The fact of the matter is that roulette does not return a good chance of winning. Compared to some of the other bets in the casino that return a low House Edge, roulette is something of a Wheel of Chance. The best bets on the table are the even money bets, which payout 1:1. These consist of the red/black, high/low and even/odd bets.

To give roulette its fair due, it certainly is a great casino game for leisure and entertainment. Online, it's a little more dangerous. Since the wheel spins much faster and settles sooner, you are likely to go through more money in a shorter period of time while playing at an online casino.

If you are new to the game, its best to first familiarize yourself with the table layout, bets and payouts. There are several bets available, which are characterized as "inside" (Straight-up, Street, Corner, Line and Five-Number) and "outside" (Red/Black, High/Low, Odd/Even, Dozens and Columns). The payouts vary for each. Remember, your lowest House Edge will come from the outside bets.

There are several different versions of roulette, all of which you are likely to find in a single online casino. These include European Roulette, American Roulette and French Roulette. The differences between these is small, although the American version returns the highest Casinos Edge of the three.

The game is played by first setting chips in the corresponding boxes on the table (either directly on numbers, on the lines between numbers, or in the marked boxes surrounding the table). Remember that if you play roulette in a land-based casino, the chips are not marked with denominations, but instead are identified by their color. In an online casino, chips are marked by denomination (usually as low as $1). The dealer will then send a ball spinning in the slotted wheel, and whichever slot the ball lands in will determine the winners and losers.

As mentioned, European Roulette offers a lower House Edge than the American version. This is because there are only 37 slots on the wheel, as opposed to 38. American roulette offers the numbers 1-36, 0 and 00. European roulette does not offer the 00. European Roulette also offers the "en prison" rule, which returns half of one's Red/Black, Odd/Even or High/Low bet if the ball lands on zero, or imprisons the bet on the table for another spin (player's choice). If it wins the second time around, the bet is returned without winnings. A similar rule is "la partage", which does not give players the option of imprisoning their bet for a second chance. It simply gives half the even money wager back if the ball lands on zero. Both of these rules help lower the Casino Edge and should be looked for when playing roulette.

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