Blackjack Switch Review – All the Details of the Game
Ever found yourself playing Blackjack, looking at your hand and another one at the table, thinking how the cards in the two look like mismatched soulmates? You wish you could just swap them and put them where they belong so you get a perfect combination like a Blackjack or at least a more favourable outcome. You know, however, that this manoeuvre would be considered cheating, so you just face the misfortune and carry on hoping the next deal will be more advantageous. Well, that’s only happened to you if you haven’t played Blackjack Switch where swapping cards is not a forbidden move but a normal practice. This variant of Blackjack was patented in 2009 by Geoff Hall and is played according to the rules of standard Blackjack, with a few intricacies of, course, which we discuss in detail in this review.
- switch
- Switch Cards from Two Hands
- Spilt, Double, and Side Bets
Blackjack Switch gives players the option to exchange cards between two hands to get a more favourable outcome.
- Licensed Provider of Gambling Services
- Top-Notch Casino App
- Superb Software Platform by Playtech
Since Hall first presented it in 2000 and offered it at his casino in 2001, the game quickly gained For online casinos, the game was developed by Playtech, quickly becoming a favourite among players. You’d probably think that having this option and the normal set of Blackjack rules sounds too good to be true and you’d be right. You can’t really have it all, so we have to tell you – there are certain differences between a standard game of Blackjack and a version which enables the switch option. First of all, you have to play with two hands so that you can trade cards between them. The bets for the two hands have to be of equal value and you can switch only the second cards dealt to the hands. For more details on the rules, read on.
Play the Game for Free – Try a Demo Version and See How You Like It
If you’re impatient to try the game and see how it plays, check out the demo version below. You can choose different bet values – from £1 to £300 and you will also notice it features other standard options you can use, like insurance, split, double, and push. Try a few deals and see if you can think of a strategy or if this type of Blackjack suits your preferences. Alternatively, if you are looking for further information and explanation, this page about blackjack switch online can give you some pointers. After each game, you can rebet at the same value or start a new game and wager differently. If you have any questions about the gameplay options or why a certain deal played out the way it did, check the rules of the game explained in more detail below.
Instant PlayRules and Features – The Details You Need to Know
Blackjack Switch can be played with four, six, or eight decks. After you’ve placed the two equal bets for the two hands, the cards will be dealt face up. If the dealer has an Ace or a ten face up, they can peek for a Blackjack. If they do have Blackjack, all hands automatically lose unless you have Blackjack yourself, in which case it’s a push. You can switch the second cards dealt between the two hands. For example, if one hand has a ten and a four and the other has a six and a ten, you can switch the four and the ten to get one hand of 20 (10 + 10) and one hand of 10 (6 + 4). Then, you can hit or stand. The dealer will hit on a soft 17.
- A dealer’s hand of 22 is a push.
- A player’s blackjack beats a dealer’s 22.
- Players can split and double after a split.
- Players can re-split up to four hands.
- There is no surrender option.
There is a side bet in Blackjack Switch called Super Match. It is placed on the first two cards of the two hands the player has been dealt and rewards pairs, three-of-a-kind, two pairs, or four-of-a-kind across the four cards. This affects badly the players in case the two top or bottom cards are identical, depriving them of a switching choice that could change the outcome of the deal drastically. What’s more, like most side bets, it increases the house edge – in this case up to 2.55%, so playing this side bet is not exactly to the player’s advantage. What is to the player’s advantage, though, it the option of the game that shows a pop-up message if you’re hitting on a 17 or more or standing on eight and below. You can disable this from the settings but it could be useful in case you accidentally press the wrong button.
The Most Rewarding Version of Blackjack
Since this is a Blackjack variant rather than a Blackjack game with a side bet, it’s more difficult to establish the odds for the basic game. There are strategies that can help players decide when a switch would be a wise move not just in the very immediate and clear instances when you can make a 21 or other favourable hand. A rather straightforward strategy has been developed by Cindy Liu and there are some more advanced ones that help you calculate the chances but they do involve a lot of memorising. Blackjack Switch is the lowest house edge game available at all of these softwares and is generally considered to be the most rewarding version of the game with a 0.6% house edge.
The low house edge and the strategical planning that diversifies the basic game significantly, presenting challenges even to the experienced players, are some of the reasons this variant has become so popular first in land-based casinos and now online as well. It does have some aspects that increase the house edge – for example some Vegas casinos don’t count an ace + 10 after a switch as blackjack but just as a 21 hand. This is not transferred into the online games but the rule of the dealer’s 22 being a push is still valid. And to balance the advantageous switch aspect for the player, casino pay out a blackjack 1:1 as opposed to the usual 3:2.
If you’re not that much into analysing possibilities and predicting various outcomes and you would much rather play just a simple, straightforward game, it’s a good idea to stick with the standard Blackjack games. If, however, you enjoy memorising combinations and being able to turn things in your favour thanks to your careful calculations, you should definitely look up Blackjack Switch at your favourite Playtech-powered casino.