Some people simply cannot do without living life on the edge. They yearn to escape the mundane and the routine and venture off to the flashing lights of the casino, heading right to that “little wheel”. This game, French in origin, is a wheel of fate for many, bold enough to take on inside bets or stake a heavy stack of chips on any number of combinations. The magnitude of the moment is reinforced by the glistening reflection of light off the roulette, the dealer pushing winning chips to the players, and the dazzling symphony of sounds so foreign to the everyday world.
This heritage is French in origin, and thus, the game is played a little bit differently in America and Europe, even though it’s a big hit on both sides of the pond. The main difference between the two is that the Old World version has only one 0 space on the little wheel, while the American version adds an extra one – a “00” slot. Therefore, if all odds being offered at the casino are the same, you’ll statistically increase your odds by opting for the European rules version instead, which only gives the house a 2.70% edge, as opposed to the North American variant, slanting the casino’s winning odds to 5.25%
That said, the variations of the game do not stop there.
How to Play European and American Roulette
This is purely a game of chance, and players have no way of bending the odds in their favor through experience and mastery. They can, however, manage the risk they’re taking on by going for particular types of bets. There are 37 slots total on the roulette wheel, one of which being a 0 in European roulette, as well as an extra 00 in American roulette – adding up to 38 in the latter case.
It is actually possible to play European roulette in Vegas right on the strip, but all of that is in the high limit, since the operators are too used to enjoying the better house edge. Since we do live in a globalized world now with VPNs and iGaming apps, you can certainly play digital European roulette. Odds96 offers every variation of it, including some spicy spin-offs. You cast the ball around the wheel until it lands in a specific slot. Your job is to wager on the zones where you think it might land. You and your friends, as well as any strangers sitting at your table, can bet on the same roll.
Dollys
When you place your bet, the dealer will place a marker, which is referred to as a dolly on all of the slots you’re banking for the ball to land on. Once this is marked down on the slots, there’s no more changing your mind. If you lose, the dealer will rake away your bet or rake your winnings to you.
Types of Bets
The most basic one you can place is the hardest one to actually win – a “straight up” bet. In that case, you just pick a number and hope to God that it wins. You’re not putting yourself at a disadvantage though by making that bet, since everything is proportional, just like any casino game. The lower your chances of winning your wager, the fatter the payout will be if you luck out. If you bet $100 on a single slot, the payout is 35x, so you’d win $3,500 if you win, while only losing that hundred if you lose. Not too shabby.
Inside Bets
These go in continuation with the aforementioned Straight Up bets, moving further in descending order of payout and chance to win.
- Split: here, you’re betting on two numbers located right next to each other, like hedging a Straight Up bet with double the odds, for a 17x payout opportunity
- Corner: you have the dollys places on the common corners you choose to bet on (8x winnings).
- Street: this adds one more slot to the split, for three slots in a row (11x).
- Six line: a bet on two rows, located next to each other, betting on the common outer corner of the two rows (5x).
Outside Bets
These comprise much greater portions of the wheel, so if winning is what matters most to you and you prefer to go conservative, consider one of these.
- Even chances: choose either one of the two colors (red or black), odd or even numbers, or high or low (that is 1 to 18 or 19 to 36). This would give you a 1x if you win.
- Dozens: a range of 12 numbers, like 1-12, 13-24, or 25-36 (2x).
- Column: choose an individual column where you think the ball will land (2x).
If the ball lands on the 0 or 00, you lose no matter what. Check out the rest of the odds for each different combination you can play.
French Roulette
Here’s a fascinating note and an additional variation of the game, particularly relevant considering its French heritage. You may not be surprised to learn that the slots in the French game represent the same bets as in the European variant; however, there are still differences in the rules and the design.
Table
The French variant is visually illustrated differently in that it uses red boxes in the wheel pockets and uses French labels for numbers and the words. The European version, by contrast, uses English in most cases; however, that still depends where you play.
La Partage
If you thought European roulette was a good gamble, you should try the French version. This rule means “Share” in French. If the game includes this rule, players get half of their wager back if the wheel lands on zero. So instead of a 2.70% house edge, that now drops to 1.35%.
En Prison
Going along a similar vein to the aforementioned feature, players also have the option to hold their money “in jail” if they placed an even-money bet and the ball landed on “0”. In this case, the player has the option to receive another spin using the same size bet. So if you win your next bet, you break even.
California Roulette
Gambling on roulette, per se, is actually outlawed in the state, so in order to play legally, there is a house-funded version of the game there so people are allowed to play using cards instead of a wheel. It uses all the same odds, but a 38-card deck instead of 38 slots.
Why People Are So Enamored by the Little Wheel
The spinning wheel and flashing red and black are one of the quintessential images that flash in people’s minds, epitomizing the casino experience, a wheel of fate, if you will. It’s been on so many TV shows and in so many blockbuster movies. It’s deeply embedded in people’s psyches and pop culture. So it’s a pastime and definitely a niche that people flock right too when they come, even though its rules are a bit more sophisticated than the universal gambling titan slots, which are simple enough for anybody to play.
One of the awesome things about slots though is you get to easily and flexibly set a range of different bets. You get to control the odds in a pretty simple way, and the outcome is never certain – always bringing the rewards intermittently. Some players often have lucky numbers which they superstitiously believe give them the right juju to advantage their odds. Others have specific systems and tactics. This is very often because they’ve seen the ball land on specific slots, ranges, or colors in the past, so they retain a fallacy that that’s how it’s going to continue to land.
