How to play Blackjack online
The emulator switches to paddle mode automatically for this game.
- Choose your bet, or choose HIT, STAY or DBLE: left and right arrow keys (turning the knob)
- Confirm the bet or the action: Space bar (the paddle button)
- Choose the number of players: F11 (the console’s Select switch)
- Start the game: F12 (the console’s Reset switch)
- Shuffle after every hand, or only after 34 cards: F4 (the left difficulty switch)
- Casino rules or private rules: F9 (the right difficulty switch)
- Switch between paddle and joystick mode: Alt + L
The cartridge allows up to three players, but the emulator has only two paddles, so here at most two can play.
The goal of the game
Each player starts with 200 chips and bets between 1 and 25 chips on each hand. You beat the dealer by getting closer to 21 without going over, or when the dealer busts. A blackjack (an ace and a ten-value card) pays one and a half times your bet. To double down, turn the knob to DBLE: your bet doubles and you get exactly one more card. You leave the table when you reach 1,000 chips, breaking the bank, or when you run out, though a broke player can ask for a fresh 200 chips.
Casino rules and private rules
The right difficulty switch picks the rule set. In position A (casino rules) the dealer hits a soft 17 and stands on a hard 17, you can double down only on 10 or 11, you can take at most four hits, and a tie is a push. In position B (private rules) the dealer stands on any 17, every tie goes to the dealer, you can double down on any hand, and if you take four hits without going bust you win automatically.
The left switch sets the shuffle: after every hand in position B, or only after two thirds of the deck (34 cards) in position A.
Tips
- Count cards with the left switch on A. The deck lasts 34 cards, so you can track how many tens and aces are gone and bet more when many remain. On B, counting is useless.
- Remember that ties lose under private rules. Matching the dealer is not enough, so standing on a low total is riskier.
- Use the four-hit rule. Under private rules, a hand of small cards wins just by surviving four hits.
History
Whitehead joined Atari in January 1977 and made Blackjack right after Star Ship. He thought about putting several card games on the cartridge, but dropped the idea so that Atari could get more titles out. He chose the paddles on purpose, to show there were enough paddle games to make those controllers worth buying. Sears also sold the game under its own label.
Early reviews were kind. Video magazine rated it highest among the first 2600 releases and called it a good game for adults. Later critics were much less impressed, pointing to the basic graphics, the harsh sound and the slow pace. One retrospective reviewer noted that Atari’s own Casino, which added more card games, made Blackjack largely unnecessary, even if it was a decent version of the game.
Similar games to play next
- Casino – Whitehead’s follow-up, with blackjack and poker games for paddles
- Slot Machine – another early Atari gambling cartridge
- Star Ship – Whitehead’s previous 2600 game, also a 1977 launch title
- Video Olympics – another paddle game from the 2600’s first year