Gambling dates back to the Old Stone Age, representing one of the oldest human pastimes on record. The essence of it didn’t change much over millennia — you wager something of value on an event against another party for a chance to gain something in return.
Initially, gambling games were pretty basic, involving simple wagers like betting on two fighting animals or guessing the outcome of a six-sided die roll. Over time, with the invention of things like playing cards and new technologies that brought us devices like the roulette wheel, gambling games got a little more complex.
Below, we’ll take you on a quick journey through the history of casino games, from their earliest representation to the modern age.
The First Casinos
To get to the first organized forms of gambling, we must travel back to China in the first millennium BCE. During this time, gambling houses were common throughout the region, and the Chinese are credited for inventing playing cards and many games that would later become popular across the globe, like dominoes and lotto.
The first organized lottery was held in 1569 in Great Britain when Queen Elizabeth I initiated an officially sanctioned drawing game. The Brits were also responsible for popularizing horse race betting, which has been prevalent around the Isles for over 300 years.
In 1638, a casino called Ridotto opened in Venice, Italy, and is believed to have been the first state-sanctioned gambling house on the continent. Ridotto acted very much like any modern casino, with the means of generating revenue to finance the state.
The casino offered two distinct games: Biribi, which was a lottery-based draw game and the precursor to roulette, and Basetta, a card game hybrid of gin rummy, poker, and blackjack.
Monte Carlo and Las Vegas
Throughout the industrialization era, gambling flourished across Europe. Perhaps the most famous casino on the Old Continent was the Monte Carlo casino, opened in 1865 by Charles III, Prince of Monaco, in an attempt to avoid bankruptcy.
At the time, roulette was the prevalent game, created one century earlier, with the wheel itself credited to Blaise Pascal.
The gambling craze didn’t take long to reach the New World. Card games such as poker and blackjack were widely popular among the American settlers, especially with the gold-seekers and explorers of the Wild West.
The construction of the Hoover Dam brought many workers to the Las Vegas area, for whom the casinos and theaters were built as a form of entertainment. This spawned what would become a “Gambling Mecca” over the next century.
Blackjack, poker, roulette, and baccarat were the most popular games initially, but slot machines slowly took over during the 1960s and 1970s.
The Internet Age
Like many industries, gambling made its way to the World Wide Web over the last few decades. Casinos realized they could have a wider reach online, as the players could now access a whole spectrum of gambling games anytime from the comfort of their homes.
The rapid advancements in computer and mobile technology have made playing online casino games possible in virtually every corner of the globe.
Moreover, the Internet Age contributed to new forms of casino entertainment. For instance, sweepstakes casinos like those at WOW Vegas online casino have taken North America by storm, offering a mix between traditional casinos and casual gameplay. These platforms provide free play via virtual currencies while still offering players a shot at real prizes.
Final Words
Although the aim of casino games remained fundamentally the same, their nature changed significantly over time in terms of diversity, how and where they were played, and how regulators sanctioned them.
Today, players can enjoy various casino games both online and in land-based establishments. The casino industry has become a major source of income for many countries, and casino games are a significant part of this growth.
Online casinos are increasingly popular, and new concepts like social casinos make for an even more diverse environment where casual players can enjoy a safe and risk-free experience
