No online blackjack review would be complete without some discussion of multiplayer online blackjack games. Most online blackjack reviews do this by cutting up the topic into multiple segments. But here at AceHoyle.com we’ve decided it’s much better to give our readers a general overview of their multiplayer online blackjack options. That way we can concentrate on the pros and cons of the different forms of multiplayer online blackjack games to help Ace’s fans decide for themselves which – if any – are right for them.

Multiplayer Online Blackjack Tournaments

Online blackjack tournaments are arguably the most popular form of online multiplayer blackjack today. In these grueling, sudden-death bouts of online play blackjack players compete to see who can last the longest against an online casino’s blackjack software. Each player buys in for the same set amount, then they play continuously until all but one of them has run out of chips.

In most multiplayer online blackjack tournaments, the last three players place, and the sponsoring casino divvies up the pot among them. The pot itself is usually less than the full sum of the tournament’s buy-ins because the casino keeps a percentage for itself. It then divides up the remainder so that the tournament’s winner gets 50 percent of the pot, the runner-up gets 30 percent and third-place gets 20 percent.

In comparison to other online multiplayer blackjack games, of course, the downside to online blackjack tournaments is that players are still relatively isolated. Unlike online live blackjack games, for instance, online blackjack tournaments are primarily player-versus-computer affairs and there is usually little if any player interaction. For all this, however, they are definitely worth checking out as they comprise the lion’s share of online multiplayer blackjack opportunities and offer massive returns for the truly skilled.

Online Live Blackjack

Next up in our online blackjack review, online live blackjack offers players the opportunity play against a live dealer with several other players. One of the newest concepts in online play blackjack tables with such setups usually display a live video feed of the dealer and show the dealer’s and players’ cards in a main window that looks much like a run-of-the-mill online blackjack display.

Unlike tournaments, live games usually offer players the chance to interact with real human beings, and occasionally they feature quirky gimmicks like LuckyLiveCasino.com’s “Early Payout” rule. These innovative new takes on the game can definitely make things interesting for experienced online blackjack players who are bored with the usual fare. But they hardly add anything to a game whose main selling point is human interaction.

What’s more, although live games offer lots of interaction their pots can’t come close to approaching those of the bigger tournaments. What it really comes down to with these two forms of multiplayer blackjack, then, is whether you’d like to walk away with more cash in your pocket or prefer to socialize while clicking around at home. Ultimately that’s a personal decision each player will have to make for himself, but it can’t hurt to give both types a try.

Video Blackjack Tables

Another—though far less popular—form of multiplayer blackjack is video blackjack. Similar to online poker blackjack tables in this vein feature a window showing a computer-generated dealer avatar, the table itself and a view of the other players’ avatars and up-cards. Like online poker blackjack tables of this ilk are fully multiplayer and allow players to chat as they play. Meanwhile, the deal is still performed by the casino’s software, preventing the possibility of human error.

And yet unlike online poker blackjack tables of this type are not player-versus-player affairs. Regardless of whether you can see your fellow players you’ll still be up against the House every hand. Nor can you expect the huge payouts of multiplayer tournaments at video blackjack tables. Their main selling point, then, is that they mix some of the strengths of live and tournament games in a way that looks novel—but isn’t exactly what you’d call groundbreaking.

Online Blackjack 21

Likely the oddest thing in online gaming Blackjack Rush-21, or simply “Online Blackjack 21,” is a multiplayer lovechild of blackjack and – ironically enough considering word origins - casino solitaire. In terms of online play Blackjack Rush-21 is almost exactly like solitaire. The only difference is that whereas traditional casino solitaire requires players to clear columns according to suit and rank, Online Blackjack 21 requires they use the cards in their draw piles to create the best possible set of blackjack hands.

This would be simple enough except that due to advances in online gaming Blackjack Rush-21 also throws several other players into the mix. A column clears every time a player builds a 21-point hand in it, and players earn points for each cleared column. So when set to multiplayer online gaming Blackjack Rush-21 doesn’t require that players’ hands be higher than the dealer’s, but that they have more points than their opponents.

This is definitely an innovative take on two very old games, and it finally gives players the opportunity to play blackjack against someone other than the House. Still, it’s hard to say if Rush-21 is really a kind of blackjack, or just another novelty solitaire; besides Basic Strategy no blackjack strategy seems to work when playing it, and if you can’t use blackjack betting strategies like card counting on a game, it’s likely not a true form of blackjack.

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