Modified Blackjack Card Game

Description

PRIORITY STATEMENT

This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application 62/567,084, filed on Oct. 2, 2017, and entitled Modified Blackjack Card Game, hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a poker. More particularly, but not exclusively, the present invention relates to a modified Blackjack card game.

BACKGROUND

Interest and participation in games of chance, such as poker, ebb and flow over time. Blackjack is a game of significant interest that has lost some of its appeal. Increasing noticeable are the empty Blackjack tables. Gambling establishments struggle to address or replace existing games with ones that will draw in players, win a certain percentage or “return to the house”, and while having a game speed that allows the dealer to have more “hands” out in any given amount of time. Therefore, what is needed is a poker game that addresses these and other concerns by providing a modified Blackjack card game.

SUMMARY

Therefore, it is a primary object, feature, or advantage of the present invention to improve over the state of the art.

It is a further object, feature, or advantage of the present invention to provide a modified game of Blackjack.

It is a still further object, feature, or advantage of the present invention to provide modified a Blackjack card game that any one player can win on the very first card thereby generating player interest.

Another object, feature, or advantage is to provide a modified Blackjack card game that has a better house percentage over traditional Blackjack.

Yet another object, feature, or advantage is to provide a modified Blackjack card game that has more hands out in a given amount of time and plays faster than traditional Blackjack.

According to at least one exemplary aspect, a modified game of Blackjack is disclosed. The method includes providing at least one deck of playing cards and a dealer for dealing at least one face card to one or more players. A bet of some value is placed by each of the one or more players. A first hand is dealt to each one of the one or more players and the dealer by dealing a first playing card face down. Winning of the hand and loss of each player bet if the dealer has an Ace as the first playing card or winning of the first hand and the bet by any one or more of the players having an Ace as the first playing card and paying the value of the bet or 1:1 to each player having the Ace. A second card is dealt face down to each of the one or more players and face down to the dealer if there is no Ace in any first playing card of the first hand.

According to another exemplary aspect, a modified game of Blackjack is disclosed. The modified game of Blackjack includes providing at least one deck of playing cards for dealing at least one face card from the at least one deck of playing cards to one or more players. Each of the one or more players places a bet of some value. A first hand is dealt to each one of the one or more players and a dealer by dealing a first playing card face down. Winning of the first hand and loss of the bet of each player if the dealer has an Ace as the first playing card or winning of the first hand and the bet by any one or more of the players having an Ace as the first playing card and paying the value of the bet or 1:1 to each player having the Ace.

According to at least one other exemplary aspect, a modified game of Blackjack is disclosed. The modified game of Blackjack includes providing at least one deck of playing cards and a dealer for dealing at least one face card to one or more players. A bet of some value is placed by each of the one or more players or optionally a side bet having a wager amount. Dealing a first hand to each one of the one or more players and the dealer by dealing a first playing card face down. Winning of the hand and loss of each player bet if the dealer has an Ace as the first playing card or winning of the hand and the bet by any one or more of the players having an Ace as the first playing card and paying the value of the bet or 1:1 to each player having the Ace. Dealing a second card face down to each of the one or more players and face down to the dealer if there is no Ace in any first playing card of the first hand.

One or more of these and/or other objects, features, or advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the specification and claims that follow. No single embodiment need provide each and every object, feature, or advantage. Different embodiments may have different objects, features, or advantages. Therefore, the present invention is not to be limited to or by an objects, features, or advantages stated herein.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a pictorial representation of a table game layout of a modified form of a Blackjack card game.

FIG. 2 is a pictorial representation of the table game layout of a modified form of a Blackjack card game with a side bet.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

What follows is detailed description for a modified form of a Blackjack card game. FIG. 1 illustrates a table game layout of the game. In at least one aspect, examples of the equipment used for the game can be described as follows.

Equipment

The game can include the use of 1-6 decks of regular 52 card playing cards on a standard size Blackjack table with specialized felt, as shown in FIG. 1. Seating can range from one to six players, as illustrated pictorially also in FIG. 1.

Rules

The rules for a modified form of Blackjack can include, for example, the following.

• • 1. The value of each card is the same as traditional Black Jack. All face cards have a value of ten, Aces count as one or eleven, and all other cards count the value of their number.
  • 2. The dealer may not take additional cards once they reach a value of hard 16.
  • 3. All player first cards shall be dealt face down. To collect a win on the first card, the player must turn the card face up. The remaining cards to all players will be dealt face down unless a player wants to double down, split cards, or has a 2-card win. In these type of situations, the cards must be turned up before the hand continues.
  • 4. The dealer's first card is dealt face up, the dealer's second card is dealt face down, and all remaining dealer's cards are dealt face up.
  • 5. All players and the dealer receiving cards that total over a value of 20 are considered to have a busted hand and a loss. If the dealer busts, all remaining hands win their bet.
  • 6. Any hand can be a push with the dealer if the card values are the same. This results in a tie, there is no win or loss.

Objectives of the Game

The objectives for a modified form of Blackjack can include, for example, the following game objectives.

• • 1. Each player plays against the dealer, trying to reach the value of 11 with one card or the value of 20 with two or more cards.
  • 2. The game contemplates, at least three ways to win:
    • a. Obtain the value of 11 with the first card only. This pays the value of the player's bet, or 1:1.
    • b. Obtain the value of 20 with the first two cards only. This pays the value of the player's bet, or 1:1. However, if the first two cards are a pair of Kings, a pair of Queens or a pair of Jacks, the player is paid 1.5 times the bet, or 3:2.
    • c. Obtain a higher winning value than the dealer with two or more cards. This pays the value of your bet, or 1:1.
    • d. A player may win if he has placed a wager on the optional side bet. First card Ace pays 7:1, two card pair of Kings, Queens, or Jacks pays 10:1, two card suited pair of Queens or Jacks pays 20:1, and a two card suited pair of Kings pays 50:1.

Dealing Procedure

The dealing procedure for a modified form of Blackjack can include, for example, the following.

• • 1. The dealer places one card at each player's station and one to himself. The dealer's first card is dealt face up, and the players first card is dealt face down.
  • 2. If an Ace is the first card dealt to any player, the card is turned up by the player. If only the dealer has the first card Ace, all players lose their bets and a new hand begins. If only the player (or players) has the first Ace, the player (or players) wins the value of their bet, or 1:1 and the hand continues.
  • 3. If there is no Ace on the first card dealt, all second cards are dealt to the players face down. The dealer's second card is dealt face down. If any player or the dealer has an exact value of 20 with two cards, the cards must be turned face up. The players with an exact value of 20 with two cards are paid the value of their bet or 1:1. However, if the first two cards are a pair of Kings, a pair of Queens or a pair of Jacks, the player is paid 1.5 times the bet, or 3:2. If only the dealer has a 20 with two cards, all players lose their bets, and a new hand begins. If a push occurs, that player does not lose his bet.
  • 4. If no players or the dealer have a value of 20 after two cards, one player at a time may receive additional cards until that player chooses to stand. If any player exceeds the value of 20 with all cards dealt, that player busts. After all players receive their desired cards, the dealer will deal himself cards until he either has a hard value of 16 or busts.

Game Design

FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 provide at least one pictorial representation of a table game layout for a modified form of a Blackjack card game of the present disclosure. In at least one aspect, examples of the equipment used for the game can be as described herein.

Game Considerations

Other game considerations for a modified form of Blackjack can include, for example, the following.

• • 1. To be sure player receives the number of cards they desire, each player must give a visual signal to the dealer for each card they desire.
  • 2. Any player may double down or split cards of equal value. If the player doubles down, the cards must be turned face up. The player only receives one additional card which is dealt face up. Players may double down on any initial two card hand.
  • 3. If the player splits cards of equal value, the cards must be turned up. The player then is considered to be playing 2 hands, and the dealer deals all remaining cards to that player face up. Players may split once any pair, including two ten-valued cards of different rank, for a maximum of two hands. Players may hit any split hand.
  • 4. Insurance is not offered.
  • 5. Surrender is not allowed

Win and Pay Conditions

After all player decisions are complete, the dealer hits any hard total of 15 or less, and any soft total of 16 or less.

All wagers, including double or split wagers as applicable, win and pay by scenario if any of the following conditions are met:

• • The player holds an Ace as the first card, and the dealer does not. Pays 1 to 1.
  • The player has paired face cards, and the dealer does not. Pays 3 to 2.
  • The player does not bust, and the dealer either busts or has a lesser total than the player. Pays 1 to 1.
  • The player may win if he has placed a wager on the optional side bet. First card Ace pays 7:1, two card pair of Kings, Queens, or Jacks pays 10:1, two card suited pair of Queens or Jacks pays 20:1, and two card suited pair of Kings pays 50:1.

The wager pushes if any of the following conditions are met:

• • The player and the dealer are both dealt Aces as the first card.
  • The player and the dealer both have paired face cards.
  • Neither the player nor the dealer has paired face cards, but the player and the dealer have equal non-busted totals of two cards or more.

The wager loses otherwise. In particular, the wager loses if any of the following conditions are met:

• • The player does not have an Ace as the first card, but the dealer does.
  • The player does not have paired face cards, but the dealer does.
  • The hand busts with a total of 21 or higher.
  • The hand total is less than the dealer's non-busted total.

Mathematical Analysis

The mathematical analysis for a modified form of Blackjack can include, for example, the following analysis conducted by simulation. For each simulated hand, the optimal play strategy was determined analytically by a strategy solver and executed by the simulated player. The complete strategy used in the analysis is too lengthy to fully list out. However, a general summary can be given. Table 1 gives the optimal play strategy. In Table 1, note that entries with asterisks (*) have strategy exceptions dependent on the composition of the player hand.

Overall, the Return and Wager figures associated with the present game are given in Table 2. In Table 2, “RTP” represents the Return to Player, which is the ratio of Average Win to Average Wager. “RTH” represents the Return to House, also known as the Element of Risk, and is the expected house earnings scaled relative to the Average Wager. The “HE” is the traditional House Edge measurement, scaled relative to the Initial Wager.

All analysis was conducted under the assumptions of a freshly shuffled shoe.

SUMMARY

Overall, a modified form of Blackjack as disclosed herein offers an RTP of 98.07%, realized when the player optimizes their play decisions as summarized above. The HE associated with this game is 2.08% of the initial wager.