People say there’s only one game in the entire industry of gambling that can be beaten with skill – and sometimes with card counting – and that’s blackjack. This is the one and only game that attracts those players who thing they can beat the system, though some are attracted to the “laws of large numbers” in roulette, to their peril. Let’s explain why exactly blackjack is beatable – or why players think it’s beatable – and why it is, in fact, the only casino game worth playing.

• Lowest house edge

Blackjack has the lowest house edge of all casino games, including online slots or anything you can play at a land-based casino. Nothing comes close. Just to name one example, if you’re playing live dealer blackjack by Evolution then the lowest house edge you can get is 0.46%, the name of the game is Power Blackjack. Now, that kind of house edge is ridiculously low, it doesn’t get much tighter than that.

In theory, the lowest house edge on blackjack is 0.28% and is only available in Las Vegas. If you visit the gambling mecca, you’ll find single-deck blackjack games, with high minimum bets, and with casino security carefully watching over you to detect if you’re counting cards.

Which brings us to our next subject.

• Card counting

Many people wonder is it possible to “count cards” in blackjack and therefore get some kind of an edge, and those are usually people who are new to the game or have never played the game of blackjack at all.

As it turns out, casinos are not stupid.

Card counting is indeed possible, but only under certain circumstances, and you’d need a tight group of well-orchestrated accomplices to make any money with it. For normal players who play alone, it is not possible to count cards. Most casinos these days – physical ones and online ones – use 8 decks. Just when the player approaches the time when he can actually gain some sort of an edge from card counting, which is when at least half of the cards are out of play – the deck is shuffled!

This doesn’t prevent people from thinking blackjack can be tricked by counting cards. As a matter of fact, most casinos will let you try. Because you can’t possibly gain an edge if the deck is shuffled after 3/4 of the shoe has been dealt.

But it certainly has a lot to do with the appeal of the game of blackjack.

• Many versions available

Blackjack is a game that comes in many flavours, and many different rules. Some of them are favourable for the player while the others are favourable for the casino. A blackjack player is always on a neverending quest to find that perfect table with all the perfect rules.

Online play at live dealer casinos offers a wide selection of interesting games, though the rules have now mostly been standardized across the board so seekers of the holy grail won’t find much luck here. It’s always 8 decks, always the same rules. It’s just that you might get win multipliers, interesting side bets, Six Card Charlie rule, or something else that’s fun.