Roullete, also known as Roulette or simply the Wheel, is a casino game in which players bet on which red or black numbered compartment of a revolving wheel the small ball will come to rest in. There are a number of different bets, which pay off at differing odds. The game is simple to understand, but it has a surprising depth for serious betters and can yield large sums of money.
The venerable roulette table has long been a mainstay at Monte Carlo and other European casino resorts. Its popularity in the United States, however, has been overshadowed by slot machines, video poker, and blackjack. In fact, roulette has one of the smallest followings among casino games in America. Only baccarat draws fewer players, and even then only in casinos where the baccarat pits have been closed to low-budget players.
A roulette wheel consists of a solid wooden disk slightly convex in shape and with a metal partitioning around the edge. Thirty-six of these compartments, painted alternately in red and black, are numbered nonconsecutively from 1 to 36. A 37th compartment, on European-style wheels, carries the sign 0 and two green ones, on American wheels, carry the signs 00 and 0.
While many theories have been proposed about the origin of roulette, it is clear that it is based on older casino games, including hoca and portique. The modern version of the game emerged in Europe in the late 18th century.
To play roulette, the player must first place a chip on the correct spot on the layout, called the
