While online slots are the most popular casino game, many players still enjoy playing card games. If you’re bored of traditional blackjack and poker, it might be time to branch out and try something new. But do you know what are the most popular British card games? No worries! Here at NetBet, we’re going to explain to you the 4 most popular card games in Britain, keep reading!
Best Card Games in Britain:
1.- Black Maria
Black Maria is first on the list of popular British card games. Best described as a variation of Hearts, the game is popular in the UK and surrounding countries. The game also goes by the name “Black Widow”.
Best described as a trick-taking game, the objective of Black Maria is to avoid winning tricks with Hearts or the Queen of Spades in them. Each heart counts as one point against its winner, while the Queen of Spades counts for 13 points. The game is best suited to three players, though up to seven players can get involved if they so wish.
The game begins with the player to the dealer’s left, followed by whoever wins the trick. Unlike there is in Hearts, there is no restriction on leading hearts in Black Maria. There are a few key rules to the game; first of all, you must follow suit to the card led, whenever possible. However, if you can’t follow suit you can play any card. The trick is won by the highest card of the suit led.
Each player counts their cards at the end of the hand, receiving one penalty point for each Heart and 13 penalty points for the Queen of Spades. The game continues until someone reaches a total of 50 points. All players then count their cards and the player with the lowest total is the winner.
2.- Whist
One of the best card games in Britain, Whist is next on the list of popular British card games. Best described as the direct forerunner of Bridge, the game was particularly popular before the days of auction bridge and contract bridge.
It is played using a standard 52-card deck; however, as in many bridge games, two packs of cards with contrasting back designs are recommended. This means that while one pack is being dealt, the other can be shuffled ready for the next deal.
During the game, the dealer gives each player one card at a time, beginning with the player on his left. The cards are placed face down and continue to be dealt until the deck runs out. The final card is the trump card. The dealer places the final card face up on the table, and every card of that suit becomes a trump. When the dealer plays the first trick, he picks up the trump card and it becomes part of his hand.
The player on the dealer’s left begins the game and may play any card. Each player then takes it in turns to play a card, following suit wherever possible. However, if you cannot follow suit, a player may play any card. Four cards constitute a trick, which is won by the person who played the highest trump. Any trick not containing a trump is won by the player who played the highest card of the suit led.
The objective of Whist is to score points by taking any trick in excess of six. The player with the most points at the end of the game is declared the winner.
3.- Gleek
Gleek is next on the list of popular British card games. While it’s not as popular today, the 44-card game was one of the best card games in Britain between the 16th century and the 18th century. As with most card games, the objective of Gleek is to make the highest score.
The 44-card deck is made by removing all 2s and 3s from a standard pack of cards. Once the deck is ready, 12 cards are dealt to each player and the next card is used as the trump. Any remaining cards are left in a face-down pile. Each deal has four parts: bidding for the stock, Vying for Ruff, claiming bonuses for mournivals and gleeks and play of the cards.
At the end of the game, players count 3 points for each trick and adds those to the point-value of any honours that were played. Examples of honours include Ace, which is worth 15 points, King, worth 3 points, Queen, worth 3 points, and Jack, which is worth 9 points. At the end of the game, the player with the highest score is declared the winner.
4.- Pontoon
This game is best described as the British version of Twenty-one or Blackjack. It can be played by any number of players from two upwards, but generally works best with 4 to 8 players using a standard deck of cards. If more than eight people are playing, two 52-card decks can be mixed together. As in Twenty-One, the objective of Pontoon is to form a hand whose total value is as close to 21 as possible, without going over.
At the start of the game, one player is designated as the banker. In each hand, each of the remaining players bet on having a stronger hand than the banker. Pontoon is the best hand of all, which is 21 points in two cards. This means that the hand must be made of an ace plus a ten or picture card. At the end of the round, if the banker and a player have equal valued hands, then the banker is declared the winner.
So, there you have it – the most popular British card games. If you’re looking to try out some card games for yourself, NetBet has a wide range of casino games including online blackjack and various other card games.