Live Dealer Games

If you are new to online gambling, you may be overwhelmed by the sheer volume
of choices in software, games, and sites at your fingertips on the internet. For
those of us who have been around the business since its inception over twenty
years ago, we are constantly on the hunt for improvements and enhancements to
what can seem a very cold, calculated business.

About ten years ago, one of these innovative changes came to the internet
casino world by way of live dealer games. Now, if you are new to internet
casinos, you likely have never heard of these, but just being at this site is an
excellent start.

Our team of experts reviews all the casinos we can find to
present to you the best options for you as a novice player. In many of these
reviews, we discuss live casinos, which may be confusing to some of you. This
new delivery method for games brings together the best of the land-based and
online casino worlds, and this page is going to give all the basics about these
games and why they have become so popular over the last decade.

Taking into consideration all of the criteria below, along with many more
factors we won’t go into detail about here, we have compiled a list
of sites that offer live dealer games
that we think are the best for our
readers. These sites combine the best of software, promotions, and support in a
package we think will make your experience very enjoyable.

What Are Live Dealer Games?

Live dealer casino games are exactly what you might think they are from their
name – these are games you can play with human dealers instead of the computer.
These games are still played online from the comfort of wherever you access
online casinos. However, the games are streamed to you, and you are playing with
a dealer on the screen who is dealing cartoonishly large cards so that you can
see the values.

Live dealer casino games were first introduced in the mid-2000s. By this
time, most people had affordable access to broadband internet connections, and
video streaming was clean and far less choppy than in years past.

As companies like YouTube and Netflix were first starting to get into the streaming world,
some casino developers were starting to figure out ways to bring online casino
games to life.

This wasn’t new for many of these companies, as with many of the
other initiatives in the online world, porn sites had been streaming from
studios for a couple of years already.

In 2006, a company by the name of Evolution Gaming was one of the first to
launch a full suite of table games with live dealers. At first, the industry was
skeptical – these games were much slower than the typical random number
generator games that had built the industry. However, the early returns were
clear, and players loved this new way to play their favorite games. The company
started with one studio in Eastern Europe, featuring enough staff that not only
could a player choose a game to play but also the dealer they wanted to have at
their table! This had never been seen in the online gambling industry before,
and very quickly, Evolution started to pick up new clients.

Today, Evolution is one of many software companies that have studios around
the world offering these games to operators and players. Evolution is still the
leader in the space, and they now have 8 studios around the world, including one
in a land-based casino that really gives players the feeling of playing live.

What Games Are Available with a Human Dealer?

As you can imagine, not every game in a casino makes sense to have a real
dealer for. However, the live dealer software companies have done their best to
provide as many games as possible, and these are the games that you are most
likely to find in a live casino:

  • Blackjack
  • Baccarat
  • Casino Hold’em
  • Roulette
  • Three Card Poker

How to Play Live Dealer Casino Games

Now that you have a little information on the history of these games, it’s
time to turn our attention to how the games themselves are played. What you need
to think about is how the game is much more like walking into a land-based
casino, just from the comfort of your own PC or mobile device.

The first thing you need to do is locate an online casino that offers live
dealer games (more on that in the next section). Once you have selected a place
to play, you then need to create an account and make a deposit. With all that
taken care of, you are ready to get into the game!

Look in the lobby of the casino for a tab that is likely labeled live casino
– that is where you will find all the available tables. You may see several
different tables for each game, typically separated by stakes level. Once you
find the table that fits your betting preferences, you are many times taken to a
screen that allows you to pick a dealer. Once you choose your dealer, a new
window opens with the table and the dealer you have chosen.

Here is where the fun begins! Now, you cannot speak directly to the dealer,
but they can speak to you. You will be prompted to make a bet, which you can do
by clicking on the integrated bet buttons in the table window. Depending on the
game you have chosen, you may not be the only person at the table, so you will
have to wait for everyone to make their bets, and then the dealer will deal the
cards or spin the wheel. The game plays out just like it would at a digital or
land-based table, and in the case of games like blackjack, you may be prompted
by the dealer to act when it is your turn. After the hand is complete, winners
are paid, and your balance will reflect the outcome of the hand.

It’s really that simple! Now, as for the rules of the games, they are similar
to the games you find in the RNG versions, so here is a good time to remind you
that we have a full casino games guide that you can use to learn all about each
of the games in a live dealer casino.

What to Look for When Choosing Live Dealer Casino Games

Here is where coming to a site like ours really pays dividends for a new
gambler. With hundreds of online casinos open for business, trying to figure out
where to play can be overwhelming. The good news for you is that we have already
done the majority of the work for you! Our team reviews every casino we can get
our hands on, looking at some of the following categories when coming up with
our rankings.

Software

First and foremost, we look at what software is being offered by a casino.
Not every casino software is the same, so we like to see a mix of great content
and a wide array of games. Of course, a site that offers live dealer games is
usually at the top of our list.

Promotions

After finding sites that offer the best software choices to our readers, we
then take a long look at the promotions that are available to players. Between
deposit bonuses, cashback offers, and loyalty programs, there are a lot of ways
for players to squeeze every bit of value out of every game played. Reading
through our reviews, you can easily spot the sites that offer the best deals to
their players.

Support

This category is especially important for our readers who are new to online
gambling. You are likely going to have questions about your account, so we
review the support departments of all the casinos we research, looking for the
best combination of contact options and frequently asked question sections.

Conclusion

Live dealer games are the way of the future for the online casino world. We
are sure that once virtual reality is more accessible, these games will be even
more popular. We hope that after reading through the information on this page,
you are more comfortable with the concept of these games and are now ready to
pick your favorite table and dealer and start playing!

Frequently Asked Questions

What If I Have a Poor Internet Connection – Can I Still Play Live Dealer Games?

You can, but you aren’t likely to enjoy the experience. As the game won’t
stop for you, if you have a slow connection, you may find that the bet you
placed has been forfeited. Now, each casino will have its own rules about
dropped connections, so it is best if you refer to the terms and conditions
section of the website for the exact position of the casino where you have
chosen to play.

Which Are Better – Live Dealer or Rng Games?

This comes down to personal preference. There is no question that the RNG
games that dominated the first decade of the online casino industry are very
fast, so if you are a player that gains value out of playing more hands per
hour, then you may prefer those. However, the social aspect of live dealer games
is a big draw, and having a human at the other end of the video stream does give
the games much more of a feeling of being in a live casino. Ultimately the
decision is yours, but we see the live dealer games being more popular as the
industry matures.

Can I Play Live Dealer Games on My Mobile Device?

Absolutely! The live dealer games don’t need any software on your device in
order to operate, so you access them from the browser just as you would from a
PC. The same issues may come from dropped connections, so if you are planning to
play live casino games from your mobile device, we recommend you find a strong
cellular or WiFi connection before you begin.

How Do I Know That I Am Not Being Cheated in a Live Dealer Casino?

This is a common question we get from players of all skill levels. The bottom
line is that it isn’t good business for the software providers to be cheating
players. They make their money based on a revenue share of winnings from the
live dealer tables, so it is in their best interests to make sure the games are
played fairly to build a strong reputation. The best providers have gaming
licenses which mean that their software and studios are audited on a regular
basis.

Can I Try Live Dealer Games Without Betting Real Money?

Unfortunately, live dealer games are some of the only games that you can play
online that are not available in a play money format. It is easy to understand
why – there are costs involved in having a studio streaming human dealers that
make it cost-prohibitive to offer the games without money exchanging hands.
However, if you read through our reviews, you will find that many sites run
special promotions specifically for live dealer games, so you may be able to at
least get a free match bet or some cash back if you lose as a result of these
offers.