Who doesn’t love blackjack, seriously? It’s one of the most popular casino games world wide, and with very good reason! It’s fun, it’s exciting, and it’s the closest we’ve got to Wild West-style shoot-out duels that don’t involve actually going out and murdering somebody. That nerve-wracking moment when you’re waiting for the dealer to hand you your next card so you can see if you’ll be able to get home the money or if you’ll lose it all is what gambling’s all about, condensed down into a single instant, and it is fantastic! Movies have been made about blackjack, many, many books have been written, mentalists like Derren Brown have made shows about winning at blackjack… It seems like this particular game, way more than, say, slots or roulette, has overtaken the public consciousness. Most recently, blackjack has begun invading even the final frontier! No, not space, though I’m sure that cosmic casinos are only a few hundred years away now. I’m talking about the Internet!
Yes, it only takes a look at a site like http://www.realmoney-blackjack.com/ to see just how deep the online blackjack rabbit hole goes. Thousands upon thousands of people have switched from playing physical blackjack to its online counterpart, while hundreds more are laughing at their decision. But who is right, in this case? It’s actually very hard to say, considering just how different the two forms of blackjack are. For casual players, the online version is definitely superior in practically every way. First and foremost, it provides the convenience that all online… things (be they casino or otherwise) offer us – constant 24/7 availability wherever you are. You don’t need to go to a casino and plan out your night around a game of blackjack – you can open up your phone on the bus or carpool to work and play a hand with no issue! It’s the same reason why Netflix will always be better than your local cinema – everything is better in the comfort of your own home.
On the other hand, if you’re a professional card-counting player, then I’ve got some bad news for you – your tricks aren’t going to really work online. Most games where you play against an AI have certain safeguards in place to make sure you can’t count cards even if you wanted to, and while playing against a live dealer they’ll usually shuffle the deck after each hand to keep the odds of you winning low (and even if they don’t, live casino games typically go so slowly that counting cards isn’t even worth it). But wait! Believe it or not, some online casino games have better odds than physical casinos! It’s all about exploiting loopholes in the AI, some of which are deliberate and some of which are accidental (though those usually get patched out pretty quickly). Then again, you’ve got to keep in mind that even all loopholes can’t make up for a good old night out with friends playing blackjack!
At the end of the day, the decision on whether you should stay at home and play online blackjack or go out to a casino is yours, as both options have pros and cons. My advice? Do both! I mean, it’s not like there’s a law saying you only need to take one side here! There’s plenty of blackjack to go around, am I right?