Online Roulette

Online roulette is a popular game with casino players, and is offered in a variety of versions by online casinos; both French roulette and double zero American style roulette, have been entertaining gamblers around the world for years. You can play real money online roulette with cash staked or play demo versions for free. There’s also the option to play Live Roulette at Live Casinos, where you’ll find a roulette wheel spinned by a real croupier, you’ll also play with other real players. Before playing any casino game, it’s wise to learn the rules of play and various strategies that can be adopted. Read on to find all the essentials on how to play roulette online!

Online roulette offers just as much fun as in brick and mortar casinos. In the virtual world, however, you can expect a far greater variety of game options, and choose between video roulette and live roulette. The major difference between playing at a land casino and playing online, is that online roulette allows you to place your bets from the comfort of your own home.

WHAT IS ROULETTE?

Roulette is considered to be one of the oldest gambling games, with a variety of claims about its origin dating back to ancient Greece. What we do know for sure, is that for centuries people have been spinning disks and wheels, placing markers and betting on where the spin will land. Roulette as we know it, is most likely to have come from 17th century France; its original version had nothing to do with gambling games.

Mathematician Blaise Pascal examined probability theory, and for the sake of this research he designed a special wheel. While developed purely as a research tool, the gambling potential for this wheel was soon noticed. The wheel would be developed and over time turn into the wheel that is so recognisable today.

The basic premise was to throw a ball which would land in a random pocket; players would bet on where the ball would land. The game gained popularity among the French people and spread throughout the country. One of the most renowned players of the time, and a great enthusiast of roulette, was King Louis XVI. His love for the game helped make it so popular that it became almost a part of the citizens’ everyday life. Unfortunately, his successor, King Louis Philip, viewed the game as dangerous and introduced a ban on roulette games.

Despite the ban, roulette spread across borders and all over Europe and found its way into the first casino in Monte Carlo. Casino founders, the Blanc brothers, had to amend the game for the casino and did so by adding an extra number onto the wheel, giving the house an edge of 2.70%.

Another milestone in the history of roulette was its arrival in the United States. Immigrants to the New World took the game with them, and again its popularity soon spread. Again, casino owners tinkered with the game to enlarge the house edge, adding a zero and an eagle. With players dissatisfied, the eagle was dropped, but the additional zero remained, leaving us with the double zero American roulette we find today. The game is less popular among players since it offers a greater edge to the casino, at 5.26%, than its European counterpart.

Regardless of which version you choose, and whether you play in a traditional or online casino, you will always get the same classic entertainment. As with all gambling slots games, roulette requires players to make bets; in this case the player has to predict in which wheel pocket – from 0 to 36 or from 00 to 36 - the ball thrown by the croupier will land. Unlike some other games that require elements of skill and decision-making, such as blackjack or poker, roulette comes down to one factor - luck.

ONLINE ROULETTE: RULES OF PLAY

Roulette is completely a game of chance. Before playing you should learn the rules. The knowledge won’t increase your chances of winning, but it can help you to minimise the risk taken and to raise your game awareness.

It is worth noting that online roulette, just like the live version, is easier for players to pick up than versions in regular casinos. To play this classic game in a land casino, you need to learn not only its rules of play but also a system of unspoken rules regarding, for example, how to behave at a table. In online roulette, there is no such etiquette to follow.

In online casinos, you can choose from a variety of different tables to play the game online. It is entirely up to you at which table you decide to sit. In a live version you will have the opportunity to watch the croupier performing their duties on your computer screen. You will also see what the other players are doing and can utilise the chat function. While you won’t have real chips, in online roulette your chips will be represented graphically on the screen. There’s no need to change money into chips, simply use funds directly from your account.

TYPES OF ROULETTE BETS (INSIDE/OUTSIDE BETS)

It’s important to know the different types of bets that are possible. You can refer to tips and guides but it’s better to know for yourself what types of wagers can be made. The first classification to understand are inside and outside bets, determined by where you place your chips on the table. Outside bets offer a higher probability of winning, but lower payouts, while inside bets are harder to achieve and therefore leads to higher wins if successful. Inside bets are placed on one or more numbers, while outside bets are on groups of numbers.

When placing inside bets in live roulette you can choose from the following:

• Straight-up: bet on a single number.

• Split: bet on two adjacent numbers. In traditional versions, this requires placing a chip on the line shared by two numbers.

• Street: bet on three consecutive numbers on the same line. The chip is placed on the outer corner of the number at either end of the line.

• Corner/Square: bet on four numbers. The chip is placed at the corner of four numbers (in the middle of a square of four number)

• Six Line: bet on six numbers. Basically, a street bet doubled-up; the chip is placed on the outer corner, on the line that divides the two adjacent rows of numbers.

In American versions of the game, there are two further types of inside bets:

• Trio: bet on three numbers that includes 0 or 00.

• Five Number Bet: bet on a five-number set: 0, 00, 1, 2 and 3.

As mentioned, outside bets have a higher chance of winning, because the bet is placed on a set of numbers, with the player winning when the ball lands on any number from within the set. Outside bets include:

• Low bets: bets are made on 1-18 range of numbers.

• High bets: as above but the range is from 19 to 36.

• Red/Black: bet on the colour of the pocket containing the number.

• Odd/Even: a bet on whether the hit number will be odd or even.

• Dozen bets: a bet on a set of a dozen (12) numbers. The first dozen is 1-12, second dozen 13-24, or third dozen 25-36.

• Column bet: a bet that the number will be in the chosen vertical column of 12 numbers.

For beginners, such a wide range of potential bets when playing roulette online may seem overwhelming, but with time and practice, beginner players will soon learn the full range of bets available to them. The best way to learn about the variety of bets offered is via free, or demo, versions of video roulette.

TYPES OF ONLINE ROULETTE

The three most popular roulette versions are generally available to play in both traditional and online casinos. At present, the European roulette is the most popular. There are 36 numbers placed in red and black pockets, while zero is located in a green pocket. Number one is always red, and the sequence of numbers around the wheel s always the same: 0, 32, 15, 19, 4, 21, 2, 25, 17, 34, 6, 27, 13, 36, 11, 30, 8, 23, 10, 5, 24, 16, 33, 1, 20, 14, 31, 9, 22, 18, 29, 7, 28, 12, 35, 3, 26. In European roulette, the house edge over the gambler is always 2.7%.

French roulette is almost identical to European roulette, offering the same 2.7% house edge. While the roulette wheel is the same in both games, the table layout differs between the two; European roulette has the same table layout as its American counterpart.

The least popular version - but still offered by all online casinos - is American roulette. The main difference is the amount of available numbers; there’s an extra green pocket for the double zero on the wheel that is located opposite the regular zero. So, in American roulette, you will get 38 numbered pockets on the wheel - two marked in green and the remaining in red and black. The sequence of the numbers on the wheel also differs to French and European versions, with numbers as follows: 0-28-9-26-30-11-7-20-32-17-5-22-34-15-3-24-36-13-1-00-27-10-25-29-12-8-19-31-18-6-21-33-16-4-23-35-14-2. American roulette also offers bets not to be found in other variants of game due to the addition of 00. Due to the extra number, the house advantage is 5.26%, a factor that perhaps contributes to the lesser popularity of American roulette.

ONLINE ROULETTE BETTING SYSTEMS

Roulette is a typical game of chance; that means that the result of each ball throw is absolutely random. So, while there are many systems and strategies available to use, you need to keep in mind that these tactics and systems will not guarantee a win. They may help you minimise risk in some circumstances though.

One of the most popular roulette strategies is Martingale system . This is a progressive strategy, which consists of the player doubling the wager amount after each losing spin and can be considered high risk. Once the player wins, the wager amount decreases and returns to the minimum. The idea behind increasing the bet amount is to help to try to recover the earlier losses should the player win. The Martingale system only applies to basic outside bets.

This strategy is not guaranteed to produce positive results and is high risk as players will reach their betting limit (it’s important to always set loss limits) sooner should they adopt the strategy without winning. Grand Martingale - where the player trebles the wager after each loss - offers even higher risk/reward.

Another best roulette strategy is reverse Martingale, also known as Mayer’s reverse technique. It is similar to the previous strategy, with one major difference - the amount is increased after a win. Interestingly, in case of a loss, the player simply ceases playing the game.

Fibonacci strategy

Another roulette system commonly used by gamblers is Fibonacci strategy. Each stake is a sum of the previous two, with the wager amount following the numbers in the Fibonacci sequence. Following a win, players move back two steps in the sequence and continue along from there.

D’Alembert system

D’Alambert system is another strategy commonly used by gamblers. This is an even chance betting system; it can be used on Red-Black, Odd-Even and 1-18/19-36. The mathematics behind D’Alembert are unsuited to the Dozens/Columns and the inside bets. The strategy is the same as Martingale, but calls for much smaller increments when increasing wager.

Remember, no strategy is guaranteed to produce wins or results; roulette is purely a game of chance.

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