Live casino games have seen a lot of growth in recent years, expanding their offering to include more varieties of classic casino games. From Roulette to Blackjack and Craps to Baccarat, there are plenty of different live casino options for players to choose from.
But there’s no denying that live Roulette remains one of the most popular choices. Thanks to the straightforward nature of its gameplay, live Roulette has fewer rules and mechanics for players to learn before playing a game.
So, let’s take a closer look at just how a game of live Roulette works.
Understanding the concept of live casino games
Before we go into more detail about live Roulette, first let’s establish the basics of live casino games in general.
The concept of live casino games was actually proposed back in the 1990s, during the rise of the internet. Even as casino platforms adapted classic games into a purely digital format, there were suggestions for a format that still incorporated elements of a land-based casino.
Technology at the time was not far enough along to create live casino games, which rely on live streaming to broadcast the live dealer to online players in real time. But within the space of a couple of decades live streaming and broadband capabilities caught up to the concept.
A live casino game is run in real-time by a live dealer (or croupier) who handles physical game components in a studio setup. Players join the game online, with multiple high-definition cameras capturing the various angles of the table and game.
How does a game of live Roulette work?
Like any other live casino game, live Roulette runs on a set timer. Every phase of the game has a certain amount of time allotted, allowing for the dealer to keep things moving at a consistent pace.
Players may join the live game at any point, but are only able to wager if they join the game instance before the dealer spins the Roulette wheel. Otherwise, they must wait for the next phase.
All players are able to place their wagers within their online interface, with the live dealer placing chips on the physical table layout to match. The wagering phase works the same as it would in any other game of Roulette, with players predicting where they think the ball will stop.
Once the time for the wagering phase is up, the dealer will announce this, before spinning the Roulette wheel. When the wheel is in motion, they will release a ball in the opposite direction.
The ball bounces and gradually loses momentum, before coming to a stop in one of the wheel’s pockets. At this point, the dealer will call the outcome of the spin, resolving all wagers. Any payouts are then processed by the game software.
Optical character recognition (OCR) technology allows for the outcome to also immediately appear within the online player interface, translated from image into data.
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Live Roulette games come in a few different formats, including European and American. It’s worth checking which variety is in play before joining a game, as there are slight but significant differences between them.
