There seems to be a new blackjack variation surfacing in casinos. As of yet I have not heard that this new variation has made it over into the world of online blackjack, but there is always the chance it will happen, after all other variations have crossed over. The new variation that has popped its head up is called Double Attack Blackjack.
The basic principle behind this variation of blackjack is that players make their wagers, the dealer’s up card is then dealt at which point players can make an additional wager up to being equal to their round wager; then the player’s starting hand is dealt. Yes, you read all of that right; the dealer’s up card is dealt first which allows players to then increase their wager if the dealer’s up card is in favor to bust.
There are some other really nice player favorable rules in this blackjack variation. For starters players can double down on any number of cards, including splits. Late surrender is also offered, which is a very nice blackjack play. And the dealer has to stand on all 17’s, hard or soft.
But like any blackjack variation that offers some really nice player favorable plays and rules, there are also the downsides. Natural blackjacks only pay even money. But one of the biggest kickers is that this game is played with 48 card Spanish decks which means the 10 cards have been removed leaving only the face cards to count for 10.
Overall this blackjack variation has a house edge of 0.62 when using a modified version of basic strategy. Those modifications include hitting a hard 12 and hard 13 against all dealer up cards. As for hard 14, instead of standing against a dealer 2 or 3, you will hit just like you do against a 7 or up. No doubling down against soft hands with less than a total of 16.
If you are in a casino that is offering Double Attack Blackjack give it a try, but start out wagering small until you become accustomed to the run of Double Attack. And if you really want to make the most of the modified basic strategy and the rules of this game, do not take the second increased amount bet and stick with playing Double Attack on one wager.