There are many different games in a casino, ranging from those where pure luck decides the outcome of your bet, to other games where a degree of strategy can be used to try and influence how successful you are.
Some casino players like to play strategy games because they feel they can learn the game and by learning how to use the strategy effectively, this will give them a better chance of success. Blackjack is a prime example of such a game where a proven strategy can, over a long period of time, give a player greater rewards.
However, some casino players enjoy the thrill of low risk/high reward games and these tend to be games where everything is left to chance. Slot machines are an example of this, but so is the focus of this weeks article. A random number game that grew in prominence initially in Las Vegas, known simply as Keno.
What is Keno?
Keno is a random number game which shares many similarities to bingo and lottery type games. The difference with Keno is that the games can be played very quickly. In real world casinos there is a machine which physically draws the numbers as a bingo ball selector or lottery number selector would work, however in the video game version, the numbers are selected by a random number generator.
The aim of the game is for the player to match as many numbers as they select from the numbers that the Keno machine draws. The more players a number selects on their card, the more they have to match in order to win a prize on the game.
As with lottery games, if a player manages to match all, or nearly all, the numbers they select then they'll win the bigger prizes, calculated as a factor of the bet you make to play the game.
Although some players may maintain that they have lucky numbers, or a 'strategy' for winning at Keno, this is an example of a gamblers fallacy as when the game draws the numbers, they are drawn at random and no one number has a higher chance of being selected than any other.
At its heart, Keno is a very simple game of chance based on the selection of numbers between 1 and 80 in a similar way to lottery and bingo games, only with Keno a player has more choice over how many numbers they select on their ticket and in each Keno game, the machine will draw the same number of balls each time (usually 20, from the 80 available).
How to play Keno
The game of Keno starts with a player electing to buy themselves one (or more) Keno 'card' although in the video version, the card is shown on screen. The player then decides how many numbers they want to mark off the card knowing that the keno machine will draw 20 of the 80 numbers available.
The key here is that you can pick between a range of numbers on your keno card. This range is usually between 1 and 15 numbers, or 2 and 10 numbers. However, the more numbers that you pick, the more numbers you need to be successfully drawn by the number selector in order to win a prize.
But, the more numbers you select, the bigger the prize that you could win if you manage to hit all your numbers in the selections made.
For example, if a player selects just two numbers for their Keno game, then they will win 12 times their stake if both their balls are drawn, however if one or zero of their selections come up, then they will win nothing.
On the other end of the scale, if a player selects 10 numbers, then they would need to match five of the numbers they select in order to win their stake back, however if they match all 10 of the numbers they select, then they would win 1,000,000 times their stake on that card.
In some games, once you pick over a certain number of numbers on your card (10 is usually the default number) the casino will pay you back a small amount if you do not hit any number out of the 20 drawn.
Once you have made your number selections, then the game will start with the keno machine drawing the numbers. You can then see how many of these match your selections and you will be able to tell if you have won a prize based on how many numbers you match from the 20 randomly picked numbers, compared to your selection.
Unlike bingo or even the lottery, the numbers in keno are picked very quickly, which means that the games do progress at a very quick pace. You can therefore play many games of Keno in a relatively short amount of time.
Once the 20 numbers are selected, winning tickets are paid out automatically and then the game restarts with the player purchasing another ticket and picking a new set of numbers.
In terms of casino games, keno is probably (alongside slot machines) one of the easiest to understand and simplest games to play, hence its attraction to many players.
The key to the game is number selection and players often pick numbers that have meaning to them (birthdays and dates, ages of children, siblings etc), or they will make a pattern on the card using numbers. Others will simply pick random numbers and play these.
Numbers can be replayed on a subsequent ticket by clicking the Replay button, which saves the player having to put the same numbers in time and time again. Most Keno games have a ticket price of 1 per ticket per game.
What are my chances of winning when playing Keno?
Unfortunately, as with many games of chance, the odds are somewhat against you when playing Keno, if your long term aim is to achieve a consistent profit.
In the real world casinos of Las Vegas returns from Keno vary from around 50 to 80%, which means that the house edge can be anywhere from 20% to 50%. These are very poor odds for the gambler who wants to assure themselves of a long term profit.
Research has shown that in video games, the house edge has been cut down to anywhere between 84 and 95%, however this is still a significant house advantage and means that Keno does not compare well to games such as video poker or blackjack.
As such, Keno is a game for players who don't want to have to concern themselves with strategy and who enjoy low-risk, high-reward gaming where the chances of winning big are relatively low, and the player understands this and is willing to spend on their game.
Compared to other casino games, Keno doesn't really fare very well. The game is often bottom of the pile when it comes to games which offer the player the lowest house edge, yet this does not stop the game from being very popular.
Keno is perhaps best described as the casinos own lottery, where your chances of winning are small, but if you get extraordinarily lucky, you could win a life-changing amount of money if all your numbers come up.
Next Post: The Big Wheel - A look at a popular casino game known for big wins
|
|||
|
|||
|
|||
|
