In the past, was favourite among the higher social circles, only to rise to fame and enchant players worldwide. Today, is a top attraction at both land-based and online casinos.
However, what many rookie players aren’t aware of is the fact that roulette comes in many variations. All the different types of roulette games share the same concept of placing inside and outside bets. Nonetheless, they all come with interesting rule or layout variations, which often seriously affect the house edge. Therefore, players must learn all about a roulette variant before they start placing real-money bets on the game.
General Rules and Table Layout
Before moving on to explaining the most popular types of this game, it’s crucial to give introduction to the game. Namely, all roulette games are played on a special layout, accompanied by a spinning wheel. The green layout features a certain number of numbers (usually 1-36 + zero) as well as additional betting fields outside the numbers. Players can place numerous types of roulette bets, which are generally divided into inside and outside bets.
Once all bets are placed, the wheel starts spinning and the outcome is determined depending on the wheel slot in which the small white ball lands. At online casinos, the result is actually provided by a random number generator (RNG). Yet, for the sake of authenticity, players see a realistic roulette wheel spinning next to the layout. Depending on the winning combination of a number and colour, the player may lose or win. Certain bets have better payouts and lower odds than other options.
Different Types of Roulette Explained
Now that you know what a regular roulette gaming session looks like, it’s time to learn all about the roulette variations. Each of them is special in its own way, even though some are better options than others due to drastic difference in house edge.
French
Not as common as European, French is actually the best roulette game in terms of odds. This variant of roulette is played on a single-zero layout i.e. it features only one zero field in addition to the numbers from 1 to 36. However, what places it on the top when it comes to house edge are the La Partage and En Prison rules. Namely, the zero field has always been a serious issue for punters as it lowers the odds of all bets, including the even-paying ones. Well, these rules deal with this issue by returning half the stake in case the ball lands on zero. As a result, French Roulette boasts with an incredibly low house edge, at least for roulette variants, of 1.35%.
European
The easiest way to explain European is to say that the variant is French without the La Partage and En Prison rules. In other words, this popular and commonly found roulette game is played on the single-zero (European) layout. It offers the same inside and outside bets as French Roulette and has a higher house edge of 2.70%. This comes from the fact that players lose their entire bet when the ball lands on zero. Nevertheless, players worldwide adore European Roulette and therefore you will find it at most online gambling sites.
American
As we’re moving from the best towards the worst types of roulette games, American comes next on the list. This is the game where you will meet the double-zero (American) layout. Namely, in addition to the single-zero field and the numbers 1-36, there is an additional double-zero field. This extra field nearly doubles the house edge of American in comparison to European Roulette. So, players will often find advice to stay away from American Roulette and its high 5.26% house edge. Other than that, everything is identical to European Roulette.
Mini
Mini Roulette is a modern-day roulette variant. Just like the name suggests, this type of roulette is a smaller version of regular European. If you wonder what this means, well, the game features a single-zero field and numbers from 1 to 12 only. The betting options players have on Mini Roulette are identical as those on the other variants. However, the payouts are different. For example, the single bet pays 11 to 1, rather than 35 to 1. The even-paying bets remain even-paying bets on Mini Roulette as well. In terms of house edge, boasts with house edge of 3.85%. So, it’s still a better option than American, but worse than European or French.
Other Interesting Games
With casino game providers constantly trying to surprise fans with unique games, there are numerous brand-new roulette variants on the market. Therefore, Microgaming is widely popular for its Multi-Wheel Roulette that enables players to play on multiple tables at once. There’s also Speed Roulette for those that prefer faster action as well as Monopoly Roulette for players that want a themed roulette experience.