The game of keno has been around for a long time and is an early lottery type of game. Like bingo, it is a game of chance, where no amount of skill or strategy by the player can change the odds in their favor. Whether it is played in a casino, online, or wherever, the game of keno is always basically the same. You pick some numbers and hope those numbers are drawn. In a nutshell, that’s all there is to it.
Keno Setup
The game of keno is usually played in a large room that has a glass or clear plastic enclosure in the shape of a bubble. There are 80 balls within that bubble and each one is given a different number ranging from 1 to 80. A blower pushes air throughout the bubble, which lifts and jumbles the balls to mix them. The balls are then taken out of the bubble one by one and the number is read.
Prior to removing the balls from the bubble, each player purchases a card and chooses certain numbers on the card on which to wager. Players can usually bet on anywhere from one to 20 numbers. While the balls are being mixed together by the blower, a “caller” pulls 20 balls from the bubble, one by one, and checks their numbers. Any player who bet on a number that matches a number on a drawn ball wins.
How much a player wins depends on many things, such as the amount they paid for the cards, the number of matches they had, and the pay tables being used. There is no standard pay table for keno. Each game has different tables and many times there are various pay tables from which to choose.
Online Keno
Online keno is basically the same as regular keno. Like its land-based counterpart, it is a game of chance that isn’t affected by any skill or strategy of the players. With online keno, the player picks certain numbers of a digital board. The winning numbers are then picked by a random number generator. The player then makes money off each match that they get, and how much money is determined by the online casino’s pay table.
Like with land-based keno, online keno has balls numbered 1 through 80 and the player picks which numbers they want to wager on. Most of the time they can pick up to 20 numbers to play. Like on land, the winning numbers are picked one by one, which increases the drama.
Most online casinos offer free trial versions of keno, where new players can get a feel for how the game is played before risking any of their own money. The gameplay is the same, except that you wager and win fake money instead of the real thing.
Decisions, Decisions
There are two major decisions to make when playing keno. The first is which pay table to use. The pay table is the amount that the player wins for each correct number. Different cards could have different pay tables and different pay tables cost different amounts. Before playing, you should study the different pay tables offered and determine which would be the best way to spend your money.
The other major decision to make is how many numbers to choose. Though people have lots of superstitions about picking numbers, it really doesn’t matter which numbers you choose. The winning numbers are chosen at random, so each number has an equal chance of winning. However, the more numbers you choose, the better your odds of having at least one match. On the down side, it costs you more to bet on more numbers. Therefore, you should do a risk-reward analysis and decide how many numbers you want to play.
If you keep in mind that the house always has the edge in keno and that there is nothing you can do to change the odds, keno can be a fun, carefree way to spend your time. It is a good break from the high-strategy games like poker and blackjack. So if you want to take a break and endure the drama of watching one number after another be chosen, keno is the game for you.
