Roulette
Surprisingly, the first wheel that was used for Roulette was not actually invented just for the game, it was a design by Blaise Pascal intended to be used as a perpetual motion machine in the 1600’s. It would only later see use as a gaming wheel, rising to prominence in France after being combined with a board game from Italy and some factors that came from an English game which also utilized a wheel. Paris is where Roulette first became immensely popular, the spinning wheel being a major attraction in visual terms and the game actually took its name from a French word that means ‘little wheel’. Also referred to as the King of Casino Games, Roulette is a very popular game in most establishments, coming in two main varieties: a European version and one which became popular in America. In the American variety there are 38 pockets for the ball to drop into as the spinning wheel slows, along with a double zero wheel configuration, the most common in Roulette globally speaking. In the European version, there are 37 pockets with only one zero slot that allows the bank to win.
No matter which style of Roulette wheel is being used, the wheel itself is almost always set at an angle with either a zero or double zero slot for the house to win and numbers 1 through 38 or 37, depending on which variation of the game is in play at that particular casino. Every number goes with a certain color, black or red. Odd number are red and even numbers are black for numbers 1 to 10 and 19 to 28. Numbers 11 to 18 and 29 to 36 are black when odd and red when even – this color configuration is true for both versions of the wheel. The zero or double zero pockets are green, sometimes being marked by an eagle. During play, those at the table will put their wagers on one of four factors that the ball might stop on: whether end slot will be even or odd, which color it will be, a range of numbers they have chosen or a single number they believe will win. The odds are determined based on each of these choices and the more selective the choice, the higher the difficulty and therefore, the higher the payout should the person placing the wager be correct. The Roulette wheel is then spun by the croupier who whirls the wheel in one direction and the ball in the opposite direction, through a track that encompasses the diameter of the wheel. Eventually the balls slows enough to fall into one of the pockets and the winners are decided. The casino keeps a chart of odds that it uses to base payouts on for each bet in play. Generally minimums and maximums are required to place a wager. At the end of the spin, payouts are given and croupier will rake in all of the chips from the betting parties who did not win that round, then starting the game once again after all the new bets have been placed for the upcoming spin.