This workaround game is no ball
We might as well just come out and say it: Some of California’s gambling laws are just plain weird. One of the silliest is the statute that prohibits games of chance in which the outcome is determined by dice. Another zinger: the rule that forbids games of chance that revolve (pun intended) around a ball.
The first of these examples effectively outlaws Vegas-style craps; the second, roulette.
Clever game inventors have devised workarounds, of course. One of the most common alternatives in the latter category: Mystery Card Roulette, a game now available at River Rock Casino in Geyserville and Red Hawk Casino in Placerville (El Dorado County). The playing apparatus is a mashup of a roulette board with a wheel like the one you see on “Wheel of Fortune.”
Instead of sporting 37 (or 38) numbered divots into which a ball can rest, the wheel is divvied up into 37 (or 38) “slices” of equal size. Each “slice” is marked by pegs on the outside edge. Inside each slice is a slot. Inside each slot sits a card with a number on it.
The croupier spins the wheel, then bettors make their bets. Once all bets have been made, the croupier flips a paddle that slows the wheel by striking the outside pegs. When the wheel stops, this paddle ultimately rests between two pegs, pointing to the winning slice. The croupier then removes the card from the slot in that slice to determine the winning number. From this point, the game plays out exactly as the traditional version of roulette. Bets are paid at the same odds (which vary slightly, depending on whether the board has only single-zero, or single-zero and double-zero).
Overall, however, the game experience falls short. For starters, you really miss that bouncing ball — one of my favorite aspects of traditional roulette is the inherent drama in watching the ball bop around the wheel as it comes to land in a particular divot. Sure, there’s a touch of suspense when the croupier pulls the card from the winning slice. But it’s nothing like watching that little ball.
Another difference: the wait. For whatever reason, the wheel in Mystery Card Roulette spins for what seems like eons when compared to the wheel at a traditional table.
Perhaps the biggest difference between the games is the noise factor. A roulette wheel is relatively quiet, save for the sound of the ball shushing around. But Mystery Card creates a veritable cacophony. You almost expect to see Vanna White golf-clapping for you. Just don’t try to buy a vowel.