Buster Blackjack
Buster Blackjack is an RNG based game designed and run by Playtech, one of the industry’s most respected and prolific game developers.
It is your standard game of blackjack with a side bet bolted on, which pays out different amounts when the dealer goes bust depending on how many cards it took to get them there.
Buster Blackjack is a side bet if the dealer busts. The win depends on the number of cards required. I think this side bet has been around for a while. I thought I wrote up a page on it, but couldn't find it, so just created a new Buster Blackjack page. Buster blackjack, buster blackjack odds, buster blackjack side bet, buster blackjack card counting, buster blackjack online, buster blackjack in las vegas, buster blackjack free, buster blackjack rtp, buster blackjack rules, buster blackjack double deck, buster blackjack strategy, blackjack buster bet, blackjack buster bet payouts, blackjack buster bet odds, how to play buster blackjack. Buster Blackjack is played in the same way as regular blackjack but with the option of placing the Buster side bet that brings even more excitement. The Buster side bet is a bet on the dealer going bust. The Buster Blackjack Bet is a Side Bet, and you place it the same way as with the other bets. After each Blackjack Bet you make, you will get a pop-up message asking wheatear or not you wish to place this.
The game is played with six decks with dealt cards being reused in the pack after each hand, and there are one or two minor adjustments to the rules too as detailed below.
The Game Rules
A quick look at the game table below will show you that everything looks more or less as normal aside from the side bet which we will cover later.
As with most blackjack variants, the basic task of getting closer to 21 than the dealer is at the heart of the game, and you can play five hands at any one time in order to try and do this.
Splitting, doubling, and insurance are all available as usual, but you can only split once and doubling is still allowed after you have done so.
A few other key rules are noted below:
- Dealer always draws to 16
- Dealer always stands on 17 or higher
- Only 1 card is drawn to each Ace
- If the dealer’s first card is Ace, the player doubles, and dealer gets blackjack, the player loses both bets.
- If the dealer’s first card is 10, the player doubles, and the dealer gets blackjack, the double bet is returned to the player.
Keep these in mind when playing, as many blackjack variants will make slight changes to the rules in order to balance out any extra features or side bets.
10 Card Charlie
Although unlikely, it is theoretically possible to draw 10 cards and still not go bust. If this happens the player wins automatically unless the dealer has blackjack.
This is the case for split hands also.
Buster Side Bet
This side bet can be placed alongside any hand that you are playing, but it cannot be placed on its own.
You are betting that the dealer will go bust, but your payout increases the more cards it takes for the dealer to get there. If you also have blackjack then the payouts can be huge, as high as 2000:1 in the most unlikely cases.
The payouts are as follows:
Buster Blackjack Odds
| Number of Cards | Payout |
|---|---|
| 3 or 4 | 3:1 |
| 5 | 4:1 |
| 6 | 18:1 |
| 7 | 50:1 |
| 8 or More | 250:1 |
| 7 + Player has Blackjack | 800:1 |
| 8 + Player has Blackjack | 2000:1 |
Even if your hand loses your Buster side bet can still win. Look at the image below for an example:
Here, we had bust but the dealer continues to draw cards as per the dealer rules and they too went bust themselves. This results in a lost bet on the game but a winning side bet as the dealer went bust in 3 cards, so we got 2:1 on our stake of £1, returning £3.
Note: This image is from a different version of the same game with the same rules, but developed by a company called Felt.
RTP
The player actually benefits from as slightly better RTP in this variant of the game, albeit only slightly, as the return to player percentage is 99.58% instead of 99.50%.
Bear in mind that this assumes you are playing a solid strategy. If you don’t know what you are doing the house edge can jump to 2% making the RTP 98%.
The RTP for the Buster side bet is lower at 93.79%.
Like it or not casinos are rolling out more side bets than ever before with blackjack games. The bets are optional and sometimes come with a large house edge. They also increase the overall house edge when added to the regular blackjack bet. On recent investors call, Caesars Entertainment touted side bets for helping to increase gaming revenue. They specifically pointed to the Buster Blackjack side bet. This wagering option isn’t entirely new but it’s appearing in more casinos every day.
Buster Blackjack is a simple side bet. Players win the bet if the dealer busts. That’s it. The payouts depend on the number of cards in the dealer’s bust hand. The higher amount of cards in the dealer’s busted hand, the higher the payout for the Buster bet. For example, when the dealer busts with a five card Charlie, the player will win more than if they bust on three cards.
The Buster Blackjack side bet acts independently of the original blackjack hand. It’s possible for the player to lose a hand but win the Buster Blackjack side bet. The odds vary by casino operator but here’s an example of Buster Blackjack odds you might see.
- 250-to-1: Dealer busts with 8+ cards
- 50-to-1: Dealer busts with 7 cards
- 15-to-1: Dealer busts with 6 cards
- 6-to-1: Dealer busts with 5 cards
- 2-to-1: Dealer busts with 3-4 cards
Buster Blackjack Double Deck
Depending on the casino a player may bet as little as $1 for the Buster Bonus side bet. Some casinos might offer a bonus for seven or eight card dealer busts. The requirement for this bonus is to wager $5 on this side bet.
According to the Wizard Of Odds, this Buster Blackjack paytable and a 6 deck shoe has a house edge of 6.21% if the dealer hits on soft 17. The house edge is larger if the dealer stays on soft 17. The latter offers the dealer fewer chances to bust since they’re not taking as many cards.
The Buster Bonus side bet isn’t a good bet based on the odds. That said, there are other bets in the casino with a worse house edge. Furthermore, this bet might be vulnerable to card counters. According to the 888 casino blog, the Buster Blackjack side bet might be beatable. Players will have to find the perfect paytables but it might be possible that a good counter could lessen the house edge and maybe even swing the edge to the player side.
Side bets aren’t typically good options for the smart gambler. However, these bets are becoming more popular with casinos since there are plenty of people that gamble for the buzz and not specifically to win money. It’s becoming more difficult to avoid side bets in casinos today. After a few too many drinks it’s easy to start tossing chips on a side bet.
Buster Blackjack Side Bet
In the future, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see the betting circle at a blackjack game entirely surrounded by different side bets. If you’d like to know more about Caesars Entertainment, you can see the investor’s presentation here. You can find more information on Buster Blackjack from AGS.