There is a tendency to think that casino games are very complex in how they are designed and how they pay out. This is simply not the case. All casinos, whether online or land based in the UK and Europe, must adhere to very stringent rules that govern how games work. In fact, casino games have some of the highest returns compared to all types of online gambling.
In this section you will find everything you need to understand how to play casino and how casinos themselves work. Knowing how to play and how the systems run doesn’t just increase your chances of winning it will also mean you will enjoy yourself more in the process.
Are Casino Side Bets Worth Playing
Side bets can be a great way means to add to your game play, but are they actually worth it? While many are very fun to play often the house edge for these games is much greater than the margin for the main game so you need to be careful when you place them.
In our article we have focused on Blackjack side bets as an example of this type of betting.
Casino Game Errors
It can be so frustrating when you are playing a game and it suddenly crashes or you get a game error message. The general protocol at this point is to refund your game stake, this can be good if you just lost the bet but terrible if you were on to a winner. Find out what the main errors are and what you can do if you get an error in a casino game, instant play and download.
What Is House Edge?
The house edge is effectively the commission taken by the casino. It is the average percentage profit the casino will make over time from the bets that are place. Knowing how house edge works, and what it is for the different casino games you want to play, is crucial in the formation of your playing strategy. This varies based on the type of game and even within games when using certain side bets and features.
Progressive Jackpots
We all love to look at the big jackpots available from some of the big software providers. These can run into the millions of pounds. There are some key terms to be aware of before you start playing, such as the need to place maximum bets to qualify for the big jackpot bonus. For this and more see our article.
Random Number Generators Explained
There is nothing magical or mystical about how online slots and games generate random symbols and numbers. Every licensed casino – both on and offline – use random number generators to create results that are arbitrary and fair. These impressive pieces of computer software are designed to produce number patterns that are almost impossible to predict. To find out how they work and why you need to know about them before you place your bets, read on…
Withdrawal Limits, Pending Periods and Flushing
There really is nothing worse than having a big win only to find out there are limits on withdrawals. Some casinos also place all withdrawals in a pending period in the hope you will reverse the transaction and continue playing, you can get around this with some by manual flushing.
Casino Bonuses Explained
There are lots of different casino offers packaged under the name ‘casino bonus’ but not all are the same and certainly they are not all the same value. In our casino bonuses explained section we looks at the different types of bonus available for both new and existing customers and their relative value. Follow the link and click the casino tab for more.
HTML5 vs Flash Casino Games
HTML5 has now becoming the main platform for new casino games. Flash isn’t yet gone but it is on its final incarnation, due to be phased out in 2020. What are the pros and cons between HTLM5 and flash casino games, and will you even know the difference?
Download vs Instant Play Casino Games
You may think that the days of the download casino are gone but you would be wrong. Instant play casino is now the most popular and flexible method to play casino games online, yes, but downloads still have many advantages.
Whether you want a bigger games catalogue from your favourite provider, less distraction when playing, or want to use less internet resources, the download is still a good option.
Online Bingo Sites vs Online Casino Sites
Online bingo and online casino are very similar in terms of how they are made and run, in fact many of the games are developed by the same providers for both products.
Bingo is still however a very different animal, it is still gambling but tends to be lower stakes and far more social than casinos. Many casinos offer bingo games but you can also choose to play with dedicated bingo sites.
What Is The Difference Between Casino Sections?
It is not necessarily easy to work out where stuff is in an online casino. These days sites can have numerous sections in which they package their casino games and the naming of them doesn’t necessarily make it straight forward to work out what’s in them. Sites that just provide a casino section will chuck everything in one place, others divide into sections such as Vegas, Macau, Games, Slots, Live Casino, Poker, Lotto, etc. In most cases you find very similar games in each just provided by a different software company.
Online vs Land Based Casinos
The convenience and anonymity of playing casino online means it has become the dominant form, there are however many things we love about playing games that we can only get in the real world. In this article we discuss the relative merits of playing casino online and offline and which form may be for you and when.
Which Day Is Best To Play Online Casino Games?
There are many theories surrounding this topic, but do any of them hold water? If they do, what are the best times of the day, week, or month to try and win some money at the casino? The basic answer may disappoint you, but there are a few nuggets of gold in here than can make a big difference to how much you take home from your session.
What is Card Counting and How Does it Work?
You may have heard about it in the movies and be wondering if you have the gift. You may have been playing casino games for a while now and just be looking to get an advantage.
Card counting is a much misunderstood strategy that is explained simply within. Enter.
How Do Coins & Coin Value Work With Online Slots?
Online slotting is one of the simplest forms of online gaming there is – anybody can get involved and give it a try. However, when coins and coin values are thrown into the mix it can be a little confusing, especially if you are new to online slots.
So what are they? How are they used? And do they affect your chances of winning? All these questions answered and more.
Best Low Stakes Casino Slots and Games
Not everyone can afford to spend tens or hundreds of pounds playing slot games and with the ability to spin every 20 seconds or so it means if you are playing higher stakes lossed can rack up quickly.
We’ve therefore complied a list of some of the best low stakes games that can be played for as little as 1p per spin so you can have the same fun with lower risk.
What Is Edge Sorting?
Edge sorting is a technique used in real-world casino card games whereby a player spots small imperfections in the patterns on the back of playing cards to identify the value of that card, which them allows them to scale bets accordingly enhancing chances of winning. There is nothing illegal about the practice but of course casinos don’t like you using it and if caught you will likely be kicked out.
Unusual and Less Well Known Casino Games
You would be hard pressed to find someone who doesn’t know what roulette or texas hold’em poker is but there are plenty of games out there that are popular in some parts of the world that are almost unknown over here. We look at some of the more unusual games (for us at least), including; Pai Gow Poker, Sic Bo, Casino War, Texas Shootout and Money Wheels.
Games Of Skill vs Games Of Chance In Casinos
There are few games in casinos that fit either completely into games of skill or games of chance, even games like poker rely a lot of luck even if you can bluff your way through most of it.
Here we look at the difference between games of skill and games of chance and evaluate the best ways people can use skill to enhance their chances when playing.
Difference Between High Rollers And Low Stakes Players
There are obvious differences between high stakes and low stakes players but how is this reflected in how they bet?
On this page we look at the difference between high rollers and low rollers in they types of games they play, how they play them and how demographic effects how and why people bet.
What Is Slot Volatility?
You will often see the return to player (RTP) percentage listed for casino games, this tells you on average how much these games pay out. What that doesn’t tell you is how often games payout, that is known as volatility. High volatility games pay out less frequently but the prizes are generally higher whereas low volatility games pay out more often but with lower prizes. Medium volatility is obviously in the middle.
We look at the difference between these levels, what popular games fall within these levels and what volatility is best for you.
Compensated vs Random Slots - What Is The Difference?
Random slots do what you would expect, each spin is randomised so that the chances of winning are always equal now matter if it your first spin or your 100th. This makes up pretty much all online slots.
In the real world though, especially in the past, gaming machines can only hold so much money and so they were ‘compensated’, this means the chances of paying out change based on how much it has paid out previously. Here we explain the differences and look at what is better.
Does Pattern Recognition Work in Baccarat?
There have been many people who have claimed to have systems to beat the house over the years and one that crops up over and over again is pattern recognition in baccarat.
Here we look at what pattern recognition is and how it can be used in a table game like baccarat. To put it simply there is basically no advantage to using it at all but that hasn’t stopped people trying.
Impact Of Music and Sounds In Slot Games
There are many people who play games with the sounds muted but for many others the music in slot and casino games is integral to the playing experience. There is also a darker side to the music and sounds used in games whereby developers will deliberately use certain tunes and chimes with varying volume and tempo in order to encourage people to play more or for longer. We look at the impact of music and sounds in casino games.
Are Roulette Wheels Biased?
Roulette wheels are made with extreme precision and cost thousands of pounds. It is unlikely that manufacturing defects cause much bias these days (unless deliberate) but no machine built by humans is perfect and this means over time the wheel undergoes wear and tear that can lead to bias. If you can spot this bias then you can in theory turn the odds in your favour, but is by no means a simple process.
What Affects the House Edge in Blackjack?
Blackjack is renowned as being a casino game with low house edge, it is often why the games do not qualify for welcome bonuses online, for example. Still, the house edge isn’t a fixed entity in this game as it depends on how you play and the variant of the game you play.
Using some blackjack strategies you can get your house edge down to around or below 0.5%. Read this guide to find out more.
Can You Have Slots & Gaming Machines In Your Home?
There is nothing illegal about buying a slots machine or pub style fruit machine and setting it up in your home, in fact, plenty of people do this and it has developed into a small cottage industry with dedicated providers. What is illegal is then allowing other people to play with real money, or charging them to play. To do this you will need a gambling license. Find out more about slot and gaming machines in private homes, the rules, where to buy one and, indeed, why you would want to buy one.
The science of predicting the outcome of roulette
Can you predict where the ball will land in roulette or other outcomes such as what colour the ball will one on or what section of the wheel? Well, everything you know about roulette being random would suggest that you can't predict these things but that hasn't stopped many people trying.
Indeed, in reality a real roulette wheel will always have imperfections and so by careful observation you may be able to spot certain biases that could help you in predicting the outcome. That is the statistical method. You can also bet after a spin has started and here an edge can be found as small initial changes in acceleration and velocity can result in large effects on the outcome. This is the deterministic method.
Some scientists have even created models that can allow you to predict outcomes using just a small set of variables. There are even different models that work when the table is level or when it is on a gradient.
Therefore, in theory you can fairly accurately predict where a roulette ball will land but working it all out on the fly is the real issue - but as computers and AI get better maybe it will be possible. None of this will help with virtual roulette, however, where all the results are determined by a random number generator.
Romanosky Roulette Strategy
As with all systems in roulette there is no way to beat the house as the game is always weighted in their favour. Still, the Romanosky system in roulette has become popular as many people find it is a good way to enjoy the game for longer with a given bankroll.
The system utilises high-coverage, meaning it covers most of the numbers on the board. The idea is to cover all but five numbers on the board in European roulette or six numbers for American roulette (due to the double zero). On this page we look at the various versions of the Romanosky bet and the probabilities associated with each.
What Are The Odds Of Dealers & Players Hitting 20, 21, And Blackjack
Blackjack is the second most played casino table game after roulette and one reason for that is if you play a basic strategy you can get the house edge down to as little as 0.5%. Still, to play the game properly and get the lowest edge you need to understand the odds, especially when the dealer has a strong exposure card.
Here we look at the odds of hitting the big hands of 20, 21 and Blackjack itself in the game for both the player and the dealer.
What Is Basic Strategy in Blackjack?
Anyone who plays blackjack more than occasionally should learn the basic strategy. It is a simple strategy to get your head around and it governs what hands you should play, when to hit and stick and when to split.
The point of the strategy is to reduce the house edge for the casino and thereby increasing the chances for the player. The house edge will always favour the casino but with basic strategy you can get that edge down from around 2% to just 0.5%, which over hundreds or thousands of hands can make a real difference.
Card Counting In Blackjack Versus Baccarat
We have all heard of card counting before but what game is it most effective in? Two of the most popular games for card counting are blackjack and baccarat and both share commonalities when it comes to playing an optimal strategy.
Here we look at card counting in blackjack versus baccarat and what the differences are, what the effect of card counting is and what you may expect to get out of it.
Cyber Attacks on Casinos
Cyber attacks have been a threat to all businesses for decades now, but casinos have been a particular favourite of hacker groups due to their ready supply of cash and their large customer base, and of course the fact that being closed costs them a lot of money.
Hackers don't usually initiate cyber attacks of this magnitude for fun - there is a reason it is called ransomware - they usually want money, so they try to hold a casino to ransom.
How To Play 16 In Blackjack
In blackjack we are often told you should stand on 16 as the odds of busting if you hit is greater than half, 62% in fact. That, however, is a very simplistic view and the chances of winning depend very much on the dealers cards too. In some situations it will make sense to hit on 16.
Players will hit 16 in around one in seven hands (roughly 14% of hands). That means having knowledge of how to play this hand can be critical in any long term strategy. Here we look at how to play 16 (hard, soft and 8,8) and the odds of winning or losing against different dealer cards. If you take time to familiarise yourself with these keys stats it may help improve your blackjack basic strategy.
How To Estimate Blackjack Odds When Playing
It is easy to read countless guides online about how to calculate odds in blackjack but without an incredible memory it is hard to use those odds tables practically when actually playing the game. Here we look at how to calculate odds in-play when you are actually sat at a blackjack table.
We look at the easier 'immediate odds', where we can calculate probabilities on the value of the next card by using some basic card counting and optimal strategy. We also look at long-shot odds where we try to calculate probabilities with two cards to come. You need to be a bit more gifted to do this but once you get to grips with immediate odds it is totally possible to do.
How To Estimate Odds When Gambling
Gambling is supposed to be enjoyable and maths isn't right? Surely trying to work out probabilities when gambling makes it formulaic and not enjoyable? Well, trying to estimate probabilities when playing popular casino games can help you make better decisions and that can help you win or reduce loses, so it depends what you are after when you play casino games.
The thing is you don't need to be a maths whiz kid to use some basic probability calculations in games that may help you make better decisions. Here we look at why you might want to estimate odds when gambling and how you can go about doing that.