Blackjack Reinvented

Last year I set out to develop a blackjack TV show that would be as interesting to watch to the casual player as Texas hold'em had become. The resulting game, BlackJack eXtreme, turned out to be a lot of fun in live play testing. We are developing an online version slated to be open for beta testing by the end of the year.

In the meantime we are working to get the game played at card clubs in California. BJX plays at a poker table and is not house banked. Card counting is enabled by playing with two decks and every card is shown at the end of each hand.

I'm hoping some of you will visit our website, watch the video and sign up to beta test the game.

In the long run we believe that this game will create blackjack TV stars comparable to Hold'em, and a sport which will be more lucrative for blackjack pros than current tournaments.

Your perspective on the game would be very welcome. We have run into problems getting a handle on the math of the game since the dealer chooses which hole card to reveal. Of course probabilities of various card combinations are the same as regular blackjack.

The California game uses 22 as the target hand and the ace is 1 or 12. (A legal thing)

Hope you like the game. http://www.playBJX.com

I'm thinking it would help if you posted a link to the site.

Thanks

Still getting the hang of this.

What rules govern which card the dealer exposes? zg

Dealer's strategies

The player betting takes place all in one round, after which the dealer may elect to surrender by paying remaining players 1/2 the original bet.

So if the dealer gets rags, it's best to represent a strong hand to induce players to surrender 1/2 their original bet before the dealer surrenders.

If the dealer gets a playable hand representing a weak hand (if possible) would encourage everyone to stay in or even raise hoping to get paid off from a dealer surrender.

Say the dealer gets 10-5. Which is better to show? It's a situational decision.

Are you going to keep the rule(s) governing the dealer surrender and card exposure secret from us? zg

It's actually a form of poker, using blackjack hands and rules instead of the traditional poker hands.

It's a hybrid

We tested the game with poker players, blackjack players and civilians. Some poker players looked down on it as blackjack and therefore too reliant on "luck", but many liked it right away.

We're still trying to get a sense of how the blackjack community takes to it. One player was completely put off by the variables of "active dealer" blackjack i.e. not being able to assume the hole card is a ten when making decisions. And if you don't know how to play blackjack at all, well this isn't the way to learn the game.

The rules regarding the dealer are:
The player/dealer may select either of the first two cards dealt to reveal.
The dealer may surrender the hand after all the players have elected to surrender, play the original bet or raise.
The dealer must stay on hard 17.
The dealer may hit any soft hand.
If only two players remain in a tournament, the dealer may hit any hand including hard 17 or higher.

The website video shows several variables at work and the complete rules are published and can be downloaded.

So there is an actual revolving dealer? zg

Active dealer blackjack

Yes, the dealership moves clockwise after every hand. The players rules are adjusted also to balance the power between player and dealer.

I'm no counter but I do know that the only way to win at blackjack is to take advantage of improvable hands. A natural is like kissing your sister. I'm waiting for the splits and doubles to make money. BJX takes this concept to...the extreme.

Sometimes the player/dealer wins big, sometimes gets creamed. Most of the time smart players win or lose a moderate amount when "on the button".

Beta Test

I think this game looks awesome. It's not really blackjack but I like introducing the competitive angle to card counting. Id love to give it a try, and I signed up for the 'online beta tester'. Is there anything else I can do?

thanks,

Cheif

([email protected])

Things to do while you wait for programmers...

We just sent out proposals to play to the largest card clubs in California (the 22 version). Next stop will be the tribal casinos in California.

We encourage private games and tournaments. You can download the pdf from the website to pass out to friends.

Are you a client of Jacobson Gaming? zg

How do we make money doing this? I dont get it.

No.

Well you should be. Tell him we sent you. zg

Once it's in casinos the play will be for real money both ring (open) games and tournaments. It's a great sit and go or small tournament game.

Online is more problematic since we promised our moms we wouldn't break any laws. Still, we have a plan for freeplay in the US which you could find rewarding. As soon as the law changes in the US we'll have real money online play here.

The laws don't apply when you are selling a license to offshore entities. Where are you at with your patent and trademark? zg

Thanks for the spam ass****. Do not enroll as a beta tester.

Why not, what's the pay like? zg