Online casino gaming has come a long way over the past two decades, but some players still crave the feel of being in an actual brick-and-mortar casino. This desire led to the birth of live casino games where players can play with real dealers in real time. However, how does this work exactly and what are the processes that take place to make it possible?
When a player logs on to a live dealer casino website they will be presented with a video feed of a real casino table. They can then use a series of buttons to communicate with the dealer and control their game. A real dealer will then shuffle the cards and/or throw the dice in real time. This is how live casino differs from the classic online version which uses random number generator software.
The digital technology that makes this all possible is actually quite clever. The cameras used in the live casino are fitted with a special piece of software that translates all the actions and symbols into data. This data is then translated back into an image which the player sees on their screen. It is the same kind of optical character recognition technology that some car parks have in order to recognise licence plates. In a live casino, the system also has sensors which can detect where the ball has landed on a roulette wheel.
It is this that allows the dealer to interact with the players and also enables them to read messages from players in the stream. The software also allows the dealer to keep track of bets made. The dealer will then re-transmit this information to a central computer which is capable of processing the results and making payments.
In a live casino, players can choose from a range of casino games such as blackjack, roulette and poker. There may even be a choice of side bets such as Lightning Dice and Money Wheel. Some providers will also offer a variety of themed tables. For example, Monopoly Live and Football Studio allow players to place bets on different events happening in the world of sport.
Running a live casino takes a great deal of computing power, so the casinos that use this technology have to be big enough to handle it. There are also engineering staff who manage the studio and software, as well as a team of monitors who watch the games to check for any potential frauds.
The equipment required for a live casino can be expensive, which is why there are only a few providers that offer this type of service. The most popular three are Evolution Gaming, NetEnt and Playtech. Each one offers a slightly different range of games, although most will feature the golden trio of blackjack, roulette and baccarat. The rest of the portfolio can vary from provider to provider, but most will include a selection of card games, table games and some slot machines too.