurance option due to the no-peek rule, which we’ll get more into down below, it speeds up the game considerably.
Your Betting Options in European-style Blackjack
The betting options for this game are straightforward and are in line with what’s typically available. However, you will run into some restrictions that aren’t always the case. We’ll outline those restrictions along with the following breakdowns.
- Stand – Players always have the stand option available. It simply ends your turn right away.
- Hit – You also have hitting as an option at all times. This will add one more card and continue your turn.
- Double – The double option does three things. First, it adds a single card to your hand. Second, it requires that double the size of your wager for the hand. Third, it ends your turn immediately after you receive the one card.
- Split – In situations where both of your cards are the same rank, you can split those two cards to create two new hands to play. However, an additional wager equal to the size of your original is required for the new hand.
These are the four basic options you have in this game. However, they are under certain restrictions that aren’t always the case in other styles of blackjack.
Other Restrictions
- You are only able to split your hand once in this game.
- Doubling can only happen if you have two cards that add up to a total of 9, 10 or 11 only.
- If you split aces, you can still play them normally. You aren’t restricted to drawing only one card to each of them like what you see in most games. This is a rule change that is definitely in favor of the player.
- The dealer does not peek for blackjack. This is the crux of European-style blackjack, and the whole question is avoided due to the dealer not receiving a second card to begin with.
- Surrendering is not an available option in this game. That’s something we don’t normally see with no-peek style games like this one.
- It’s also worth noting that this game uses two decks that are shuffled after each hand. That’s an atypical number for this style of blackjack, but it only affects a few small fringe strategy cases.
As you can see, a variety of restrictions are used in this game that make it stand out from other styles in the genre.
How to Win at European Blackjack Gold Series
We have a guide to strategy in European blackjack as a whole. However, it’s not for this particular game, and a few small adjustments will be needed.
The main thing to understand about strategy in this game is that it pretty much completely revolves around the no-peek rule. What this means is that in most games, the dealer peeks to see if they have blackjack before the player makes his or her decisions. If blackjack is there, the hand is immediately over. The idea behind this rule is that it speeds up the game. However, it has a strategic usage as well.
If you already know the dealer doesn’t have blackjack, as is the case in games other than this one, then you can double and split more liberally.
However, if you don’t know whether the dealer has blackjack or not, you have to be much more careful. Essentially, you’ll lose after your decision more often, so you can’t increase your bet size as much. This is primarily the case when you’re facing a 10-point card or an ace. Facing an ace in particular is so much worse because of the number of cards that can make blackjack for it.
Overview of European Blackjack Gold Series by Microgaming
For a long time, Microgaming was primarily known for their work in the online slots genre. However, they changed things up quite a bit by pushing for a complete series of top-tier table games. Additionally, they update these tables pretty regularly to add new things like mobile blackjack compatibility.
Overall, this leads to the European Blackjack Gold Series tables being the best no-peek blackjack option that you can find online. The look is right, and the gameplay comes at the right pace.
FAQ
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