Mega Baccarat 

Taking the classic elegance of baccarat and implementing a creative twist, Mega Baccarat is a new and innovative table game from the developers at Pragmatic Play. Like all of the other live casino games in the same genre, this has a fast-paced gameplay format centred around predicting which card hand will be higher. With the inclusion of new multipliers, however, Mega Baccarat brings a new dynamic to the classic blueprint that is already associated with this iconic card game.

Taking place on a purple felt casino table like most variants of live baccarat, Mega Baccarat sees a smartly dressed host sit directly behind it and lead gameplay. In front of them are two card shoes and the markings for both the ‘Player’ and the ‘Banker’ hands. Behind all of this sits a professional studio background, which is red and gold to pay homage to the game's Asian roots.

Overlaid on top of the purple table are the betting options, just like in Grand Baccarat and Emperor Baccarat. These are colour-coordinated to make sure players understand which outcome they may be wagering on. To the left of this main bet table is the game history, with a separate table which breaks down any trends in current gameplay to the right of this as well. Underneath all of these cleanly designed interfaces are a series of casino chips which act as the bet selection buttons in Mega Baccarat. In the upper right corner, players can use buttons to change the camera angle, toggle the sound and even access the main chat menu to send messages to the dealer and other players in the same room.

At the heart of Mega Baccarat are a regular set of rules which have been retained from standard baccarat. The aim of the game is for players to bet on whether the player's or banker's hand will have a higher value, or if the hands will be tied. Two hands are dealt, with the hand closest to 9 being the one which is determined as the winner.

Each card, which may be drawn in Mega Baccarat, has its own unique value which contributes to the hand total. Aces are worth a single point, numbered cards 2 through 9 are worth their face value and the 10s, Jacks, Queens and Kings all have a value of 0. Only the last digit of the total hand value counts, however. For example, if the card hand consists of a 6 and a 7, which comes to 13, this results in the hand value being 3.

Depending on whether a hand is determined as being a natural, something which relates to the cards coming to a value of 8 or 9, additional cards may be drawn in Mega Baccarat. If no natural result occurs, the game continues with standing drawing rules, keeping the overall experience true to its foundations.

Although it is a seamless live recreation of a table classic, the defining feature of Mega Baccarat actually comes down to the multiplier bonus round, which Pragmatic Play has added. This can randomly activate before any cards are dealt, with this potentially seeing multipliers up to 1000x applied to any of the bet options overlaid on screen. It is worth noting, though, that these multipliers may only be triggered should the hand outcome be a natural 8 or 9.

There are also some additional side bets in Mega Baccarat, which add further layers to the game. These are simple ones, such as Player Pair and Banker Pair, both of which can also be found in titles such as Speed Baccarat.

No matter the type of device preference a player may have, Mega Baccarat has been optimised by Pragmatic Play for all play methods. As long as the chosen tablet, computer, laptop or smartphone is connected to the internet, the live game feed, interactive betting options and chat menu are not affected at all. This keeps the gameplay quality consistent across the BoyleSports UK casino and is all down to the HTML5 framework that supports this release.

From its seamless interactive features and live host, all the way to the innovative multiplier mechanic which defines this release, Mega Baccarat manages to add a new twist to this casino staple. Pragmatic ensures all of the elements work together in this release, with the interface central to gameplay being easy and intuitive to use.

Should you like the traditional game on which Mega Baccarat is based, you could also take a look at Baccarat Soriée and Dragon Tiger in the same table game genre.

Please remember to always gamble responsibly, this is a real money gambling site.