Most Popular Card Games to Gamble with Crypto
The global casino market was worth $280 billion in 2023 alone. Chip in other gambling verticals, and the number soars. The projected compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 10.2% from 2023 to 2030 puts the potential value of the global gaming market at $504.29 billion.
One of the driving forces of that surge in gambling numbers is cryptocurrency gambling. Users who gamble with crypto bet more than $3 million on a daily basis. In fact, more than half of all Bitcoin transactions had to do with gambling, speaking of the clout cryptos have in the iGaming industry today.
The rise of crypto gambling also paved the way for players who are into classic card games to keep playing them online, making deposits and cashing out in a heartbeat. Let’s learn more about those card games that remain prevalent in the world of crypto online casinos.
Poker
Among more than 10,000 card games in existence, none has been more synonymous with gambling than poker. The modern version of the game can be traced back to 1829 in New Orleans, where the French settlers first played the game, then called Poques. It was a version similar to what we know today as draw poker. The original game was played with 5 cards per player dealt from a 20-card deck, and it swept the country like wildfire. By 1834, a 52-card deck had been introduced and still remains in use.
The rules of poker differ depending on the version of the game, but some traits are ubiquitous to all versions. The goal of the game is to compose a hand with the best possible ranking using the cards dealt to you and those community cards that all players share. There are four betting rounds in the game, and when your time comes to bet, you can raise the value of your opponent’s bet, decline to bet (check), match the previous bet (call), or fold the cards and withdraw from the game. The person who has the strongest ranked hand wins the pot.
The popularity of poker has not waned over the years. In fact, it has increased dramatically, largely thanks to the poker boom that happened in the early 2000s, with the telecasting of the World Series of Poker (WSOP) events and the rise of online poker. When Chris Moneymaker qualified for the 2003 WSOP through an online poker site, there was no looking back.
What is Bitcoin gambling if not a perfect medium to test your poker skills, right? The launch of crypto online casinos only fueled the popularity of the game. These sites allow players to retain anonymity when playing, all the while enjoying unparalleled safety and fairness. What’s more, players can bet on poker with crypto from virtually any location without having to worry about regulations and other such hurdles.
Blackjack
Blackjack’s position in the upper echelon of casino card games was cemented literally centuries ago. It was the French aristocrats that modified the early versions of the game in the 17th century, calling it Vingt-un” or “Vingt-et-un,” or twenty-one.
The French brought the game to New Orleans in the 19th century, and from then on, all American casinos have incorporated it. What is curious about blackjack is that its rules remain widely the same as they once were.
You are playing against the dealer rather than other players. You are dealt with two cards, and the goal is to get the value of those cards as close to 21 as possible without going over. The picture cards are valued at 10, except for the Ace, which can be 1 and 11. Other cards are taken at face value. Once you get the two cards, you can ask the dealer for more cards to get even closer to 21. When you finish playing, it’s the dealer’s turn to play, using similar rules.
Blackjack pays 2 to 1 in most versions and offers a remarkable return to player percentage of 99.5% should you employ the basic blackjack strategy. Also, don’t split tens. The hand is already solid, so there’s no point in risking it. Finally, refrain from taking insurance bets since the odds for the dealer to win the blackjack are simply not that great to justify the extra cost.
When playing blackjack with cryptocurrencies, you can take full advantage of fast transaction times that incur almost non-existent fees and give the blackjack strategy a go in a safe and fair environment, crucial aspects for every bettor.
Baccarat
The early beginnings of baccarat were recorded in 19th-century Italy, but it didn’t take long for casinos across the globe to join in on the action. It was precisely baccarat’s simple gameplay and the opportunity to lower the house edge to 1% that made it so popular in the first place.
Baccarat is played with between three to six 52-card decks. The dealer will give two cards to each of the two positions on the table — the Player and the Banker. The goal is to guess which position will have the total value closest to nine and bet accordingly. You can also bet on the hand resulting in a tie.
Speaking of the tie bet, it has a great payout potential — 8:1, but the house edge for the wager is 14.4%, which does not make it a good option. On the other hand, the house edge for the Banker bet is just 1.06%, making it a logical choice almost every time around. The Player bet also offers excellent odds thanks to a 1.24% house edge.
With baccarat, it’s all about the numbers and payouts. It gives players more than decent chances of winning, so if you want to bet using crypto and hope to make a fast return on your investment, baccarat should be the go-to option. Crypto casinos offer different versions of the game, both commission and non-commission baccarat, and many more that can deliver extra wagering options.
Bridge
Bridge might not be the first choice when you think of card games suitable for gambling. It’s not that players can’t learn to play bridge, but the game’s slow pace, potentially high tournament rakes, and the lack of apparent house edge make it unappealing to most casinos. Still, a lot of card players love it.
Bridge is played between two teams with two players each. The game consists of two phases: the bidding and the card play. In the bidding phase, the players bid for the minimum number of tricks they believe will take them to win the deal, whereas, in the card play phase, the players aim to win the tricks equal to or greater than the number bid.
Conclusion
Poker, blackjack, and baccarat are the leaders of the casino card games pack. Most gambling activities in online and land-based casinos occur at these tables, so no wonder why crypto casinos followed suit and implemented these games. Moreover, they included provably fair versions of the games that allow players to track down the hands and verify the outcomes for their fairness.
Gambling with cryptos entails not only absolute fairness of games but also a sense of anonymity, fast deposits and withdrawals as well, which fiat currencies simply can’t deliver.
Since 2014, casino players have wagered more than $4.5 billion in Bitcoin alone, not to mention other currencies, hailing a growing trend in the market for years to come.
Photo by Art Rachen on Unsplash