The moment I hear the term casino games, I immediately imagine the blackjack table, the poker room, a roulette wheel, or even slot machines. These are all proven casino classics that have stood the test of time.
The games are vastly different on the surface, the two closest games being blackjack and baccarat. However, upon closer examination, the games have much more in common.
That’s because the casinos have developed a winning formula that all adds up to impressive profits and gamblers pouring through the entrances like water over Niagara Falls.
You may have wondered how to get in on the action yourself but aren’t sure where to begin. Discovering what makes a casino game a hit will surely help you on that path.
Chance or Skill? Games of Chance Versus Casino games are often separated into two main categories, games of chance or skill-based. The games are then further diluted from there into sub-categories.
Let’s look at these two primary categories first. Games of chance require little to no strategy or knowledge of the game to play and enjoy.
Most of your casino games will be purely games of chance. You’ve got little to no control over the results of the game.
Slot machines, baccarat, blackjack, keno, roulette, and any other casino table game will be a game of chance. The cards, dice, numbers all may fall where they will, and you merely hope you bet correctly or that fortune will shine on you.
Skill-based games include poker and sports betting primarily but will sometimes have blackjack and video poker. These games allow a skilled player to gain an advantage by indirectly influencing the game.
Many people prefer the thrill of games of chance, while professional gamblers rely on skill-based games to make a living.
Making the Most of the Element of Chance Games of chance drive the entire casino industry. Players crowd into the casino, hoping Lady Luck will be on their side.
The most abundant game of chance in U.S.-based casinos is the slot machines. These games use random number generators to churn out unexpected results hundreds of times per hour.
Players have no influence on the game and are merely praying they get lucky and score a massive jackpot. Unfortunately, these games also offer some of the worst odds in the casino.
In other regions, like Macau, baccarat stands atop the heap as the primary game in the casino. This card game relies on pure chance, and players have zero influence on the results of a hand.
Baccarat is broadening its market, and I wouldn’t be surprised if blackjack surpassed blackjack as the premier table game in the U.S. casinos.
Blackjack is interesting because players can use strategy to reduce the house and, in some cases, gain an edge over the casino.
Games of chance are so entertaining because of the element of the unknown. You place your wager and wait to see if you’ll enjoy the thrill of a win or the sting that comes with losing.
Implementing Skill to Give You a Shot at Winning Gambler SkillsSkill-based games are popular with the crowd looking for the best opportunity to make some cash in the casino. We’ll start with the most popular and a personal favorite, poker.
Poker may be the perfect game. It incorporates chance, strategy, mathematical probability, showmanship, and a healthy dose of deceit.
Not to mention, when you play against lesser opponents, you’re all but guaranteed to win. Poker comes down to playing better than the competition.
You can also learn to handicap sports like an expert and out bet the public in the sportsbook. Or to get back to blackjack, become a card counter to rake in the wins.
Skill-based games appeal to a tighter group of casino gamblers because you generally need a specific skill set to win.
Carefully Balancing the Entertainment With the House Edge One critical element of a hit casino game is that it must be entertaining enough to keep gamblers at the game spending money while simultaneously passing out wins to keep players engaged.
If you have a game paying out too little, players will merely move on to another game with a better payout. That means the casino won’t profit from the competition because no one will play it.
On the other hand, a game that is paying out too much is fantastic for players. Place a fun and exciting game where players consistently win, and the line will stretch from Las Vegas to Atlantic City.
Unfortunately, the casino would quickly recognize they aren’t winning any money and yank the game from the floor.
An excellent casino game must keep gamblers interested and makes a profit for the casino. It’s a fine line between excellence and obsolete.
How Current Casino Classics Came to Be Casino GamesMost of the classic casino games came to be as a result of hundreds or thousands of years of gaming evolution. These games mostly started as a way for humans to keep boredom at bay long before cable TV or the internet.
These games usually incorporated an element of gambling, and as the gambling halls began to pop up around the globe, they became more mainstream. Then casinos adopted them and began to massage the rules in their favor.
Rarely does a brand-new game hop onto the casino floor and celebrate any success. However, there have been several games that hit the floor lately and enjoy a significant following.
Many of these games are poker derivatives, but only three-card poker stands out as a genuine hit. The game combines many of the strategic elements of poker with a fun and fast-paced playing style and a low house edge.
I wouldn’t label three card poker a casino classic yet, but the game has definitely come farther than most new casino games.
A Brief Look at the Most Popular Casino Games I covered some of the most popular casino games earlier, but we see why these games are so popular by making a closer examination.
Slot machines are the hands-down leader for casino gamblers in the U.S. The games come in a wide range of denominations, from $0.01 to over $500 per spin.
This appeals to a wide range of bankrolls and makes gambling accessible to a broader group of people. The penny slots account for more of the casino’s revenue than any other game on the floor.
These games offer players a wide variety of games to choose from and the chance to hit a jackpot that could be worth millions.
Baccarat is adored by players in casinos everywhere because it leaves all of the work to the dealer and relies solely on the chance to bring wins. In cultures where luck and fortune are significantly valued, baccarat is a leader on the casino floor.
The game has two main bets, the banker and the player. Each of these wagers comes with a house advantage of below 1.5%.
The banker bet is a slight advantage with a house edge of 1.06%. You will pay a small 5% commission for wins, but that’s accounted for in the house edge.
Blackjack may be the most popular casino game in the world. Even if you’ve never stepped foot inside a casino, there’s a good chance you’re familiar with how to play blackjack.
Blackjack is favored by advantage gamblers for its card counting possibilities. Yet, everyone can enjoy the game and the lowest house edge possible by using the basic blackjack strategy.
These casino classics are favored by players for their exciting gameplay and chances for walking away from the casino as a winner.
Launching New Games Is a Challenge Launching a new game is a challenge because there are so many factors to consider when pitching a new game. The bottom line is that a new casino game must be profitable for the casino.
That means you must have a well-established house edge to ensure the casino makes a long-term profit on the game. Make the house advantage too high, and players will merely skip it altogether.
Yet the penny slots regularly come in with a house edge over 10% and make the casinos more money than any other game.
So, if you can get players to fall in love with the game, you’ve possibly got a casino hit in the making. Still, บาคาร่า before a casino game brings to the casino floor, you’ve got to convince the casinos it’s the next big game.
However, if you can put the pieces together, you may become one of the pioneers for the future of casino gambling.
How the Future of Casino Gaming Will Evolve It seems as if we are on the cusp of changing the way we view and enjoy casinos. Land-based casinos are shifting to a more all-in-one entertainment destination, and online casinos are making electronic gaming more streamlined.
It will not be too much longer before online casinos are the premium avenue for many avid gamblers. The casinos act much as they currently operate on cruise ships. Little more than an afterthought, designed to kill time between more prominent attractions.
Conclusion What makes a casino game a hit?
As you see, there are several factors at play for making a game successful in the casino. What’s impressive is the paper-thin line between success and failure.
The industry is constantly evolving, and I’m excited to see what casino games will look like in another 20 years.
How Some Casino Games Become Popular With Gamblers
