The two games of Baccarat and Blackjack are considered ‘sister games’. With the latter now widely considered as the most popular card game of all time, it may surprise some to learn that it was originally heavily influenced by the former. Blackjack was in fact previously named ‘Vingt et Un’, with Baccarat once known as ‘Chemin de Fer’.
We’re going to briefly look into some of the aspects of each game in relation to one another, aiming to arm you with tips & tricks to help you perform well at the Blackjack table (be that online or in a land based casino)
Baccarat
Widely regarded as one of the most ancient forms of gambling that exist anywhere on earth, Baccarat (Chemin de Fer) is thought to originate in the middle ages. The game itself has changed slightly over the years, having once been played with tarot cards rather than the playing cards that are used today. It was adopted by the middle classes and nobles in France during the 1400s and this is when the game really shot to prominence. In the 1700s, the game was taken to different countries, played by masses in England, in USA and also South America, where Chemin de Fer was given the names ‘Shemmy’, ‘Baccarat’ and Punto Banc respectively.
Much like Blackjack, Baccarat predominantly concerns a game between player and banker. In groups of up to 15 players (smaller tables seat around 6-7), player and dealer bets are cycled and bets placed on outcomes of cards in each hand totalling as close to 9 as possible. Aces are classed as low, counting as 1, picture cards & 10s count as zero.
Blackjack
Blackjack appeared onto the scene at the peak of the popularity of Baccarat, in the mid 1700s. During this time, the game was thought to have been born within French casinos, quickly becoming very popular. There are historical theories that the game could have originated at least in some part from card games of the Roman era, but the only real hard proof is that Vingt et Un was derived from Chemin de Fer, as previously mentioned. In the late 1700s and early 1800s, Blackjack was taken to the USA where dedicated venues allowed the playing of the game.
Much like Baccarat, the aim is to beat the dealer in totalling as close as possible the target value. In this game, rather than 9, the value of course is 21. As can be deduced from the original name of Vingt et Un and the commonly used slang name of ‘21’. As with the game of Baccarat, each player is dealt two cards in their initial hand, and can decide to hit, fold, double down or split to try to achieve as close as possible to 21 as you can.
What makes the games so special?
The beauty of both is in their similarities. The playing style is essentially a variation on a similar theme. There’s no doubt that Blackjack (Vingt et Un) has more mainstream popularity within online and land based gambling environments currently. However, with a house edge of approximately 1% in most Baccarat games, and one of 2% in Blackjack, the bare odds might well be a little better when gambling the former rather than the latter. At the end of the day, it’s your choice!
