There was once a time, not that many years ago, when the only option for playing casino games was a visit to a land-based casino. You would have to drive there, park your vehicle, and walk around the casino floor to find your favourite game. Then, in 1994, the digital age gave birth to the first online casinos and a virtual star was born. Players were able to remain in the comforts of home, log onto their favourite online casino and play games to their heart’s content. However, this isn’t where the story ends as a few years ago a new kid emerged on the block: the live dealer casino, which brought the social interaction of land-based casinos back to online casinos. So has the industry gone full circle? Are we looking at a strictly live dealer future? Is it even plausible?
The Benefits of Live Dealer Casino Games
Before we discuss the possibilities of a strictly live casino online environment, let’s take a look at the pros and cons of live dealer games.
The Advantages of Live Dealer Casino Games:
- A far more immersive experience as opposed to Random Number Generator (RNG) software games.
- Closer to the real-life casino experience.
- Makes online casino gaming more social as players are able to chat to the dealer.
- Waylays all fears about unfair casino software as you can watch the dealing action happen live.
- Live dealer games generally accept higher stakes, so are preferable to high-roller players in New Zealand.
The Disadvantages of Live Dealer Casino Games:
While live dealer games may be the only option for the future, there are still some disadvantages which would hopefully be improved upon if it was the only way to play.
- The games are live and cannot be paused, which isn’t really appropriate when you’re trying to play a quick game in between doing other tasks.
- Live dealer games are slower than RNG games as the dealer has to really deal the cards, place the bets, spin the roulette wheel etc. all in real time.
- Live dealer games may not always be available as there are only a certain number of tables and dealers available to go around.
- The variety of games may be less than what players in New Zealand are used to with RNG games.
- Live dealer games are more costly to run and operate, so it is almost impossible to find a low-stakes live dealer casino game.
Is a Strictly Live Casino Plausible?
The question remains – is the possibility of a strictly live dealer casino plausible? While live dealer casino games offer a fun and exciting alternative to RNG software games, only offering live dealer games may create an environment of exclusion to some players. Live dealer casino games require a high-speed internet connection as the live video feed has to be able to stream without interruption if the game is to be enjoyed properly. If a player doesn’t have access to a high speed internet connection, live dealer casino games would be virtually impossible and everyone would revert to the favourite selection of online pokies games.
Secondly, not all online casino games would make sense as live dealer games, for example pokies and video poker. Would the player watch as someone pulls the level or pushes the button on the machine via a live video feed? While the future of online casino gaming most likely includes more live dealer games for players in New Zealand to choose from than are currently available, it’s highly unlikely that the future is strictly live dealer.