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Review of Odds On casino software

Last update: April 25, 2007

Double-up software bug statement: From April 13 to May 2, 2006 there was a software bug affecting double-up bets in video poker on casinos using Odds On software. For more information please see my statement on the matter.

Disclaimer: Let it be known that I have served as a consultant to Odds On. This review attempts to be unbiased and mostly sticks to the game rules, odds, and strategy. While I feel comfortable there is no conflict of interest I think it is appropriate to disclose the relationship.

Odds On has a good selection of games, with many games unique to Odds On. The odds vary from stingy to competitive depending on the game. In general the games of skill tend to offer good odds (although blackjack is an exception) and games of luck are more tight.

All Star Horse Racing

This unique game to Odds On lets the player bets on the winner or exacta (Odds On calls it a forecast) in a six horse race. Each bet pays a different amount. Each horse has lots of history and statistics to look at. Assuming each bet has the same house edge the expected return would be about 80% on win bets and 75% on exactas.

Baccarat

The usual rules are followed. Eight decks are used. The following table shows the house edge according to the bet made.

Probabilities in 8-deck Baccarat
Bet Combinations Probability House
Edge
Bank 2,292,252,566,437,888 45.86% 1.06%
Player 2,230,518,282,592,256 44.62% 1.24%
Tie 475,627,426,473,216 9.52% 14.36%

Bingo Bucks

This is a unique game to Odds On in which balls are randomly drawn, with replacement, on a 5 by 5 matrix. According to Odds On the return is 93.7%.

Blackjack

The rules are as follows:

  • Four decks
  • Dealer stands on soft 17
  • Double on 9 to 11 only
  • No doubling after splitting
  • No resplitting
  • Player may not draw to split aces
  • No surrender
  • Full no peek (player loses total amount bet against dealer blackjack)
  • Insurance not resolved until end of hand
  • Betting limits: $2-$200

Following is the correct basic strategy for these rules.

The house edge under these rules is 0.73%, the highest I have seen on the Internet.

There is also a game called "progressive blackjack" which features a $1 side bet. The following table shows the pay table based on the $13,559 meter on September 27, 2002.

Hand Permutations Probability Pays Return
4 red/black aces33600.000002135590.025056
4 aces403200.0000221355.90.030067
3 suited aces184320.0000125000.025343
3 non-suited aces6266880.0003452500.086166
2 suited aces18892800.001039500.051953
2 non-suited aces75571200.004156250.103906
1 ace1297305600.07134900
no aces16783891200.92307700
Total1818254880100.322492

The lower right cell shows a return of 32.25%, or a house edge of 67.75%! For the meter to have no house edge it would need to reach $180209.81.

Craps

OddsON craps players may not bet more than their original wager either buying or laying the odds. The combined house edge on the pass side is 0.85% and on the don't pass side is 0.82%. Total winnings always get rounded down to the next dollar so be sure to bet in correct increments.

There are win bets, which work and pay the same way as place bets. To bet against a place number the player can make a "lose bet." These pay 2-5 on the 4 and 10, 4-7 on the 5 and 9, and 4-5 on the 6 and 8. The house on these bets is 6.67%, 5.71%, and 1.82% respectively.

The proposition bets pay the same bad odds as conventional craps.

Dazling Dice

This is a unique game to Odds On that pays based on the roll of 25 poker dice in a 5 by 5 matrix. The odds on each hand are the same. The following table shows the expected return is 93.36%.

Poker Dice
Hand Combinations Probability Pays Return
Five of a kind 6 0.000772 100 for 1 0.07716
High straight 120 0.015432 10 for 1 0.154321
Low straight 120 0.015432 8 for 1 0.123457
Four of a kind 150 0.01929 6 for 1 0.115741
Full house 300 0.03858 4 for 1 0.154321
Three of a kind 1200 0.154321 2 for 1 0.308642
Two pair 1800 0.231481 0 for 1 0
Pair 3600 0.462963 0 for 1 0
Nothing 480 0.061728 0 for 1 0
Total 7776 1 for 1 0.933642

Go for It

This is another unique game to Odds On in which the player bets on one of four horses in a horse race. Following is how much the player wins based on the position of the chosen horse.

  • First: 2 for 1
  • Second: 1 for 1
  • Third: 1 for 2
  • Fourth: 0

Assuming a 25% chance of each position, and I don't know this to be an accurate assumption, the return would be 87.5%.

Hi Low

This is a unique game to Odds On in which the player draws a card from a 52-card deck and then bets on what a face down card will be. Player may bet on higher, lower, black, red, club, spade, heart, or diamond. The return ranges from 92.3% to 96.0%, depending on the bet and the first card.

Island Progressive Stud Poker

This is the same game as Caribbean Stud Poker. The only difference is that in this game there is a modified pay table as follows.

HandPays
Royal flush 1000-1
Straight flush200-1
Four of a kind100-1
Full house15-1
Flush10-1
Straight4-1
Three of a kind3-1
Two pair1-1
Pair1-1
Ace/king1-1

The betting limits on the ante are $1-$200.

The strategy is still the same as for the conventional pay table game. The house edge under these rules is 5.03%. This is better than the 5.22% house edge for the conventional pay table.

In addition there is a progressive side bet. The side bet is always $1 and pays as follows.

HandPays
Royal flush 100% of meter
Straight flush10% of meter
Four of a kind$500
Full house$100
Flush$50

The house edge on the side bet is 63.76% less 2.92% for each $10,000 in the meter. On October 9, 2001, the meter at both the English Harbour and Silver Dollar casinos was at $62,216. For the side bet to have no house edge the meter would need to reach $218,047.37

Keno

OddsON uses the same paytable as Microgaming, which offers very competitive returns. Following is the expected return according to the number of picks. The best bet is the pick 13.

Picks Return
175.00%
292.09%
393.04%
493.79%
593.87%
693.79%
796.35%
892.90%
992.86%
1094.54%
1193.10%
1294.22%
1396.54%
1495.42%
1595.19%

Let Them Ride

This is the same thing as Let it Ride. In this version the player starts with one bet and has two opportunities to add to it, as opposed to taking bets away in the land casinos. However the math is the same. The normal pay table is used, with a house edge of 3.51%. The side bet follows a 30000/3000/400/200/50/25/5 pay table for a house edge of 9.40%.

Mulligan Poker

This poker variation was developed by myself and is played only at Odds On casinos. For all the information please visit my section on Mulligan Poker.

Poker Dice

This is a unique game to Odds On that pays based on a single throw of five poker dice. The table below shows an expected return of 91.82%.

Poker Dice
Hand Combinations Probability Pays Return
Five of a kind 6 0.000772 20 for 1 0.015432
High straight 120 0.015432 6 for 1 0.092593
Low straight 120 0.015432 5 for 1 0.07716
Four of a kind 150 0.01929 4 for 1 0.07716
Full house 300 0.03858 3 for 1 0.115741
Three of a kind 1200 0.154321 2 for 1 0.308642
Two pair 1800 0.231481 1 for 1 0.231481
Pair 3600 0.462963 0 for 1 0
Nothing 480 0.061728 0 for 1 0
Total 7776 1 0.91821

Poker Slots

This is a unique game to Odds On in which 25 cards are chosen with replacement into a 5 by 5 matrix. The player is paid according to the poker value of each row, column, and diagonal. The following table shows the odds for any given line. The bottom right cell shows a return of 93.42%.

Poker Dice
Hand Combinations Probability Pays Return
Royal flush 480 0.000001 1000 for 1 0.001262
Straight flush 4320 0.000011 250 for 1 0.002841
Five of a kind 13312 0.000035 100 for 1 0.003501
Four of a kind 798720 0.002101 45 for 1 0.094535
Straight 1224000 0.003219 20 for 1 0.064386
Flush 1477200 0.003885 15 for 1 0.058279
Full house 1591200 0.004185 10 for 1 0.041851
Three of a kind 17503200 0.046036 7 for 1 0.322254
Two pair 26254800 0.069055 5 for 1 0.345273
Pair 175032000 0.460363 0 for 1 0
Nothing 156304800 0.411108 0 for 1 0
Total 380204032 0 for 1 0.934183

Red Dog

A single deck is used for a house edge of 3.16% using basic staregy. For more information on Red Dog please visit my Red Dog section.

Roulette

A single zero wheel is used. The house edge is 2.70%.

Slots

There are 40 slot games to choose from. The player may choose from coinages of $0.50, $1.00, $5.00, and $10.00. I have no public information about the theoretical or actual return.

Tri Card Poker

This is obviously the same thing as Three Card Poker. Both the Pair+ and the Ante bonus follow the "full pay" rules. This results in a house edge of 2.32% on the Pair+ and 3.37% on the Ante.

Video Poker

OddsOn offers the many of the same video poker games and paytables as Microgaming. All games are available in 1-play and 4-play versions, plus deuces wild is available in 10, 50, and 100-play. The player may choose from coinages of $0.50, $1.00, $5.00, and $10.00. Four out of six games have a return of at least 99%, however none are over 100%. The following tables shows the return of all six gams available assuming optimal strategy.

OddsON Video Poker - Expected Returns
Game Return
Jacks or better0.995440
Aces and faces0.992556
Tens or better0.991388
Deuces and joker wild0.990677
Joker poker0.985987
Deuces wild0.967650

The following tables display the pertinent statistics for OddsON's video poker games.

Jacks or Better - OddsON
Hand Payoff Number Probability Return
Royal flush8004935122640.0000250.019807
Straight flush5021788832960.0001090.005465
4 of a kind25470931677640.0023630.059064
Full house92294754825960.0115120.103610
Flush62195547861600.0110150.066087
Straight42238375657840.0112290.044917
3 of a kind314840030703240.0744490.223346
Two pair225769461641480.1292790.258558
Jacks or better142773728909680.2145850.214585
Nothing0108722749938960.5454350.000000
Total199332305172001.0000000.995439

Deuces Wild - OddsON
Hand Payoff Number Probability Return
Natural royal flush8004520099400.0000230.018141
4 deuces20035705218560.0001790.035825
Wild royal flush25366243752160.0018370.045934
5 of a kind16623982180240.0031300.050086
Straight flush131146544028040.0057520.074775
4 of a kind412420758064840.0623120.249247
Full house34181372659080.0209770.062931
Flush23522587622720.0176720.035344
Straight211540331701760.0578950.115790
3 of a kind155727180746080.2795690.279569
Nothing0109763079099120.5506540.000000
Total 199332305172001.0000000.967641

Joker Wild - OddsON
Hand Payoff Probability Return
Natural Royal Flush10000.0000260.026063
5 of a kind2000.0000930.018572
Wild Royal Flush1000.0001070.010733
Straight Flush500.0005940.029694
4 of a Kind170.0084970.144445
Full House70.0156040.109228
Flush50.0159750.079873
Straight30.0168770.050630
3 of a Kind20.1331240.266249
2 Pair10.1104830.110483
Kings or Better10.1400170.140017
Nothing00.5586040.000000
Total Return1.0000000.985987

Deuces & Joker Wild - OddsON
Hand Pays Probability Return
Five Wilds20000.0000080.015458
Natural Royal Flush8000.000020.015832
Four Deuces250.0001490.003728
Natural Royal Flush120.0028010.033607
Five of a Kind90.0055080.049568
Straight 60.007430.044578
Four of a Kind30.0813370.24401
Flush/Full House30.0556350.166904
Straight 20.0661090.132218
Three of a Kind10.2847730.284773
Nothing00.4962320
Total 10.990677

Aces & Faces - OddsON
Hand Pays Probability Return
Royal Flush8000.0000250.019876
Straight Flush500.0001060.0053
Four aces800.0001960.015668
Four Jack-King400.0005870.023479
Four 2-10250.001580.039507
Full House80.0115150.09212
Flush50.010860.054301
Straight 40.0112120.044847
Three of a Kind30.0744740.223422
Two Pair20.1293180.258637
Jacks or Better10.2153990.215399
Nothing00.5447280
Total 10.992555

Tens or Better - OddsON
Hand Payoff Probability Return
Royal flush8000.0000260.020546
Straight flush500.0001030.005141
Four of a Kind250.0023580.058958
Full house60.0114970.068984
Flush50.0106540.053270
Straight40.0123570.049429
Three of a Kind30.0742650.222795
Two Pair20.1290070.258013
Tens or Better10.2542510.254251
Nothing00.5054820.000000
Total1.0000000.991388

War

One deck is used and the player wins his original bet only on a tie after a tie. The house edge is 2.42% when going to war on ties.

For more information about War please visit my Casino War section.


See my casino index for a list of sites that use OddsON software. The URL for OddsON is www.oddson.com.

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