Infinite Blackjack — Rules, 6-card Charlie & Strategy

What is Infinite Blackjack?

Infinite Blackjack is Evolution's solution to capacity: all players at a table play the same dealer hand simultaneously, so the seat-cap problem of seven-seat blackjack disappears. Rule-wise it is built on the Evolution Classic 8-deck S17 engine with two specific additions plus an optional Cash Out side-action. The mechanical changes are small but the strategy implications are meaningful.

The key rule changes

• 6-card Charlie — if your hand reaches 6 cards without busting (total ≤ 21), you auto-win. This rule beats even a dealer blackjack obtained after the deal (it does not save you from a dealer BJ taken right after the initial insurance offer).
• Forced stand on hard 17 and above — you cannot hit a hard 17, 18, 19, 20 or 21. Standard basic strategy never hits these anyway, so the rule is mostly a guardrail.
• Cash Out — at certain hand states you can exit early at a variable rate (~0.4x to ~1.77x). Cash Out is not part of EV-optimal play and EV Solver does not compute its values.

Strategy adjustments

The 6-card Charlie alters optimal play on a handful of low totals that would otherwise stand or surrender:

• Hit hard 13-16 vs dealer 7+ until you reach 5 cards — the chance of reaching 6 cards under 21 outweighs the bust risk.
• Always hit if you currently have 4 cards totaling 14-16 — going for the Charlie is positive EV against most dealer up-cards.
• Surrender is unavailable in Infinite, so the chart drops surrender lines entirely; replace them with hits.
• The forced-stand on hard 17+ never matters in basic strategy (you would stand anyway), but it does restrict edge-case counting deviations vs. dealer A.

House edge breakdown

Infinite Blackjack's house edge is 0.53% (99.47% RTP), versus 0.71% for Evolution Classic 8-deck — about 0.18 pt better for the player. The 6-card Charlie alone is worth roughly 0.16 pt RTP on basic strategy, and the forced-stand on 17+ is essentially neutral. Cash Out (not modelled) is a side-action with its own house edge depending on the offered multiplier, generally unfavourable when used as anything other than damage control.