When it comes to playing roulette, (assuming you’re an ordinary player and not an advantage player) one of the most important aspects a player needs to be confident in is that the wheel is as random as it can possibly be.
Part of the fun of playing roulette is that your entire game is left completely up to chance. If you’re feeling lucky, you’re more likely to go for a riskier bet – or if you just want the basic thrill, you can choose an almost evens bet.
But regardless of how much you are willing to risk on the roulette wheel, it’s important to know that the wheel comes out with random numbers. Physical wheels can be weighted and mechanized to slash odds further, but when it comes to online roulette, players have to trust that they will be getting a fair deal. That’s why RNGs or random number generators are used. But what are RNGs and how can online casinos ensure their roulette wheels are truly random?
Transparent Odds
Every honest casino will openly publish their odds and payouts. Most are required by law to do so. If your casino doesn’t, they probably have something to hide.
On a typical American roulette wheel, the odds for choosing an even or odd number or red or black are 46.37%. The house edge of 2.7% for European roulette stands as the algorithm works on 37 outcomes, but only pays out for 36 – this is doubled to 5.26% for American roulette, making 38 outcomes with the 00. For some casinos, they will return half your bet if you land on 0 and 00 for these bets.
But otherwise, this is the highest odds available for roulette – and they are still slightly stacked against you. So, ensuring the roulette wheel does work randomly – and isn’t, say, stacked 3/5 towards landing on black or odd numbers – then players need to know that they have complete transparency when it comes to making their bets. When you bet on just a single number, let’s say to complete a strategy that requires this, then your odds of the wheel landing on your number are slashed to 2.63%. So, players definitely need to know that they are playing with a fair wheel that offers random numbers. There’s no shame in losing to the game of chance, but there will be annoyance if you lose because the wheel is fixed.
What are Random Number Generators?
RNGs – random number generators – can help this when it comes to playing online roulette. RNGs create a number from a chosen range at random using a computerized code. So for roulette, the range will be 0 to 36 (with an optional 00 depending on the type of roulette played). RNGs ensure that each time a number is selected from this and coded into the online roulette wheel, it is completely random. Some RNGS produce seemingly random results but have actually had a seed number keyed, which forms the basis of the apparently random series of numbers. For example, some may favor even numbers and produce the random result with a pre-set weighing to even numbers. But, the algorithms that computational online roulette use are ensured to be completely random and to be able to provide a result that cannot be biased. With roulette game providers, especially when players are depositing real money, RNGs are used to completely randomize the numbers picked on each spin. The online roulette provider is to ensure that each game reflects the reason people play roulette. So if there wasn’t an RNG algorithm in play, people would stop playing it.
How Do RNGs Make Online Roulette Random?
Once the sequence has been created by the online roulette site, the action of spinning the wheel activates the algorithm, which cycles through possible outcomes and lands on a number completely at random based on the sequence and the seed. Roulette, by its nature, is stacked in the house’s favour, but RNGs ensure that the only advantage they have is the 0 and 00 slots and not any algorithm adaptions that change the way in which the seed works depending on the player’s bets. RNGs and the idea behind them are actually very secure and reliable, and a lot of competition entries for brands and companies or through the TV use RNGs to pick a winner. There is no way to ensure something is 100% random – even random human picks have bias i.e. picking names out of a hat is down to the ease of picking a slip of paper. But RNGs are used prolifically because they create a result that is as close to random as possible. While some people are distrustful of the system, the vast majority trust that RNGs give them the game of chance that they are working towards – and also aid in any betting strategies that the player might be employing.
Part of the fun of playing roulette is the luck of the draw. Moving from land-based roulette to roulette online needs to ensure that the basis of the game is retained and players are playing the game they know and love. Playing roulette online still retains the atmosphere and excitement of playing roulette in the casino – so, it also needs to retain the randomness of the ball landing on a slot in the wheel. This is done effectively by RNGs, which are a key facet of the online roulette algorithm. Ensuring that the result is random and that wins and losses are down to nothing more than chance keeps the game fun and keeps online roulette providers transparent and reliable.
To get the best free roulette systems that really work, see the top 5 proven roulette systems and the video series below. It's the best 100% free information for winning roulette you'll find. It's written by professionals who are really earning a living from roulette. |