Rules of Blackjack
Blackjack is played at a table with one dealer and up to 7 players. In front of each player spot is a betting square for bets to be placed. The number of players is irrelevant, because each player is playing ONLY against the dealer. Bets are in the form of colored chips. Each color means a different denomination and vary from casino to casino. All bets are to be made BEFORE each hand is dealt and once the first card is dealt bets cannot be removed. If you do not place a bet the dealer will not deal you any cards. Bets are to be stacked in a single pile, with highest denomination chips on the bottom of the stack. At each table there is a sign clearly stating the minimum and maximum bets allowed at that table. On the same sign, you will find any special instructions for the game, (ie. this is where you will be able to note whether Surrender is an active play) Find a table that suits your pocketbook, (in other words, don't bet more than you can afford to lose) Because there are many table games, it is important to make sure the table you are at is a BLACKJACK table. On the table surface you will see the phrase: "Blackjack pays 3 to 2" underneath you will find the dealer instructions concerning draws and Insurance payment. Now that you are at the correct table, it is necessary to find out what KIND of game you are playing. The choices are Multi-Deck and Single-Deck . Multi-Deck vs. Single-Deck For a beginner, it has been suggested to start with the Multi-Deck game which consists of 6 or 8 decks and are dealt from a Shoe , (a box for holding the cards) The cards are dealt "face up", so all the cards in play are showing. The reason for this is to get you, the new player, comfortable with the game and the casino enviroment. Also when selecting a table for "getting comfortable", choose one that has the lowest minimum bet in the casino. The more decks being used, the more of an advantage the casino has. Once you play for awhile and get the hang of the game, you may want to switch to the Single-Deck game, where the cards are dealt face down and the dealer only has one card showing face up. Values for the Cards Each player is given two cards, either face up or face down, and the dealer gets one card face down and one face up. The value of the hand is the sum of the cards. If anyone is dealt a "ten" and Ace as their two dealt cards, they have twenty one and are paid back at a ratio of 3 to 2. The suits are ignored, they don't count in the game at all. The cards with two to nine showing are taken at face value. Tens, Jacks, Queens and Kings are valued at "ten". Aces can be counted as One or Eleven. Mission of the Game The player's mission of the game is to get a score higher than the dealer and as close to "twenty-one" as possible. If the player or dealer exceed a score of "twenty-one, this is called a bust and that person loses the hand. If the dealer and player have the same score, it is called a push and nobody wins the hand. As explained before, the players DO NOT play against each other. The player must play first, if the players hand exceeds "21", (busts), the player loses their bet, even if the dealer busts on his hand. Soft and Hard Hands Because Aces are capable of having two values, when they are first dealt, the value is indistinguishable. For example, if you are dealt an A and 6, the value of the hand can be viewed as 7 or 17. This is called a SOFT hand because it doesn't exceed twenty one. If the player asks for another card and gets an 8, it is now considered a HARD hand because the value of the cards, (A+6+8, if the A is counted as eleven), is more than 21.

It may seem that video poker play is similar to regular slot machine play, but the two are actually quite different. You being the games the same way by inserting a coin into the machine and pressing the play button, but this is where it changes. Cards appear on the screen and it's up to you decide which cards to hold, ranging from none to all five. The choice is completely yours. There are also five buttons on the front of the machine. When you push these buttons, the word "hold" will appear above those cards selected. Your objective in video poker is to get the best or highest hand possible.

The next thing you do is press the "deal" button and a new set of cards will appear, replacing the ones you chose not to hold. If a winning combination results, the machine will award you with credits based on the payout schedule. After the credits are awarded, the "player paid" sign will appear on the screen. A machine that requires $.25 to play would record each credit as 25, so basically the credits will equal the value required to play the machine.

With this hand over, you start the process all over again. You bet how many units or coins you wish to play on the next hand and then hit the "deal" button. When you decide you want to end your video poker session, all you do is press the "collect" button and the machine will give you your credits. The object of the game is to end each round with a winning combination.

Betting is quite straightforward with Video Poker. You can typically choose $0.25, $0.50, $1, or $5 games on which to bet. And the bets are 1x, 2x, 3x, 4x, or 5x, which is the maximum bet. If you're playing a $1 game, you can place bets of $1, $2, $3, $4, or $5.

The number of games and manufacturers of coin-operated machines are almost end less. Choose from slot, gumball, cigar, music, clocks, cash registers, pinball, gun, and weigh machines, horse gaming and golf, to name a few. Slot authoritarian, Marshall Fey, author of "Slot Machines:
A Pictoral History of the First 100 Years," said the slot machine mushroomed into a premier collectible after 1976, the year that California legalized antique slot machine collecting. Many states have since followed suit. Robert Levy of Pennsauken, N.J., who has more than 250 antique slots, said he collects because "they increase in value every year. They are a good investment, very entertaining, they make wonderful banks, and they will never be made again." His oldest is dated 1893. Levy, who is for two price guides in the U.S. and one in England, said he has bought and sold slot machines for 14 years. For some collectors, "seek and find" offers the most enjoyment. The rare ones are difficult to locate because many of them were taken to the city dump and are lost forever. Some collectors like the "thrill" of owning an illegal item. Not every state condones ownership of a slot machine, and some states require that it be a certain age before it can be sold. Levy said the Attorney General's office of each state regulates the sale of slot machines, and it is best to check with that office before buying. Cosmetic changes over the years are not the only consequences of the modern world of gaming. "With the old machines, you played one coin at a time and it paid on the center line. You could have fun playing and watching and waiting for the symbols to come up. Today's electronic slots play up to 60 lines at one time; they will take $100 dollar bills and will, geometrically, take money unbelieveably quicker. You can sit down and in a matter of seconds, your money is gone, and so is the fun of the game.

Established in 2001, Aces High is one of the sister casinos to RiverBelle Online Casino. The casino has been designed with both the novice and more experienced gambler in mind. Aces High have included two different BlackJack tables. Table one is the standard Microgaming blackjack game where bets range from $2.00 to $1000. For those high-rollers out there, Aces High have included BlackJack table 2 where the minimum bet is $100 allowing a massive $3000 maximum bet. Table 2 also comes with other benefits, for those of you who can afford to play at this table you'll be awarded with random prizes during your game.

Aces High isn't a casino just for the blackjack player though, they offer just about every casino game you could think of. These games include video poker machines from 10s or Better to Lousiana Double, progressive video poker, 5 progressive slot machines, 25 slots and 2 feature slots.

The RiverBelle is one of the most respected and well established casinos on the internet, it is clear that they have gone to great lengths to make Aces High a worthy addition to their stable and they've done a great job. At a time when the net is being flooded with new casinos (many of which aren't worth 1 minute of your time), it's refreshing to find a casino that has been designed with the player in mind and not just the owner's bank balance!

Aces high represents Microgaming at its finest, we're sure that if you give them a try they'll become one of your regular online gambling haunts.