Roulette is one of the most popular casino games available in both physical and online casinos. This classic game of chance was first played in the late 1700s and has since spread across the globe. Today, a casino isn’t complete without at least one Roulette table on offer. While it is a game of chance, there are some tips that every player should know before they take their seat at the table.
The Roulette wheel consists of a solid wooden disk that is slightly convex. Around its rim are metal compartments called frets, which are numbered nonconsecutively from 1 to 36. The compartments are alternately painted red and black, except for a green division labelled 0 on European wheels. American wheels also feature an extra green compartment marked 00.
Prior to the rolling of the ball, players make their bets by placing chips on a betting mat. The precise placement of these chips indicates the type of bet you have staked. Players can bet on individual numbers, various groupsings of numbers, whether the number is odd or even, and if the colors are red or black.
There are three main types of Roulette; American, European, and French. The house edge in each variation varies, but the basic rules remain the same. The European version, which is the most commonly played at physical casinos and in online Roulette, features a single zero pocket, which dramatically reduces the house edge to a coveted 1.35%. The American Roulette variant, on the other hand, has a double zero pocket, and hence, a higher house edge.
Another popular Roulette variant is the French Roulette, which includes two additional rules within the game. La partage, which translates to sharing in English, allows players to get back half of their even money bets if the ball hits zero. The other rule, en prison, which translates to in prison in English, requires that players leave half of their stake on the table for the next bet.