The undoubted Casino King

Indeed, many people nowadays visit a traditional land-based casino just to get a glimpse of the roulette wheel and to feel the exquisite atmosphere that surrounds the gamblers gathered around it.

Besides being the most spectacular game at the casino, roulette is also the easiest one – it takes just a few minutes to learn now to play casino roulette. Moreover, in online varieties, you get the change to play online roulette for free until you get used to the rules and are ready for some real gambling excitement.

Another thing that makes playing roulette attractive is that it is a game of pure luck, and therefore winning leads to immense excitement. There are numerous stories of winning and fame that people remember and enjoy; the most popular is probably that of Chris Boyd, a British computer programmer, who put over $100,000 on one spin of the wheel and instantly won.

Beginnings

The word roulette is French, and it means "little wheel." It is guessed that famous French mathematician Blaise Pascal, known for his work in the field of probability, invented the device. There is no consensus however. Several early versions of a wheel and spinning ball were invented in the 17th and 18th centuries in Europe. The first games that are usually believed to the ancestor of roulette were introduced in Paris casinos around the end of the 18th century; the first modern roulette wheel, with its even/odd and alternating colours, was used in a Paris casino in 1796. This game contained all of the features that we have today with the one exception; the single zero was coloured red while the double zero was colour black.

In the mid 19th century the single zero game was invented in France, this reduced the casino's edge thereby increasing the odds of the player. When gambling was outlawed in Germany the inventor of the single zero machines (Louis Blanc) accepted an invitation to go to Monaco to establish and operate a casino. The casino set the standards for roulette in Europe, and roulette remained exclusive to Monte Carlo until 1933.

US Developments

The game arrived in the USA sometime in the early 1800s. Western miners and gold speculators embraced the game and it became very popular in the United States, particularly in the west and during the historical Gold Rush period.

However, the single "0" modification was rejected in the United States. American roulette wheels were now made standard with the two zeros "00". The American casinos introduced the 31-pocket wheel because they were not happy with the minimal house edge they had with these European wheels. The extra pocket favours the house and of course increases the house edge considerably.

Although both the double zero and single zero wheels originated in France, the double zero became known as the "American Wheel," because it was accepted with open arms and survived in the states. The popularity of the single zero wheels had out favoured the double zero wheels in Europe and was thereafter designated the "French Wheel." Now, every casino in the world has a roulette wheel. The Game is popular because it is easy to play and suspenseful as the ball spins to a stop on a number which might have a big 35:1 payoff.

Online Roulette

Thanks to the widespread success of the Internet and the introduction of online casinos, both European and American Roulette made appeared onto the internet casino scene in the 1990s. Online Roulette is therefore rather young, but has proven to be immensely popular.