Roulette is a fun and fast-paced game played in both online and brick and mortar casinos. As with most games, variations or offshoots develop over time. This is also true for the game of roulette.

One variety of roulette is known as European Roulette. This variation is the most popular form of roulette played in casinos today. The wheel used in this game contains 37 numbers, which accounts for the popularity of this version. This version of the roulette wheels contains the smallest amount of numbers on it. That helps to make this game a favourite of many roulette fans because it gives the house a smaller edge than in some other varieties of roulette. With European Roulette, the house’s odds are 2.57%. To illustrate this using money, if a player wagers a $100 over time, statistically they should get back $97.43 of their money. However, this is not always the case as what should happen doesn’t always happen. They could receive less or in some cases, more.

European roulette also may opt to use the “en prison” rule during the game. If the rule is in effect, the gambler has some options when the ball lands on the zero. In these situations, they may choose to give up half of their outside wagers or let them remain there for the next roulette game. With this rule in play, it decreases the house’s edge even further to 1.352%.

American roulette is another variety of this game. The wheel used in American Roulette differs from the European one. While the European wheel has only 37 numbers, the American wheel contains 38. This change makes the odds dip more towards the house. American roulette wheels have added an extra 00 to comprise the 38th number. The numbers are placed different on the wheel with American roulette. With the additional number added to the wheel, American roulette gives the casino a 5.26% advantage over the players. Using our previous illustration of 100 pounds, a player would be expected to earn back 94.74 of their 100 pound wager. Again, this is what is expected but does not always happen.

By Gary Hammond
Roulette is one the most popular casino games. In addition to casinos, roulette can be played on digital tv and online casinos.