There are a few classic casino games that come to mind whenever the word casino comes up. From table games like Roulette and Blackjack to more recent additions like Slots and Bingo, casinos have expanded their roster of games over time.
But some casino games stand above the others in terms of their enduring popularity and history. Let’s take a look at three of those classics below.
- Roulette
Few games have quite the pedigree that Roulette has. Originating in France, the iconic Roulette wheel was supposedly created by physicist Blaise Pascal in his attempt to create a true perpetual motion machine. From there, the wheel became the centre of the game during the 18th century as the basic rules were added.
Roulette has simple gameplay, with players wagering on where a ball spun around the edge of the spinning wheel will eventually stop. The betting options are laid out for players on the distinct table layout, with bets split into inside or outside depending on their position on the layout and relative payout.
Even before the move towards online play there were a few distinct variants of Roulette available. The two main formats are European and American, with the two having slight differences in their wheel design. American Roulette features an extra zero pocket (the double zero) which almost doubles the house edge from 2.7% to 5.2%.
- Blackjack
Another long-time casino staple, Blackjack is descended from one of the oldest card games in Europe. Originally known as Vingt-et-Un or 21, the game has kept its basic concept and rules for centuries.
As its older names suggest, players aim to get a hand value closer to 21 than the dealer’s. If they get a hand value higher than 21, they go bust and are out of the game. But the dealer also has the potential to go bust before the end of the game, which can result in a payout for all remaining players in the game.
Each card in the deck is worth an assigned number from one to ten, other than the Aces which can function as either a one or an 11. This means that the highest initial hand value a player can get is 21 itself, which is considered a natural Blackjack.
Players have a few options on their turn, depending on the initial pair of cards they’ve been dealt. They can hit (taking an extra card), stand (keeping their hand as it is and ending their turn), double down (doubling their bet for just one extra card) or split (splitting their hand into two if it was a pair).
- Slots
A slightly more recent addition to the collection of casino classics, Slots are now one of the most popular games played in both land-based and online casinos.
Slot games involve spinning reels to see what combination of symbols they will stop on, with certain winning combinations leading to payouts. From the classic three-reel, single payline Slots to the seven-reel, ‘multi-way’ machines, there are a wide variety of these games with different mechanics and twists on the core formula.
There is so much variety when it comes to modern casino offerings, with all these classics having plenty of variants for players to try.
