If you are right here, right now, then we would take a guess that you are someone that is interested in playing online bingo… and maybe a little bit curious about Keno. At many of the top online casinos at GoodLuckMate, you will find the option to play both – but what exactly is Keno? Is it the same as bingo? In what ways does it differ from bingo and which one is the best?
Here, we will look at the similarities and differences between the two and how the games are played.
The Origins
Firstly, Keno is, historically, one of the oldest gambling games out there, invented by Cheung Leung around 3,000 years ago during the rule of the Chinese Han Dynasty. Rumour has it that the game was originally developed in order to raise essential funds for a long-ongoing war without the need to start raising public taxes.
It wasn’t long before it gained popularity and was dubbed the ‘White Pigeon Game’ after the white birds that were used to fly the winning numbers across the country.
Meanwhile, we have bingo, which wasn’t created until the 16th century, in Italy. It was originally called ‘Lo Gioco del Lotto d’Italia’ and started out as the country’s state lottery – which still runs to this very day.
The Similarities Between the Games
There aren’t that many similarities between the games, to be honest. The main similarity being that both of them are played with numbers, use numbered cards or tickets, and players get rewarded if their numbers come up.
The Differences Between the Games
The biggest difference between bingo and keno is that bingo players cannot choose their own numbers. Although there may be some sites that do let you change your cards if you don’t like the ones you have, you can’t actually physically choose every number on the card. You also can’t control the amount that you bet, other than by changing the number of bingo cards you purchase or by playing in more expensive or cheaper bingo rooms.
Meanwhile, Keno players can pick as many as 20 numbers from the available selection, and then choose the type of bet they want to make. They also get to choose how much they bet.
The Aim of the Games
Keno, in its standard version, is similar to a lottery game – you gamble on the numbers that you choose. You can pick between 1 and 20 numbers. In each round, 20 numbers will be drawn. To hit the jackpot, you will need to match 15 numbers. If you match fewer than 15, you can still win smaller prizes depending on the site you play at.
With bingo, there are all different types of games. The most common one is the 90-ball game, but there are 80-ball games, 75-ball, 30-ball games and 5-line games. The aim of the game all depends on the game version you play. However, normally you will need to try and cover all the numbers on your card for a full house. You can also be rewarded for covering the four corners, diagonal lines, vertical lines or for completing a specific pattern. The main prize will be awarded to the player that manages to cover their entire card first.
How to Place Bets
When playing bingo, you don’t place a bet, you just buy a bingo card for a specified amount of money. The only way you can alter how much you ‘bet’ on the game is by buying more cards – which will tip the odds in your favour.
On the other hand, with Keno, you can change the size of your bet every time and control how much you play. You can also pick specific numbers that you can use for several games if you want. There are normally 2 types of keno bets – straight bets and way bets. With a straight bet, you pick your numbers and place the minimum bet on each race. With way bets, your numbers will be divided into sets. This means that you can win if all of your numbers come up and also if sets of your numbers are drawn.
Conclusion
So, now that you know what each of the two games is, looking at their similarities and differences, why not try them out? There are all different fun online bingo games for you to enjoy – paying out some seriously great prizes. Why not try Keno? Pick your favourite numbers and try your luck on them.
