Multi Hand Video Blackjack from the online casino software provider Cryptologic is a fascinating blackjack variant. This is not because of any innovation in the rules of the game. It is because of an unusual game structure. Multi Hand Video Blackjack is offered with 8 decks and with 4 decks. The four deck variant is preferred because in blackjack, the fewer the decks used the larger is the average return to the player.

Most online casino blackjack variants have one hand for the player pitted against the dealer hand. Regular multi hand games allow players to wager up to five hands against the dealer. Cryptologic Multi Hand Video Blackjack allows multiple hands for the player and for the dealer and therein lies its uniqueness. The player has to first select three parameters. The bet amount can vary from 25 cents to $50. After $1 the increments are in $1 and therefore players have more than a reasonable spread to select from. The number of player’s hands has to be selected from 1, 3 and 5. The number of dealer’s hands has to be selected from 3, 5, 10 and 50. The total amount wagered is the product of the three parameters.

The game play in Cryptologic Multi Hand Blackjack is very similar to the standard online blackjack variants. After setting the parameters the player clicks the Deal button. Cards are dealt two at a time to each of the player’s hands. Both cards are dealt face up. Then the dealer’s face up card is dealt. This card is the same for all the dealer’s hands. There is a valid reason for the dealer’s face up card being the same. Optimum blackjack strategy depends on the dealer’s face up card, among other parameters. Each player hand has to be played against all the dealer’s hands. If the dealer’s face up cards are different then it will become impossible for the player to execute optimum strategy.

After the cards are dealt as indicated above, the player makes his moves for each player hand in turn. These follow the standard blackjack rules. The player is guided by text messages on the screen. After the player has played out all his hands the dealer’s hands are automatically played according to the dealer’s rules. Though the face up card is the same in all dealer’s hands the other cards are randomly dealt. The rules under which Cryptologic Multi Hand Blackjack are played can be ascertained by clicking the ‘?’ icon in the right hand panel. The salient rules are as follows. Blackjack pays at 3 to 2. Dealer stands on soft 17. Split any two equal value cards once. Insurance is allowed. Surrender is not allowed.

The payouts are automatically calculated and credited to the player’s account. In order for the players to easily understand what is happening Cryptologic Multi Hand Video Blackjack employs a great visual device. Below each player hand there are three counters. The green counter indicates the number of dealer’s hands for which the player beat the dealer. The orange counter indicates the number of dealer’s hands for which the player tied with the dealer. The red counter indicates the number of dealer’s hands for which the player lost to the dealer. The sum of the counters for each player hand equals the number of dealer hands. Cryptologic Multi Hand Video Blackjack is live at all Cryptologic online casinos such as InterCasino.