Casino games and what an hour of them costs
Whether a game is good is an opinion; the house edge is arithmetic on a published rule. The table below prints the rule, the percentage that follows from it, and the cost per hour in AZN — with the pace assumption written out.
Where the percentage comes from
The price of a casino game sits inside its own rule. A European wheel has 37 pockets and pays as though it had 36: the difference is 1÷37 = 2.70%. The American wheel adds a second zero, 2÷38 = 5.26% — the same game at twice the price. French roulette’s «la partage» returns half of a losing even-money stake and halves the figure to 1.35%.
Baccarat does the same trick with commission: banker 1.06%, player 1.24%, tie 14.36% — three numbers on one table, separated only by a rule. In Sic Bo «any triple» occurs in 6 of 216 outcomes and pays 30:1, which works out at 11.11%. For a slot the figure is the provider’s declared RTP: 96% RTP means a 4.00% edge.
| Game | The rule it comes from | Edge | Rounds/hour (assumed) | Cost per hour, 1 AZN stake |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blackjack — common rule set | the rule set moves the result, so a range is printed | 0,4–0,8 % | 60 | 0,24–0,48 AZN |
| Baccarat — banker | 5% commission on a winning banker bet | 1,06 % | 70 | 0,74 AZN |
| Baccarat — player | no commission | 1,24 % | 70 | 0,87 AZN |
| French roulette — la partage | single zero; half the losing even-money stake is returned | 1,35 % | 40 | 0,54 AZN |
| European roulette | one zero, 37 pockets | 2,70 % | 40 | 1,08 AZN |
| Slot — declared RTP 96% | the provider-declared RTP; between 94% and 97% depending on the game | 4,00 % | 400 | 16,00 AZN |
| American roulette | two zeros, 38 pockets | 5,26 % | 40 | 2,10 AZN |
| Sic Bo — any triple | 6 of 216 outcomes, paying 30:1 | 11,11 % | 60 | 6,67 AZN |
| Baccarat — tie | paying 8:1 | 14,36 % | 70 | 10,05 AZN |
| Keno | the paytable differs from operator to operator | we do not publish it: — | we do not publish it: — | we do not publish it: — |
The hourly figure, and the assumption inside it
The last column turns a percentage into an hour: edge × stake × rounds per hour. The stake is 1 AZN and the pace is not a measurement — it is an assumption, printed in the fourth column. Four hundred slot rounds an hour looks high until you use autoplay; forty roulette rounds is close to a live table’s real rhythm. Substitute your own pace and the arithmetic still holds.
The table predicts no session. It shows the expected cost over a long run: a short series can land anywhere, and that variance is exactly what makes the game interesting. Over a long enough run, the rule does its work.
The keno row carries no figure because its paytable differs between operators and no single open number exists. In that case we print a dash — which means «we cannot check it», not «it is bad».
Why provider RTP is stamped XT
RTP is printed on the game’s info screen and confirmed in a testing laboratory’s report — a document held abroad. The number is public, but the verification is not done from Azerbaijan, so the slot row shows arithmetic while the source of its RTP is marked XT.
Questions
Where does the house edge come from?
From the rule itself. European roulette has one zero in 37 pockets: 1÷37 = 2.70%. The American wheel has two: 2÷38 = 5.26%. No measurement is needed.
How is the hourly cost calculated?
Edge × stake × rounds per hour. The stake is 1 AZN and the pace is an assumption printed in the table — replace it with your own if you know it.
Why is there no number for keno?
A keno paytable differs between operators, so no single open figure exists. In that case the table prints a dash: we do not publish it.