Casino Favorites Around the Globe

The world is exceptionally large and has been divided by nationality, geography and culture since the beginning of time, and although technology and transportation make the world feel smaller every day, each region or culture holds on tightly to traditional favorites. As gambling increases in popularity in more and more regions, the games that are played still vary from country to country and region to region. What may be the favorite wager in one country could be seen as something for the lower classes to play in another. Regional differences in betting continue, even as online casinos have reached a worldwide audience.

Asia: Many People and Many Traditions

Some Asian cultures, especially China, have seen gambling and betting as respectable activities for longer than the rest of the world. For centuries, many of the cultures of the Far East have old traditions that are still held to this day. Baccarat remains the game that Asian players aspire to; it's a high risk, high reward type of game that until recently was seen as something for only the wealthy. Pai Gow and its card variant Pai Gow Poker are popular in this part of the world, and while the traditional version of this game is played with Chinese dominoes, the poker variant can be found in many online casinos that Europeans and North Americans play.

Spinning the Reels and Dealing Blackjack in North America

Canadians and Americans with their close proximity and their friendship that has existed since the 1800s have similar tastes in online wagering. Both countries see a large amount of action in the casinos at the Blackjack and Poker tables as both card games are intensely popular in both cultures. These two games pale in comparison to slot machine play in both Canada and the United States. Slot machines take up the most space in the land-based casinos in both countries and within the online sites that cater to those in Canada and the United States, leaving gamblers with hundreds of titles to choose from.

The Land of the Pokies

Canada and the U.S. aren't the only English-speaking countries with a big slot machine habit; Australians may call them pokies but they rank as the favorite type of game for most Australians. Taking into consideration that 80 percent of Aussies who are old enough to gamble do so, it can be no surprise that pokies can be found not only in casinos but even in bars and restaurants. Australians take their pokies seriously and the machines can be considered an official casino game of the nation. Australians are starting to take notice of other games from both the West and the East as the country sits in close proximity to Asia, but shares a language with the two earlier mentioned countries in North America.

Shifting Tendencies and Finding New Favorites

While specific regions and countries still have their own favorites, many are migrating to games that are popular in other parts of the world. Pai Gow is being played more and more in North American casinos and slot machines are making their way into Asian casinos; such casinos also tend to draw more tourists from outside Asia. Poker has become an international sensation in recent years and a good game can be found in any casino in any country. Changing favorites will continue to shift as the years go by as the betting world grows bigger by the number of casinos available and the people who play in them.