Have you ever wondered where the original blackjack rules came from? Well, its origins are shared by many countries which caused the development of the game to the modern standard we know today. However, another form developed alongside the modern game of blackjack that indicates its Spanish roots. Spanish 21 is one of the alternatives to blackjack, although it is less popular than the basic game..
It is worth trying out Spanish 21 due to its player friendly rules and interesting take on the modern game. Let’s take a look at how the game is played, its benefits and all the differences that we have compared to modern blackjack.
Explanation of 21 Spanish
Spanish 21 follows the basic principles of blackjack where you need to collect more cards in your hand than the dealer without exceeding 21. The basic strategy is the same. However, there are some differences in Spanish 21 that dramatically change the flow of the game.
The main difference is that all scores are removed while picture cards remain. This means that the chances of hitting a blackjack decrease. In addition, this goes hand in hand with the following figure that all blackjack games are wins. Even in cases where the dealer also has a blackjack. Therefore, the chances of blackjack are reduced but every blackjack player automatically wins regardless of the reason. These two changes increase the player’s overall win rate.
Moreover, players have the option to surrender. This player feature allows the player to finish the round and redeem half of his bet. A more effective strategy than playing a losing hand and losing your entire bet. Players can only do this after the dealer checks his cards for blackjack.
Betting options and payouts
When it comes to betting options, the doubling mechanism is the deciding factor in getting high payouts. The reason why doubling is so powerful in Spanish 21 is that you can do it in the following ways that are different from a regular blackjack. You can double up after any number of cards and you can double up after splitting.
- Double Down option 1 The previous feature where you can double up after drawing any number of cards is a big change to the standard blackjack game. Usually you can only double the number after the first two cards. With this option, you can draw something like 3, 4, and 5, and you can still double down. This is a great strategy to combat low-value card streaks.
- Double Down 2 . option – You can double the number after dividing in Spanish 21, which opens up a large number of other options. Now when you split these aces, you can keep doubling them and get amazing payouts.
In addition, there are special Spanish 21 payouts that depend on the combination of cards you win. Unlike the standard 1:1 and 3:2 payouts in blackjack, Spanish 21 has seven different payouts. If you get 21 out of 5 cards, you will receive a 3:2 payout similar to the base game. If you get 6 and 7 cards you will get 2:1 and 3:1 respectively. Furthermore, if you get 21 with a 6-7-8 or 7-7-7 card combination, you will receive the 3:2 criterion as a reward for doing so with 3 cards. Finally, you get a 2:1 and 3:1 return if any of these cards fit or if one of them is a spade.
Is Spanish 21 worth playing alongside a blackjack?
The short answer is that it has more player friendly rules so some might say yes. These player-centered and basic strategy rules reduce the house edge from 4.5% in blackjack to 0.4%. This is coupled with the fact that always winning in 21 players in Spain winning is always a huge boost for the player.
However, there are disadvantages of course. Firstly because 10 value cards are removed, players score 21 with more difficulty. Moreover, casual blackjack is so popular that you will find Spanish 21 on rare occasions. This makes the game quite difficult to access in land-based casinos. The only way to play it reliably, other than to be lucky that the casino you use the most often this game, is to play it online.
In general, both Spanish 21 and Blackjack originated from the same ancestral set of rules. Both are worth playing side by side whenever you feel like switching things up. One thing we will say is that in Spanish 21, you will never have that bitter feeling of scoring 21 along with the dealer and push.
