How did the most popular gambling: stories of origin

Today we know gambling not at all as it was at the beginning of its history. How the games, which are now played by millions of people, came about and what contributed to their popularity?

Poker

The history of poker is ambiguous, and it is still unknown exactly when this game appeared and who invented it.

There is a version that the name of the game comes from the German word pochen, which translates as “knock”. It is believed that poker originated in Europe in the 15th century, but its rules were different and changed quite often. At that time, players used cards similar to modern ones to make combinations of 3 cards.

At the same time, there was a popular game in Persia called As-nas, which is most reminiscent of the familiar poker. It was played with a deck of 20 or 25 cards. They were very similar to modern ones, except for the absence of numbered cards. There were only aces, kings, queens and jacks in the decks. As-nas players received 5 cards each and tried to make combinations of them with the maximum number of cards of the same face value.

Texas Hold’em is the most popular form of poker today, appearing in Texas in the early 20th century. Since then, poker in the United States began to develop and quickly became the most common game.

Roulette

The creation of a prototype of modern roulette is attributed to the inventor Blaise Pascal. He worked on the creation of a perpetual motion machine and for this purpose introduced a primitive form of roulette – a wheel with a ball rotating in it.

One of the first mentions of roulette as a game dates back to 1716. It was allegedly played at the Hotel de Soissons in Paris. The wheel was turned by hand, and the players bet on which sector the thrown ball would fall into. More or less modern roulette began to be played in the 1790s, also in Paris. The description of the game was given by the French writer Jacques Lable in his novel “Roulette or the story of a player” in 1801.

Roulette became extremely popular after the opening of the first casino in Monaco in 1860. At the same time, the game appeared and began to spread in the United States, where its rules were somewhat reworked. It was then that the division of roulette into European and American appeared, but in any variation it has always been and remains one of the favorite pastimes in the casino. Choose online casino no deposit bonus Australia here.

Blackjack

Blackjack is another game whose timing is unknown. Its predecessor is considered to be the game Vingt-Un of Spanish origin, which was described in one of his short stories by the author of “Don Quixote” Miguel de Cervantes. Her heroes played a game aimed at collecting 21 points. The short story Rinconete y Cortadillo was written in 1601.

The next mention of Vingt-Un occurs in France in 1768, and the first described rules of the game appeared in Britain in the early 19th century. Around 1899, the English version of Vingt-Un was renamed blackjack in the United States, and the rules of the game took on a modern look.

Keno Lottery

Keno is one of the oldest lotteries in the world, which is not losing its popularity. Each player has a ticket on which he must cross out up to 20 numbers. Then with the help of 80 numbered balls, choose the winning numbers. The more values  converge, the more the lottery participant wins.

It has been known since ancient China. It is believed that Emperor Chun Leung invented the lottery to fill the state treasury, which was empty after protracted wars. The game became so popular that it provided huge budget revenues that helped the emperor gather an army and win the war. Later, the Great Wall of China was built with the money earned in this lottery.

In the 1840s, the lottery appeared in the United States thanks to immigrants from China. At first, they played it only with each other, but over time it spread and became popular under the name “Chinese Lottery”. It was later renamed Keno.

Slot machines

A prototype of a modern slot machine was invented in 1891 in Brooklyn. This attempt was successful, and the owners of pubs and bars began to buy such slot machines in order to install them in their establishment. Instead of picture-symbols, it had cards that had to be folded into a poker hand to win. This device did not give out money. You could get a free drink, snack or cigarette to win.

A few years later, another slot machine called Liberty Bell appeared. It was possible to play for money. Throwing a 5-cent coin into the machine and collecting a successful combination of characters, you could earn up to 50 cents.

At the beginning of the 20th century, slot machines were banned. Then “fruit machines” became popular, for the victory in which players received chewing gum and candy.

The ban was later lifted, and in 1964 the first electromechanical slot machine called Money Honey appeared. Since then, slot machines have been constantly improved – in 1976 the first video slot was released, and in the 1990s online slots appeared and began to gain popularity.

By the 21st century, gambling has evolved so much that you can play anywhere and anytime with gadgets. The main thing is to remember that they must be treated responsibly, – emphasizes the online casino experts.