Playtech vs. Evolution Gaming Live Blackjack

When it comes to playing live dealer blackjack games there are two software providers that are the absolute best in my personal opinion. These are the Playtech live blackjack games and the Evolution Gaming Live blackjack games so I thought I would make this blog post where I compare the two and reveal their strong sides and their weaknesses.

Live Blackjack Software

Playtech -The Playtech live blackjack software is available both as a downloadable version (that is a bit more stable) and a instant play flash version for Mac and Linux users. I prefer the downloadable version as it offers a couple of extra features that are not available in the instant play version but since I am a Mac user I have to stick with the instant play version when playing at a Playtech powered live casino.

Evolution Gaming – Ever since trying out the Evolution Gaming software for the first time I am been completely in love with this live gaming platform. It’s simply the best one out there when it comes to stability and you hardly ever have any problems while playing at casinos that are powered by Evolution Gaming. The Evolution Gaming software is only available as an instant play version which is great if you are on a Mac or at an internet cafe. They really don’t have to develop a downloadable version as the instant play one is so solid.

The great thing with Evolution Gaming blackjack games is that the video stream quality is automatically adjusted according to what your connection can handle so instead of having the games lagging behind when you connection is slow the video quality will go down a bit but you will still be able to see the cards.

The Blackjack Dealers

Playtech -The people at Playtech seem to have a thing for Asians as the majority of the blackjack dealers at any Playtech powered casino will be Asian. I personally don’t really care where the dealers are from and how they look (but it doesn’t hurt if they are pretty), I’m just there to try and win money. What I find good about the blackjack dealers at a Playtech live casino is that they are always extremely friendly and they are more than happy to interact with the players.

Evolution Gaming – If the people behind Playtech seem to have a thing for Asians you could definitely say that Evolution Gaming have a thing for women from Eastern Europe. At Evolution powered live casinos you will find female dealers from all the Eastern European countries. These dealers always speak proper English (but with a Eastern European accent) and they are very friendly when they interact with the players at the blackjack tables. But after countless hours at live blackjack tables I have found that their fuse is a bit shorter than the Asian dealers and they are a bit more outspoken when it comes to handling the idiots at the tables asking to see their boobs and all other idiotic stuff that is completely inappropriate.

Tipping Dealers at the Blackjack Tables

Playtech -For as long as I can remember you have been able to tip the blackjack dealers at any Playtech powered live casino which is probably a great thing for the dealers. It also gives them an extra incentive to be friendly to the players so I’m all for this function even though I don’t use it very often.

Evolution Gaming – Evolution Gaming currently do not have an option for tipping the dealers at the tables. This doesn’t affect you as a player in any way but it would be nice for us to have a way of tipping the dealers after a great session to show our appreciation. And it sure would be nice for the dealers to have that extra bump in their paycheck every month when the tips are being split up amongst the crew.

The Pace of Play at the Live Blackjack Tables

Playtech -This is actually the thing that is bugging me the most with the games at any Playtech powered live online casino. between every hand of blackjack you have 30 seconds to place your bet which means there is some wait in between the hands. I don’t see how anyone could need 30 seconds to place their bets and click the confirm bet button. If it was up to me I would like to see it changed to a maximum of 10 seconds and this way we would be able to play a lot more hands every hour. It might only be the action junkie in me talking but I really can’t stand sitting around waiting for that next hand to start.

Evolution Gaming – At the live blackjack tables at Evolution Gaming the wait between hands is 8 seconds at the fast paced tables which means there is literally no wait at all in between hands. They also don’t have the annoying confirm bet button that I always forget to click at a Playtech powered casino which speeds up the game even more.

Disconnection Policy at the Blackjack Tables

Playtech -This is one place where I have to give Playtech credit. Their disconnection policy is awesome and even though I hardly ever have to use it it’s a great comfort knowing that if my Internet connection should go down I will still be able to finish the hand later.

The way it works is that if you get disconnected from the game for any reason whatsoever you will be taken to a Random Number Generated mode the next time you open the blackjack table and in that RNG mode you will be able to complete your hand. It’s not optimal but it sure beats having to stay on 11 against the dealers 6 only to have her draw to a 5 card 17 to have you beat.

Evolution Gaming – This is the only major downside with the Evolution Gaming platform, they are not offering any kind of disconnection protection for their players. Should you lose your connection in the middle of a hand at a Evolution Gaming live casino you are out of luck (or at least at the mercy of the gambling gods) as the hand will keep on playing without you having any option to make a move. I’m sure the people at Evolution are working on some kind of solution for this as their team of people are simply amazing when it comes to making the player experience the best possible.

Summary

If it’s not obvious by now have to tell you that I am a huge fan of the Evolution Gaming blackjack games and it’s very rare that I play live online blackjack on any other platform. Don’t get me wrong, the Playtech platform is still great and it’s a very good option for playing live blackjack games but there is just something about Evolution that I love.

The only reason I would choose to play at a Playtech casino rather than at Evolution Gaming is if I found myself sitting on a terrible connection where I am likely to use their disconnection protection policy to finish the hand at a later time.

I hope you found this post helpful and I would be happy to answer any questions you might have about the live blackjack games at these two platforms. Just leave your questions in the comment form below and I will make sure to answer them for you.

May 26, 2011 - Offer valid as of date published. T&Cs apply.