Side Bet City
Released in 2019, Side Bet City is a poker-themed live casino game that whisks you off to Las Vegas in 1985. Borrowing heavily from side bets found in other live dealer games, it is a simple concept that offers sizable rewards. Always innovative, its creators Evolution have once again delivered a top-quality release. And in this article, we’ll discuss everything from its rules and strategy, to the payouts and RTP values.
Casinos with Side Bet City
An Introduction to Side Bet City
Anyone who’s played live casino games like Ultimate Texas Hold’em before will be very familiar with the idea of side bets. In addition to the main game, players have the option to spice things up with optional wagers on the side. Well, in Side Bet City, these supporting bets are the star of the show!
Bet on one or more of three different poker hands being drawn by the dealer. Or alternatively, simply wager that none of them will win. Whatever your preference, all of the fast-paced action takes place in a colourful 1980’s-themed studio set. So let’s get ready to take a trip back in time and enjoy some poker-style side bets!
Head back to the mid-1980s and enjoy Side Bet City. It’s a simple but vibrant poker-style game with payouts of up to 1000 to 1!
Key Information
Developer | Evolution |
RTP | 96.69% (3 Card Hand) |
Min. Wager | 0.50 |
Max. Wager | 250 |
Max. Payout | 1,000 to 1 |
Rules of Side Bet City
Like many Evolution casino games, the rules of Side Bet City are extremely simple to grasp. The basic concept is built around poker hands and it borrows heavily from the side bets of other games, as the name implies. However, this live dealer title is also quite similar to 3-5-7 Poker.
Let’s dive straight into how Side Bet City works, starting with the four possible bets on offer.
Bet Types
There are four available wagers per game round and you can play as many of them as you wish. They are as follows:
- 3 Card Hand;
- 5 Card Hand;
- 7 Card Hand;
- All Lose.
After your betting window has ended, the dealer turns three cards face up on the table. This produces a three-card poker hand which determines the result of the first bet. Next, the dealer reveals two more cards to make a five-card hand. Then finally, two additional cards are drawn to complete a seven-card poker hand.
Each bet is based on the outcome of these three different hands. If the cards dealt produce one or more valid poker hands, bets placed on the corresponding selection(s) are winners. To calculate the returns, your stake is multiplied by the relevant value in the paytable.
If no hands are made then all three bets are losers. This would be a great result if you’ve made the fourth and final type of wager, which is “All Lose”.
Side Bet City Payouts
As previously mentioned, the returns for a winning bet depend entirely on what cards are drawn by the dealer. To understand these payouts, you’ll need to know exactly how poker hand rankings work. But if you’re not familiar, don’t worry, as we’ve outlined the full pay tables for each bet type in the following sections.
3 Card Hand
If the first three cards drawn complete a valid hand, you’ll be paid in accordance with the below table.
- Royal Flush: 100 to 1;
- Straight Flush: 40 to 1;
- 3-Of-A-Kind: 35 to 1;
- Straight: 5 to 1;
- Flush: 4 to 1;
- Pair: 1 to 1.
The Return To Player (RTP) rate for this particular bet is the highest of the four wagers at 96.69%.
5 Card Hand
The second wager in Side Bet City has a lower RTP of 95.21%. In actual fact, these are the hardest hands to complete, hence the greater payouts. Here’s the full pay table for the 5 Card Hand bet.
- Royal Flush: 1,000 to 1;
- Straight Flush: 250 to 1;
- 4-Of-A-Kind: 100 to 1;
- Full House: 50 to 1;
- Flush: 40 to 1;
- Straight: 25 to 1;
- 3-Of-A-Kind: 7 to 1;
- Two Pair: 4 to 1;
- Pair (Jacks+): 1 to 1.
7 Card Hand
This is the lowest-paying wager in Side Bet City with an RTP of 94.34%. See below for the full pay table.
- Royal Flush: 500 to 1;
- Straight Flush: 100 to 1;
- 4-Of-A-Kind: 50 to 1;
- Full House: 7 to 1;
- Flush: 5 to 1;
- Straight: 4 to 1;
- 3-Of-A-Kind: 3 to 1.
All Lose
If you don’t wish to bet on any of the above, you can always opt for the “All Lose” bet. The RTP of this particular wager is a fairly reasonable 96.29%. And as the name suggests, all three bets need to lose for this to win. Should this happen, you’ll earn a fairly modest 0.7 to 1 on your stake.
Gameplay Procedure
As you can see, the rules of Side Bet City are really quite simple. But just in case you haven’t fully grasped them, let’s run through an imaginary round. Hopefully, this will help to clarify exactly how this live dealer game works.
- Betting window opens. Each game round starts with a limited amount of time in which to place your bets. There are four options, as explained above.
- Three cards drawn. The dealer will produce three cards to begin with. Bets placed on the 3 Card Hand option will be settled based on this result.
- Next two cards. Another two cards are then drawn. Added to the original three, this provides the result for the 5 Card Hand bet.
- Last two cards. Finally, the dealer places another two cards face up on the table. We now have seven cards, which determine the result of any 7 Card Hand bets.
- Winners are paid. With drawing complete, Side Bet City will now automatically pay the winners their prizes. The betting window reopens and a new round begins.
Where to Play Side Bet City
You can play Side Bet City at the majority of regulated casinos which offer Evolution titles. A good starting point would be those sites found in this guide. Not only has our expert team verified each one for safety and security, but they also provide convenient payment options and excellent customer support.
You won’t find Side Bet City at any anonymous casinos, unfortunately. Like most live dealer games, you’ll need to register an account and play for real money. There are no demo versions available at which to practise.
How to Win at Side Bet City
Like most casino games, Side Bet City is reliant on random chance. Your bets are at the mercy of the dealer who draws cards from a freshly shuffled deck of 52. As such, there are no strategies you can apply to secure long-term winnings.
The best way to approach Side Bet City is to think of it as a bit of fun. Don’t expect to make bundles of money playing this game, but instead, keep your stakes small and play purely for entertainment.
To make your bankroll last as long as possible and give yourself the best chance of success, stick to the 3 Card Hand bet. This has an RTP of 96.69% and is, therefore, the highest-paying wager in the game.
A solid alternative is to bet on All Lose, which has an RTP of 96.29%. However, the returns on this bet are just 0.7 to 1, so it’s not the most exciting way to play.
Conclusion
Side Bet City is a simple but highly enjoyable live dealer game from premier casino suppliers Evolution. Based on side bets found in some of their other titles, the game is set in a Las Vegas poker room in the mid-1980s. As such, there’s plenty of vibrancy, with neon signs on set and the dealers kitted out in brightly-coloured uniforms.
In terms of payouts, Side Bet City doesn’t offer the most generous of Return To Player values. The best paying bets are in line with the industry average for video slots. So don’t view this as a way to try and make lots of cash. Instead, treat it for what it is; a fast-paced game that’s easy to learn and great fun to play.
This guide was created by expert iGaming writer and editor Dominic Field.
FAQ
What is the Side Bet City RTP?
It’s difficult to calculate the overall Side Bet City RTP and a better approach is to look at each individual bet. The RTP of 3 Card Hand is 96.69%, followed by 95.21% for 5 Card Hand and 94.34% for 7 Card Hand. All Lose bets return 96.29% in the long run.
How do you play Side Bet City?
The Side Bet City rules are extremely simple and you’ll pick them up in no time. We’ve explained them in full a little further up the page. But the basic idea is that the dealer produces three cards, followed by two more and a final two. This could potentially produce a three card poker hand, followed by a five card hand and a seven card hand. You can bet on any of those three hands, or choose “All Lose” instead.
Is there a winning strategy for Side Bet City?
Unfortunately not. Side Bet City relies entirely on randomly drawn cards and there are no tactics you can apply to guarantee long-term success. Betting on the 3 Card Hand offers the highest possible RTP. So this would be the best way to play to prolong your bankroll.
Which online casinos have Side Bet City?
Use the list of Side Bet City casinos to see all online casinos that have Side Bet City. We filter the casino top list to only show Side Bet City casinos that accept players from your location.