Roulette game dates back to 1655 when it was invented by the French world’s famous scientist Blaise Pascal as a result of his attempts to design a perpetual motion machine. The name of the game can be translated as the “small wheel” from French. Initially roulette game was played only by monks and later it moved to Paris casinos that found it to be a good source of entertainment and income. Those days the game of roulette was considered to be the most glamorous and it was primarily played by French elite. Single zero roulette is believed to be invented in 1842 by Francois and Luis Blanc, the founders of the casino in Monte Carlo. As the legends say, Blanc brothers sold their souls to the devil to find out the secret of roulette.
Roulette has been always associated with devil, maybe because all the numbers on the roulette wheel total 666. There are many other stories and superstitions about roulette game.
The first roulette wheel close to the modern one was used in France. In the early 1800s roulette game reached the United States where it became extremely popular, especially in the Gold Rush period.
In the United States an extra “00” slot was added to the roulette wheel and it was very difficult to meet single zero roulette game those days. The main and only reason for this was the fact that the casino owners were not happy with the house edge at European roulette and invented their own type of roulette with a little bit different rules. As American roulette brought bigger advantage to casino European roulette was and still remains to be the most popular with the players all around the world.
Although roulette game originated and came to the US from France the double zero game is known as the American Wheel. Today European roulette is more liked by the players as it provides higher winning odds rather than American one. Roulette game has never lost its popularity and it was the favorite entertainment at the casinos and other gambling establishments. As a result roulette became the symbol of casinos and gambling. Among other reasons of roulette popularity is the fact that by guessing the number that will come up on the wheel spin it is possible to collect 35 to 1 payout.
