Gambling in its variety has a lot of games which are depending purely on luck. So is this game called Bingo in which a simple number calls for luck. It is a game played for cash prizes. The player wins it when the player has a matching number called by the one who draws randomly. The first one to complete shouts “Bingo”. The numbers are re-checked and the cash prized is given. There are varied patterns in a Bingo session, which makes the game more interesting.
History of the game The game’s ancestral history dates back to as early as 1530 in an Italian lottery called ‘Lo Guioco del Lotto Italia’, which even today is played every Saturday in Italy. From there it was next started in France where it got the name ‘Le Lotto’ which was played by wealthy Frenchmen. The German’s then used it as a game to help kids learn math, spelling, and history. Next, in the US, it got the name ‘beano’ and the tradition of shouting ‘beano’ started there. The game was renamed “Bingo” by Edwin S Lowe who was a toy seller in New York. Edwin S. Lowe hired Carl Leffler, a mathematics profession at Columbia University who assisted Edwin S. Lowe in increasing the number of combinations in the cards. By 1930 there were 6000 different bingo cards.
The game and its typesBingo, the game of luck has a 5x5 board with numbers on each square. The players are given these boards/cards for a paid amount. The goal is to have sufficient spaces on your card filled out so that you get a complete row on your card horizontally, vertically and diagonally. Other than this there are various patterns also which can be required to win.
Bingo has also gone online with internet connectivity. The basic variations of the traditional US bingo which is vastly played are:U-Pick ‘Em Bingo: The most common form which allows players to mark the numbers they want to monitor in order to win. It is something similar to the Chinese game called Keno and is permitted legally.Quick Shot Bingo: In this numbers are drawn previously and players buy a sealed set of cards which are then matched against the drawn numbers.
If a particular pattern is achieved then the player wins. This is also played repeatedly until the player reaches the top level of the cash prize on the table.
Bonanza bingo: Here, 43 to 48 numbers are drawn at the beginning of the session. Players must buy cards and mark out all even odd or drawn numbers. At a specified time, the callers call for bingo, if no one shouts then he starts drawing balls until someone yells bingo. This is a progressive variant of the game.
Facebook bingo: Different from the traditional online bingo games, this features power-ups which is advantageous to individual players while winning the game. Players also collect, buy and share virtual products with friends on Facebook which adds to the communication element. This doesn’t happen in other online and land bingo games or in any gambling game online or land base.
Horse racing bingo: This is a 15 player game where numbers are issued randomly from 1 to 15 which are the numbers of the top row of the card. The first person to have first five numbers drawn in his card’s column wins. Since this is a fast game, it is named horse racing.
Table bingo: This is the most widely played variation of bingo across the US. Players mark and monitor their numbers through chips. Casino games such as roulette, aceyduecy and money wheel are all played under bingo licenses in many parts of US.
Internet connectivity and the vast publicity of online games and their ease of playing has affected bingo too. Bingo slot machines have increased and have ruled the gaming industry with approval from regulatory acts. With every player having their own tastes and styles there are a lot of variations emerging regularly. A few others known are death bingo, buzz word bingo, bossy bingo, online bingo, road kill bingo, lingo, slingo, pinoy bingo, bingo America, national bingo etc. Themed variants of the traditional game include drag queen bingo, punk rock bingo, and beach blanket bingo.