We’re always excited to see how new versions of classic table games expand our favourite mechanics. This is why Felt Gaming’s Buster Blackjack drew us in, promising the addition of an innovative new side bet.
The buster bet could shake things up for you, allowing you to bet on the number of cards that will be drawn before the dealer busts out. But as you’ll see in our Buster Blackjack review, there are plenty of other features to discover, as well as a maximum win of 2,000x to chase.
Title:
Buster Blackjack
Game Developer:
Felt Gaming
Release Date
2016
RTP:
99.501%
Minimum / Maximum Bet:
₹10/₹50,000
Maximum Win:
2, 000x
Bonus Features:
Undo, Clear, Deal, Multi-Hand Play, Buster Bet, Insurance Bet
Buster Blackjack doesn’t set out to reinvent the wheel. Instead, it puts together a set of basic features with a couple of bonus additions to make it stand out. Of course, the multi-hand feature adds quite a bit of potential, with up to three active hands in play. But the main bonus mechanic is the buster bet, which can give your winnings a massive boost.
Undo – A core feature in any Blackjack game as it removes the last bet you added, be it a regular wager, insurance bet or buster bet. It’s pointed out with a big blue button on the left side of the screen, so you really can’t miss it.
Clear – If you’d rather clear all bets from the table, then you’ll want to hit the red clear button instead. This is another basic feature found in most Blackjack games, but to Felt Gaming’s credit, they’ve implemented it well without any over-complications.
Deal – After setting your initial wagers, you must hit the deal button to begin the round. Both you and the dealer get dealt your cards, so you can then decide if you’d like to split, double, stand or hit. The screen adapts itself accordingly, so you know which functions you can activate based on the cards you get. The split and double buttons only show up if you can use them, while on the right-hand side of the screen, you can choose between standing or hitting. We found it all very easy to follow and simple enough for beginners to enjoy as well.
Multi-Hand Play – If you’d like to increase your chances of success, you can go for wagers on two or even three hands. You can activate the number of hands you’d like to have at the beginning of each round by placing an initial wager where necessary. Of course, the more hands you add, the more expensive each round will be. But they also increase your chances of winning. We tried playing with different hand combinations and managed our biggest win of ₹70,000 from two winning hands.
Buster Bet – Buster Blackjack’s most unique feature is its buster bet. You get to bet on the number of cards it will take before the dealer ultimately busts. The wagers go all the way up to 8 cards, which would get you the game’s maximum win of 2,000x your wager. We never quite got there but did manage to win ₹40,000 from guessing that the dealer would bust from 3-4 cards.
While the buster feature is quite innovative on paper, this new addition ultimately doesn’t have much to offer. Sure, you could get the 2,000x maximum win, but the odds of actually landing that are incredibly slim and could cost you a pretty penny.
Buster Blackjack ultimately delivers an acceptable but somewhat underwhelming experience. There certainly is a potential for big wins here, but the risk won’t make it worth your while.
Relax Gaming’s European Blackjack comes with a similar set of features and although it’s missing the buster bet mechanic, it still offers insurance bets, three multi-hand play, double-down options, and a splitting function. Maximum win has also been increased here and at 6,000x, you have a better chance of landing bigger wins.
If you’re hoping for a Blackjack variation with an even higher maximum win, check out Play’n Go’s European Blackjack MH. It combines multi-hand play with insurance bets and core Blackjack features to give you a maximum win potential of 10,000x your stake. We enjoyed the higher win cap but would have similarly liked to see more features added in.