Roulette

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13-02-27-spielbank-wiesbaden-by-RalfR-094

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Gwendolen Harleth

EO Wheel

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Flemish characters by James Gillray (2)

1800 French Roulette Table 001

Early Western Makeshift Game

Roulette is a casino game named after the French word meaning little wheel. In the game, players may choose to place bets on either a single number, various groupings of numbers, the colors red or black, whether the number is odd or even, or if the numbers are high (19–36) or low (1–18).

History

The origins of roulette can be traced back to a 17th-century invention by French mathematician Blaise Pascal, who was attempting to create a perpetual motion machine. The game has been played in its present form since as early as 1796 in Paris. An early description of the roulette game in its current form is found in a French novel La Roulette, ou le Jour by Jaques Lablee, which describes a roulette wheel in the Palais Royal in Paris in 1796.

Gameplay

In roulette, a dealer, also known as a croupier, spins the roulette wheel and then spins a ball in the opposite direction around a tilted circular track running around the outer edge of the wheel. The ball eventually loses momentum, passes through an area of deflectors, and falls onto the wheel and into one of 37 (single zero French/European style roulette) or 38 (double zero American style roulette) colored and numbered pockets on the wheel. The winnings are then paid to anyone who has placed a successful bet.

Betting

Players can place a variety of 'inside' bets (selecting the number of the pocket the ball will land in, or a range of pockets based on their proximity on the layout) and 'outside' bets (including bets on various positional groupings of pockets, pocket colors, or whether it is odd or even). The payout odds for each type of bet are based on its probability.

Roulette Wheels

There are two main types of roulette wheels: the European (or French) wheel, which has 37 pockets (numbers 1-36 and a single zero) and the American wheel, which has 38 pockets (numbers 1-36, a single zero, and a double zero). The presence of the double zero in American roulette increases the house edge, making European roulette a more favorable option for players.

Odds and Payouts

The odds of winning are determined by the type of bet placed. The highest payout is 35 to 1 for a single number bet, and the lowest is 1 to 1 for bets such as red or black, even or odd, and high or low. The house edge for European roulette is 2.7%, while for American roulette, it is 5.26%.

Roulette Strategy

Many players use betting systems in an attempt to beat the odds, but no strategy can overcome the house edge in the long run. Popular betting systems include the Martingale, Fibonacci, and D'Alembert systems, but these and other strategies do not guarantee success and can lead to significant losses.

Cultural Impact

Roulette has made a significant cultural impact, featuring in numerous films, television shows, and literature, often symbolizing the themes of chance, luck, and fate.