Roulette, which means ‘little wheel’ in French, is typically a casino game that is derived from the Italian game Biribi. In the game, you have the option to place bets in various ways: on single numbers, odd or even numbers, a group of numbers, black or red colours, high or low numbers, and more. You may have seen it being played in pop culture films owing to its popularity as a wagering game – it indeed is quite fun and engaging!
History of Roulette
Like most interesting things, it has quite a colourful history. The creation of this game is often accredited to the genius of French mathematician Blaise Pascal in the seventeenth century. He was engaged in the process of inventing a machine in perpetual motion and happened to create a version of the game. However, the origin of the game is quite a debated topic. Many ancient civilizations have been known to have played similar games all across the globe.
- Roman Roots:
- Greek Gambles:
- Chinese Connection:
The life of a soldier is not an easy one. There are many hardships, losses, and traumatic experiences. Such was also the case in ancient Rome, where keeping the morale of the soldiers high was important to bag wins at wars. Some believe that gambling games involving spinning of chariot wheels or shields gave rise to a version of Roulette.
Lady Luck played a huge part in the daily lives of ancient Greek citizens. Much like the Roman soldiers, the Greeks had their gambling games to pass the time. There seems to be one particular game that bears a major resemblance to modern-day Roulette, where symbols were drawn inside a shield, and an arrow would be placed beside it. The shield would be spun, and people would place bets on the symbol that the spear or arrow would point at once the spinning stopped.
A lot of people attribute the origin of Roulette to ancient China where a board game similar to the concept of Roulette was played. It involved thirty-seven animal figurines that had to be arranged into a square, where the numbers would add up to 666. It is said that Dominican monks brought this game to Europe and modified it by changing the layout and added a slot for zero. Be it coincidence or deliberate, the numbers on the present day Roulette wheel come to a total of 666!
After the 17th century, Roulette spread all over Europe and eventually travelled to the US in the 19th century with the European settlers. Off to a rocky start, the casino owners initially were unhappy about the limited house edge and increased it. This led to low earnings for the players who started losing interest in the game. The single-zero European style was rejected, and the American Roulette with double-zeroes became the norm.
Rules Based on the Types of Bets You Can Place
It is always a wise idea to know the types of bets available to you to maximize your chances of winning. This is primarily a game of luck, but keeping these bets in mind may turn the odds in your favour! Chips of different colours are provided to players to avoid confusion. Always remember to redeem your chips at the table!
In Roulette, there are two types of bets (depending on the personal betting strategy of the players), namely: INSIDE BETS and OUTSIDE BETS.
Inside Bets
They are suitable for players taking more risks, provides lower chances of winning with a higher pay-out. Players betting on inside bets usually have a larger bankroll. The different types of inside bets are:
- A Single Bet is made when the chip is put on top of the square of a single number.
- Split Bet is a dual single bet placed on two horizontally or vertically adjacent numbers, in-between the numbers.
- A Street Bet is made when the players place their bets in a horizontal row on three adjoining numbers, while the wager is placed at the end of the line.
- Square Bet is made on a group of four numbers while the wager is at a particular corner where the numbers meet.
- The Five Bet is only used in American Roulette tables based on numbers 0, 00, 1, 2 and 3. The wager being at the corner next to 0 and 1.
- Line Bet involves betting on six consecutive numbers forming two horizontal rows. The chip is put at the end of the two rows, between each other.
Outside Bets
These offer players higher chances at winning with lower pay-outs, perfect for players with more conservative strategies. The various outside bets are:
- The Dozen Bet offers a bet on 12 numbers for each spin, provided the number is in the specified dozen.
- Column Bet is a bet such that the number is in the chosen 12 numbers vertical column.
- As the name specifies, Bet on Colour allows players to bet on numbers that are either all red or all black.
- Odd/Even Bet are ones that contain either all even numbers or all odd numbers, provided a 0 or 00 doesn’t turn up, in which case the bet is lost.
- Bet on Low/High is where the wager has to be in the chosen range, either all the low numbers (1 – 18) or all the high numbers (19 – 36).
Wrapping It Up
With the age of technology, the game is making a strong comeback over other casino games. You can sit comfortably at home or enjoy the thrill live at casinos- either way, it’s easily accessible, and you can make use of it!

Roulette fans like me will tell you that the live version of the game is one of the best ways to play. Nothing beats placing your bets and chatting away with the pretty croupier, all without having to leave the comfort of home. Whether you have played the game with real dealers before, or you are a newbie, here are my top 5 tips to ensure you get the most out of your playing experience.
Yggdrasil gaming got their licence in December last year, but only managed to complete its full roll out on the British market yesterday. They have officially announced the launch of their proprietary iSENSE 2.0 platform and full range of games to the UK players. Over last year, the well-established and respected Swedish gaming supplier already signed agreements with major players from the island, names like Betsson Group, ComeOn! Casino, LeoVegas Casino, Mr Green Casino – some of the best brands when it comes to online gambling.
The operator has recently launched a huge collection of games, to strengthen their casino offering under various licenses. The largest numbers of games have gone online on their dot.com, dot.eu and UK sites, with a rich collection of video pokers, including Deuces Wild, Joker Poker, Double Bonus, Double Double Bonus and Jacks or Better. The highest RTP (return to player) is offered by the Double Bonus game – 99.11% and the highest payout is 4000 times the original bet.
Take Voisins du Zero (neighbours of zero) for example. The bet needs 9 units which are placed in 7 positions on the table layout, as follows: 2 chips or units on 0/2/3 street (pays 11 to 1), 2 chips on corner 25/26/28/29 (pays 8 to 1) and 4/7, 12/15, 18/21, 19/22, 32/35 split one chip (pays 17 to 1). Let’s draw the line and see what this adds up to: 9 chips or units, which can be by value of 1, of 5 or whatever denomination you wish to play with. Say for example you want to play Voisins by £5, that will require a total bet of £45.
Marvel Roulette – a game which combines roulette and slots, to give you a chance to hit on of the much-coveted Marvel Jackpots: Power Jackpot, Extra Power Jackpot, Super Power Jackpot and Ultimate Power Jackpot. All bets on Marvel-themed games contribute to these jackpots with a small percentage and knowing how popular these are, it’s no wonder that these jackpots have made so many players rich. The way to win one of the jackpots is by betting on the Marvel Bonus slot, which is extra in this variation and it actually lowers the RTP of the game to 95.73%. And still, it’s an interesting and rewarding game. I first read about this game on what is
Pinball Roulette – a game to bring out the child in you. If you loved Pinball machines when you were younger – and perhaps you still do, you will have a ball with this roulette variation. Pinball Roulette is using a system similar to that of the game after which it’s named, so don’t expect to see a wheel on this one. Furthermore, there is a huge chance that the ball will collect some extra winnings while it’s bouncing in the pinball playfield. And unlike other roulette games, this one also has a gamble feature and a decent RTP of 97.30%.
Casumo is an online casino operator that practically rules the gambling market in Northern Europe and has recently added UK users to their list of happy players. After receiving
First, hello, welcome and thank you for being here! My friends call me Jack the Conqueror. Well, they don’t really call me that, but that is the nickname I earned for having ‘conquered’ one of the greatest games ever invented – the Roulette. But we’ll get to that in a minute. First, I will share some things about me. Don’t worry, I am not going to bore you with unnecessary information like where I went to school, what I do for a living or, God forbid, my zodiac sign.