Description
Baccarat (sometimes expressed baccara) is a casino table game whose exact origins are disputed, but which certainly has a long history.
James Bond enjoys a spot of this comparing card game in many of the novels by creator Ian Fleming, including Casino Royale. Equally, the game was popular among the French nobility of the nineteenth century.
This variant from NetEnt, Baccarat Pro, released in 2011, follows standard rules. It’s available in high or low-roller versions, as well as a VIP edition.
Baccarat Pro plays out between two hands – the player and the banker. It’s played with eight 52-card decks which are shuffled ahead of each round.
How to play
The aim of the game is to wager on the hand that will finish with a point total of nine, or as close as possible to it. If you get an eight or nine in your hand, this is known as a ‘natural’ and always wins.
When you reach 10 points or over, 10 are taken off the total, so you never score higher than nine points.
As a player, you only have to make two decisions; which position will win the hand (player hand, banker’s hand, tie hand, player or banker pair), and how much to wager.
Betting fields
Betting fields are displayed on a table once you open the game. You’ll see the chips in the bottom left-hand corner of the screen, with more appearing when you click the left and right arrows.
Choose a chip and then place it on one of the betting fields, adding multiple chips in multiple fields if you wish. To erase a bet, use the grey chip with the red cross.
Next hit Deal, which causes the player and bank to receive two open cards. Depending on their value, a third card may be dealt, under third-card rules, which are explained in more detail here.
You’ll see the results of a round shown on our screen.
After the deal, the house pays out on winning hands, added to your credit, or collects the wagered stakes if there are none.
Play again by pressing Rebet, or play with a new bet.
You can adjust speed and sound effects, such as background music.
Baccarat Pro card values
These are as follows:
- 2 – 9 are worth their face value
- Ace is worth a single point
- 10 – King have a value of 10 points
Bet limits
Players have a choice of:
- £1 to a max of £100
- £5 to a max of £500
- £10 to a max of £1000
Special features
Bonus rounds
As usual with table games in this series, bonus rounds and free spins do not apply. At the same time, there are no progressive jackpots.
Return to Player (RTP)
This is nice and high in this game, at 98.94%.
Verdict
If you like your games nice and simple, Baccarat Pro is a pretty straightforward one on which to cut your teeth. But that doesn’t detract from its excitement, whether you’re a novice or already a seasoned player.
Make no mistake, Baccarat Pro is a game which has class and sophistication in spades. (And clubs, hearts and diamonds…) Baccarat remains an ever-popular casino classic for a reason.
Get to grips with Baccarat Pro by playing in demo mode rather than staking any real money in the first instance. And let us know your thoughts!
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