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In the ever-evolving world of iGaming, a huge amount of Bitcoin and crypto casinos have emerged. For those who play on them, it’s difficult to imagine a time before they existed.

A walk through the history of Bitcoin casinos is a fascinating path to tread, a gallery of gaming that showcases innovation, pioneering adventurers, the fusion of new tech with old fun, and so much more.

Bitcoin casinos indeed seem like a natural progression in today’s era, but we often overlook the humble beginnings. Let’s dive deep into the halls of history and understand the evolution of Bitcoin gambling. After all, the wheel of progress keeps turning, and cryptocurrency casinos are not going anywhere.

The Dawn of a New Era

Back in 2008, a seismic shift occurred in the world of finance with the advent of the Bitcoin blockchain. This groundbreaking invention was akin to the creation of the primitive internet. Just like the internet, Bitcoin started as a niche interest for tech-enthusiasts and gradually permeated our everyday lives.

The initial years of Bitcoin were a time of exploration and innovation. Now, rival blockchains like Ethereum, Solana, and Tron have emerged, but none can quite match Bitcoin’s promise of anonymity and decentralisation. Not to mention its place in the public consciousness. Indeed, like a piece of great art, it only grows in value over time. Specialist sites like Crypto Lists expect some of the best Bitcoin casinos to “emerge as the predominant form of online gambling, as cryptocurrencies move to the forefront of how people transact in the online space over the coming decade”. It’s way quicker to get winnings, which is highly important to many players that hate to wait days or weeks to obtain and use any gambling proceeds.

While critics may think it’s a fad, Crypto Lists and respondents on Quora believe that Bitcoin has a long-term future. However, some doubt that it will last forever. There are already a large amount of faster and ‘smarter’ coins with more real-world use cases such as Solana and Ethereum, but Bitcoin remains dominant with significantly higher market cap and trust among institutional investors, as a store of value akin to digital gold.

iGaming: An Emerging Space

Before delving into the history of bitcoin casinos, it’s essential to understand the broader context of iGaming. This term refers to the online casino and sports betting sector, and it’s fascinating to note that the first online casino emerged in 1995.

As internet connectivity improved over the years, the popularity of online casinos skyrocketed. With the advent of smartphones, games could be accessed on the go, revolutionising the industry. The payment methods and software also evolved in tandem, with exciting innovations like live dealer games becoming available with the rise of 4G connectivity.

The Birth of Crypto Casinos

As the online casino sector flourished, cryptocurrencies started gaining traction. Naturally, it wasn’t long before these two worlds intersected. The burgeoning popularity of cryptocurrencies sparked the idea of using these digital assets as payment options in online casinos.

While it’s hard to pinpoint when exactly the crypto casino trend started, it’s undeniable that these casinos are now readily accessible to the public. Taking a tour through the Bitcoin history museum, we can see one name and one casino that stands out as perhaps the original pioneer. The first known Bitcoin casino was Satoshi Dice, founded by Erik Voorhees in 2012. It’s still live but in a tweaked form and it’s not clear if Erik still is responsible for it. Today, it’s not relevant for most players since you can only play

A Stroll Down BTC Casino Memory Lane

The evolution of the Bitcoin casino industry can be segmented into four distinct phases. Between 2009 2011, Bitcoin’s early years were marked by a lack of widespread acceptance and volatility, limiting its use in online casinos. Later in 2012-2014, the first online casinos started accepting Bitcoin. The cryptocurrency’s privacy, security, and transparency attracted players and new casinos alike.

Then between 2015 and 2017 we witnessed a surge in Bitcoin casinos, driven by Bitcoin’s low transaction fees, fast processing times, and anonymity. And from 2018 to today, despite regulatory scrutiny, the number of casinos accepting Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies has continued to rise, reflecting the ongoing adoption of digital currencies.

Satoshi Dice: A Trailblazer

Launched by Voorhees in 2012, SatoshiDice allowed users to wager their BTC on a roll of the dice. It was a pioneering venture, contributing to half of all Bitcoin transactions at its peak according to internet lore.

Voorhees explained its appeal, stating that SatoshiDice provided transparent odds and verifiable fairness. The simplicity of a dice roll game made it accessible to Bitcoin holders looking to have some fun with their crypto.

Today, SatoshiDice has evolved to accept only Bitcoin Cash since 2018, moving away from its original BTC principles. It’s a far cry from the modern crypto casino sites that offer a variety of tournaments, slots, and sports betting options.

Early Innovators in the Bitcoin Casino Space

Following the launch of the first Bitcoin casino, several others joined the bandwagon. Like an art gallery featuring the names and faces of these BTC gambling founding fathers, several stand out. Among these was bitZino, which offered a variety of Bitcoin-based casino games, including blackjack, slots, and roulette.

Another one of note was SealsWithClubs, which was known primarily as a Bitcoin poker site, although it did also offer casino-style games like video poker and blackjack. BitLotto was a Bitcoin-based lottery platform where users could buy tickets with Bitcoin for a chance to win the jackpot.

There have been debates about which platform was the first Bitcoin Casino. Some argue that bitZino holds this title, but some research suggests that SatoshiDice predates Bitzino.com by a few weeks.

Larry Tad, the owner and developer of bitZino, appeared on a popular BTC-centric forum in mid-June 2012 announcing the creation of an HTML 5 powered Bitcoin casino. However, archived records show that SatoshiDice was already active in May 2012, making it the first Bitcoin Casino.

The Evolution of Bitcoin Casinos

If we acknowledge the birth of BTC in the late 2000s and its eventual adoption by iGaming pioneers several years later, where do we look to next when exploring the history of Bitcoin casinos? Well if we look ahead several years from where we left off, in 2015 we see the emergence of Ethereum. Over the next few years, Bitcoin casinos begin to become crypto casinos more broadly as they expand their range of cryptocurrency deposit options.

Also, decentralised casinos emerge, built on the blockchain and free from centralised authority. By 2019 crypto and Bitcoin casinos have become more sophisticated, offering provably fair gaming and innovative features.The next few years see them growing in popularity, with regulatory developments and increased interest in crypto coins solidifying their place in the gambling industry.

Game Changers

It’s difficult to conceptualise a casino without games, impossible in fact. The evolution of Bitcoin casino games goes hand in hand with their historic passage through time. In the beginning, there was just a dice and you could bet. A classic dice game so to say.
Over time, Bitcoin casinos had slots that replicated real-world fruit machines, or were even more exciting. However, as things progressed and the crypto niche grew the games began to adapt too.

This gave rise to the prominence of crash games, including the iconic Aviator, BGaming’s exciting Space XY and the more recent Football X for football fans. In addition, people began to enjoy games such as Plinko, often created by in-house studios. These games allow players to have simple fun with their BTC in pure games of chance – often with higher return to player (RTP) compared to traditional slots. Without the development of these games, and the belief from the software developers in the crypto currency iGaming niche, we likely wouldn’t have seen the rise of Bitcoin and crypto gambling sites.

History of Bitcoin Casinos: Concluding Thoughts

The history of Bitcoin casinos is a testament to the resilience and adaptability of this industry. With thousands of crypto casinos generating billions in revenue, it’s clear that these types of iGaming sites are here to stay with new crypto casinos popping up all the time. The best site for the newest Bitcoin casinos seems to be Crypto Lists, featuring more than 70 new brands from 2023, with in-depth reviews, continuous updates and accurate launch dates. Most of the other competing review sites only showcase more dated brands that are not really from 2022 or 2023, and they are significantly slower and not as frequent to update their new crypto casino reviews.

As crypto casinos offer players the latest features and technological innovations, traditional sites will need to adapt to coexist with their digital counterparts. And as the old adage goes: if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em.

There are hundreds if not thousands of slot machines famous for their themes, visuals, and overall user experience. In the modern age slot machine en ligne may often be a go-to, but even going back many decades there have always been countless variations on the theme for slot lovers. A combination of both nostalgia and modern developments mean that as a form of entertainment slots never go out of fashion.

Let’s take a tour of slots past and present:

Liberty Bell

Charles Fey designed the Liberty Bell machine in 1895. The designer was based in San Francisco; and used symbols such as horseshoes, stars, spades, diamonds, hearts, and Liberty Bells. Here the aim was to align three bells, in order to win 50 cents. It’s fascinating that to this day his idea or both symbols and aligning them is core to slot machines all around the world, both online and off.

Lion’s Share

Moving to the modern day, this slot machine gained a lot of popularity in 2014 and is still a favourite of many. It was even in the news due to the fact that the progressive jackpot built over a period of two whole decades. A US couple eventually won the slot machine’s $2.4m jackpot , in what was called the most highly anticipated jackpot in Las Vegas.

The machines was basic compared to many, with three reels and only one pay line. As the game developed an almost legendary status, queues would develop of those wanting to have a few spins.

Megabucks

This is an IGT creation known for its massive jackpots. One of the wins was for $39.7 million at Las Vegas, won by an engineer in 2003.

On another occasion a cocktail waitress names Cynthia Jay Brennan got lucky enough to grab a whopping $34.9 million on Megsbucks at Vegas’ Desert Inn. Several other people has also won millions, and the game is still popular today.

Wheel of Fortune

Wheel of Fortune is another slots game by IGT that has worldwide popularity. The game comes in a number of variations, and has significant popularity both in physical casinos and online too. For instance, slots games like this are very popular at best online casino australia sites.

In the 5-reel Wheel of Fortune slot version (there is also a three reel game), you win with the help of symbols. If you get a Super Wild symbol, your winnings multiply up to 5 times. However, arguably no variations match up the intensity of the original Wheel of Fortune slot.

Mega Fortune

The Mega Fortune slot features symbols like luxury cars, yachts, and expensive jewelry, and hence the game certainly justifies its ‘luxury’ tag. The five reels result in 25 pay lines and three different progressive jackpots: Mega Jackpot, Major Jackpot, and Rapid Jackpot. Huge jackpots are achievement, as a Finnish man found out when he won a huge jackpot of €17.8 million.

Being that I live in the UK, I’m positioned at the very opposite of the earth as Australia. That however doesn’t stop the country being immensely popular with visitors, backpackers and workers from the UK looking to experience the laid back and sunny nature of Australia (and who can forget the immense popularity of Australian soap opera like Neighbours and Home and Away in the UK – testament to our affinity for the country).

There’s certainly a general feeling that Australians know how to have a good time. Maybe that’s partly a stereotype, but at the same time it’s hard to deny that the sun, sea, sand and pursuits such as surfing and various over other sports and outdoor hobbies contribute to a more activity driven and party lifestyle. This can even be true of a love of casinos and the like too, and you get the feel of this via online casino australia sites, without even having to set foot in a bricks and mortar establishment. All of the same top casino games we know and love are available, slots, blackjack, poker, roulette and more.

And let’s not forget Australia’s beautiful neighbour New Zealand. For nature lovers and those looking to remove themselves fron the hustle and bustle of life it’s second to none as a place to visit. Unfortunately due to the ways of the world (attempts to keep the dreaded Coronavirus at bay) visiting this unmissable location is off the cards for now, though via the Internet it’s still possible to experience the more entertainment based aspects of the country with the best payout online casinos nz. Much like the Australian equivalent, faithful recreations of favourite casino games are all just a click away. With any luck it won’t be much longer before the country once again opens up to the rest of the world and life can return to a bit of normality.

So even though the world is in a tricky spot, don’t rule out these beautiful nations, whether for a future visit, or online exploration and casino play.

When one thinks of a casino high roller, the first thing that comes to mind is usually professional poker players or business moguls who have spent incredulous amounts in these establishments. Unsurprisingly, this isn’t far from the truth. To be a high roller in a casino, you must spend a lot of money there, but it doesn’t mean that you have to make big wins to do so. Some people have notoriously lost millions of dollars at casinos, yet they still get all the perks of being a high roller.

Casinos love the patrons that bring them a lot of money, and in turn, they try their best to make their experience as nice as possible. Of course, this means that, yes, high rollers do have quite a few perks at the establishments they frequent, and here are some of the best.

Amazing Cashback Offers

Most casinos offer cashback to their big spenders. The bonuses vary from casino to casino but are usually similar in a lot of them. The cashback usually starts at 10%, but in some casinos, the high rollers might get up to 25% if they are amongst the top players. Cashback offers can apply to plenty of games, but popular picks like Roulette are the most common! You can play now at a top-tier online casino and see if what they have on deck suits your unique play style!

VIP Gambling Rooms

Casinos can get very crowded, and sometimes all you want to do is play a relaxing game of poker without having to deal with all distractions that come from your surroundings. This is why high rollers in many places out there have the option to play at VIP rooms where they can avoid the crowds and their general nonsense. If you’re tired of dealing with drunks that can get loud and annoying or tourists screaming in excitement over their first casino visit then it’s time to consider becoming a high roller.

Invitations to the Best Events

This perk is possibly the most coveted one amongst high rollers. A lot of high rollers get invitations to the best parties and events in their area, and worldwide! From red carpet events to extraordinary plays, these can be anything! High rollers have many opportunities to hang out with big celebrity names and visit exclusive events that we mere mortals can only dream of.

The Staff Pays You Special Attention

This seems like an obvious one, but it’s one of the best on the list. High rollers are always best tended and receive special attention from the casino staff. Casinos try their best to keep their biggest spenders entertained and satisfied. Because of this, special events like birthdays or bachelor parties for these patrons get extra special personalized surprises.

First Class Transportation

Other than receiving designated free parking, plenty of high rollers get treated to other modes of transportation from their favorite casinos at their expense. This could be providing a limousine, having a blast at one of the casino’s party busses, or in some cases, they have even been known to fly out their most valued customers in private jets.