Normal Play
You may control play with the mouse, buttons or the keyboard. The game was designed to work primarily with the mouse as this is the quickest, easiest and most realistic. Besides, when was the last time that you saw a casino table with buttons?
Mouse actions are designed to mimic normal casino movements as follows:
You bet by moving chips from the chip box to one of the player bet boxes. The bet boxes are the light green semicircles with a small black "$0". You can bet in any of your seats, in all, or in none. Click on the chips that you wish to move, drag it to the player box by moving the mouse while pressing the left mouse button, and then release the chip by letting go of the button. You may grab several chips at once by selecting into the chip stack instead of selecting a chip from the top of the stack. The chip stack that you are creating is the original bet chip stack. You can add more chips by repeating the above. To keep the chip stack at a reasonable height, change will automatically be made to the smallest number of chips possible. You can also drag chip stacks from one spot to another. You can also right-click on the table to bet, or click the + button on the keypad to type in a bet using the keypad.
To remove a chip stack from the table - just click it with the mouse once. Dragging is not necessary.
To hit a hand, scratch the table vertically. That is, push down the mouse button somewhere on the table and drag the mouse vertically up, down or both then release the mouse button. The distance moved can be anywhere from one inch up to the full screen. You can also click the Hit button on the control bar at the bottom of the screen. Or, you can right-click for a list of options. Or use the keyboard.
Standing is performed by waving the hand - push the mouse button and move the mouse horizontally, once or back and forth, and then release. Or, click the Stand button or right-click.
Double down and split are performed by adding more chips from the chip box to the bet box. When a double down or split is allowed, press the mouse button anywhere in the chip box and the correct number of chips will be grabbed. Drag these to the desired bet box and release.
Insurance is handled in the same way; but drag the chips to the Insurance line of the bet. This is the line that says "2 TO 1 - INSURANCE PAYS - 2 TO 1". The bet must be released directly above the player bet box on this line. You can also use the mouse by scratching the table horizontally to say NO or vertically to say YES. Again, you can also use the keyboard, control bar or right-click on the table.
Surrender is performed by clicking once on the bet to be surrendered.
At the end of play, many chip stacks may be left on the table. You can take them off the table by clicking on them, or you can add to the original bet chip stack. You can also drag chips from one spot to another. When the deal is started, all stacks that are left will be combined into one stack per seat.
To begin the deal, just wait, or double-click the table, use the keyboard, right-click, or use the control bar. Note: if you do not wish to have the dealer deal automatically, you can turn this feature off by de-selecting the "Dealer doesn't wait for bet" option on the OPTIONS - SETTINGS menu Play Variations folder. The feature is temporarily turned off whenever you select any menu. You must click the shoe or double-click the table to restart play.
Note: the reason that hand movements are required in a casino instead of voice commands has little to do with the noise level. Casino play is monitored via closed-circuit monitors and catwalks above the ceiling. The observers can read hands, but not lips.
This is the end of the Quick Start section. You now have enough information to play basic Blackjack. The next section describes the online Help function which may come in handy during play. The remainder of the manual discusses over 300 additional features and options.
