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Until recently, only highest class casinos offered baccarat, and only their richest clients could afford table minimums. No wonder name conjours up an image of glamour and expensive cigars, diamonds and vintage cognac!

The good news is that you no longer have to be a multi-millionaire to savor excitement of baccarat - with online casinos you can play online baccarat game anytime, anywhere!

Baccarat has fascinated high-class gamblers for centuries. The game was said to have been invented in Italy by Felix Falguierein, a professional gambler, although some dispute this, saying that it is French in origin. In any case, baccarat was introduced to French court in 15th century, and soon became game of aristocracy. The name is taken from Italian word "baccara", meaning zero, and refers to game rule that all court cards have a value of zero. Baccarat was first played with tarot cards, and there is a legend linking it with ancient Etruscan ritual of Nine Gods.

Chemin de Fer, a variation of baccarat, also became popular in France. The original baccarat game evolved into what is now known as European Baccarat. The principles of play are same in baccarat and chemin de fer, with just a slight difference in rules. In both games, object is to score as close as possible to 9 by adding up face values of cards, and discarding leftmost digit of answer. In baccarat, rules are more formal, and game is always banked by casino, although deal passes from player to player. Players may choose to bet on player, banker or on a tie. Since a tie doesn't happen very often, ties win at much longer odds.