Lightning Baccarat is a relatively new live casino title from Evolution Gaming. Based on traditional baccarat, this version of the game features a special side bet with randomly selected multiplier cards called lightning cards.
If you score a win and the hand includes one of these cards, this can potentially bring you a maximum multiplier of 262,144x your bet. In real-money terms, the game can make you up to $500,000 richer.
Today, we'll delve into the specifics of this exciting live baccarat variant and reveal what it is, how to play it, share some useful tips, and much more.
Best US Casinos to Play Lightning Baccarat
Due to its enormous popularity, a large number of online casinos have started including Lightning Baccarat in their gaming offer. We've thoroughly tested and reviewed these operators to find the ones with the best user experience.
Here is the list of our top picks:
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What Is Live Lightning Baccarat?
Lightning Baccarat is based on a traditional baccarat game, with a few extra features that make it stand out from the crowd. The release follows standard baccarat rules, but it uses lightning cards with multipliers between 2x and 8x. Multiplier cards can even be combined to produce a massive win of up to 262,144x.
Being a part of the Evolution Live Lightning games series, this variation also features a recognizable studio design with gold and red dominating the scene. Red-clad dealers greet the players at the baccarat table, whereas the background features electrifying visuals that create an exciting atmosphere.
How to Play Lightning Baccarat
If you want to play live Lightning Baccarat, you can do so in several easy steps. If you know how to play baccarat, you shouldn't have much of an issue learning how to play this variant.
Firstly, select an online casino from the list of our recommended operators above, register, and top up your balance. Once your deposit goes through, which should take minutes, you can go to the live casino section, find the title, and start playing right away.
Lightning Baccarat Rules and Features
Lightning Baccarat plays mostly like a regular baccarat casino game, with the addition of a few specific features. In this section, we'll explore these key elements and basic baccarat rules to help you get started.
Objective of the Game
The aim of the game is to predict whether the player or the banker will win a hand. These bets don't represent you as a player and the house - they are just different sides you can bet on. A side wins when its hand total is closer to nine compared to the other hand.
Lightning Baccarat is played with eight decks of 52 cards. Aces are worth one point, cards 2–10 retain their face value, whereas 10s and face cards are worth 0. If a hand total is more than nine, we drop the first digit, and only the second one signifies the hand's value.
For example, if the hand comprises an eight and a five, the total of these cards is 13. When we drop the first digit, we're left with three, which is the value of the hand.
Getting Started
At the beginning of the game round, the player places a bet on the desired outcome. It is important to mention that a 20% lightning fee is added to your bet as commission for the lightning side bets.
Before the dealer deals the cards, the game selects up to five lightning cards from a virtual deck using a random number generator. These cards carry random multiplier values of 2x, 3x, 4x, 5x, or 8x and you can see them in the bottom left-hand corner of the game window.
The next step sees the dealer drawing the first two cards for each side. Depending on the outcome of the draw, the dealer may also draw a third card based on a set of third card baccarat rules you can check out here.
Outcome of the Game Round
Once the hands are settled, the winning bets are paid out. If the hand you bet on wins, you'll get your payout according to the paytable. The player and banker bets bring you a 1:1 reward unless the winning hand comprises lightning cards.
If this is the case, the multiplier value of a lightning card applies to your bet wins, multiplying them manifold. What's more, if there are several lightning cards in a winning hand, these multipliers are added together and applied to the win.
Other Bets You Can Make
In addition to the banker and the player bets, you can also bet on banker pair and player pair, and make a tie bet. In this live casino game, tie bets pay 5:1, while pairs bring you a 9:1 payout.
On top of that, if there are any matching lightning cards, their multipliers will increase the payout. That way, a winning hand with said cards can potentially result in a massive payout of 262,144x your bet and bring you a whopping $500.000.
Lightning Baccarat Strategy
Unfortunately, just as with Lightning Roulette and Lightning Dice, there isn't a foolproof baccarat strategy that will guarantee you a win every time. However, you can calculate how probable it is for the matching lightning cards to appear.
Here is the rough estimate, based on the number of lightning cards drawn during the lightning round:
- One lightning card - 1 in 52 chance
- Two lightning cards - 1 in 26 chance
- Three lightning cards - 1 in 17 chance
- Four lightning cards - 1 in 13 chance
- Five lightning cards - 1 in 10 chance
To use this Lightning Baccarat prediction successfully, you also have to consider the cards used in the previous rounds.
Lightning Baccarat Tips and Tricks
Lightning Baccarat is an exciting and suspenseful game that can potentially bring you huge wins. However, you should be mindful of a couple of things before you start playing.
The lightning bet is mandatory, so the 20% fee will be added to each and every one of your bets. Therefore, make sure you factor in this additional charge to be able to manage your bankroll successfully.
Next, the tie bet and the pair bets in Lightning Baccarat pay less than in other game variants. The standard payout for tie bets is 8:1 or 9:1, compared to 5:1 in this case. Similarly, pair bets commonly pay 11:1 in a standard game. However, the payout in Lightning Baccarat is 9:1.
It is also important to note that the RTP for Lightning Baccarat Evolution is a bit lower than in other similar games. It is particularly low in the case of pair bets (88.35%), so you may want to avoid making them.
How to Win at Lightning Baccarat
Lightning Baccarat is a fairly straightforward game with an easy-to-understand objective. You can win the game if you predict which side will have a hand total closer to nine. This can be either the banker or the player, but you can also bet on a tie or make the player pair or the banker pair bet. On top of that, if the winning hand happens to feature a lightning card, the game will multiply your winnings using the corresponding multiplier(s) of 2x, 3x, 4x, 5x, or 8x.
Other Live Baccarat Games
In addition to Lightning Baccarat, online casinos feature other exciting live baccarat games you can play. Some of the most notable titles include Multiplayer Baccarat, Dragon Tiger Live, Commission Baccarat, and Baccarat Squeeze. Read our detailed reviews of these games before you start playing.
Other Popular Live Casino Games
If you enjoy playing Lightning Baccarat, you'll definitely like other Evolution games from the Lightning series, such as Lightning Dice, Lightning Roulette, and Lightning Blackjack.
However, these are not the only game variants you can play. Check out our site sections on live poker, live blackjack, live roulette, and live craps to discover more exciting live casino game titles.
There are many different options when it comes to these popular live dealer games, just a few of the variants include Instant Roulette, Blackjack Party, 3-Card Poker, Infinite Blackjack, Immersive Roulette, and many more.
Lightning Baccarat FAQs
Where can I play Lightning Baccarat?
Lightning Baccarat is an immensely popular title from Evolution Gaming, and many live casinos feature it. However, if you'd like to choose the best operators, check out the list at the top of this page.
Is Lightning Baccarat rigged?
Evolution Gaming, the developer behind this live dealer game, is an absolute leader in producing live casino software. As such, it has proven its trustworthiness repeatedly, so you don't have to worry about its games being rigged. The game also uses a random number generator, so there is no way to predict or adjust the outcome.
How does Lightning Baccarat work?
This Evolution live title works almost the same as a standard baccarat game, with the addition of specific side bets. You can bet on whether the player or the banker wins the game round and receive a payout if your prediction is correct. The addition of the Lightning side bets can increase the potential reward by introducing the multiplier.
What is the RTP?
The RTP of Lightning Baccarat depends on the type of bet you make. Here is the average payout you can expect:
- Player bet - 98.76%
- Banker bet - 98.59%
- Tie bet - 94.51%
- Pair bet - 88.35%
