Evolution Gaming Casinos

It was way back in 2006 when Evolution Gaming was founded and instantly revolutionised the online casino industry. Extensive knowledge and creativity sparked a series of live casino games for the European iGaming market and just a year later, agreements were signed with key operators including Gala Coral, PartyGaming, William Hill, Blue Square, Gaming VC, Expekt and VC Bet.

Many believe them to be one of the best in the live casino field, but they’re the best with a plethora of games to suit both the low stakes conservative players to the high rollers with cash to splash. There are many software developers looking to make thrilling and engaging games – many do, but none have the same abilities as Evolution Gaming. While many have made a name for delivering a series of casino games (slots etc), Evolution think outside the box and create games that are neither a remake of another nor do they produce games that are boring. Each game produced by this multiple award-winning developer, delivers a real-life casino experience only from the comfort of your own home.

What They Do

Gameshows are usually something you’d only find on TV with contestants trying their luck for a shot at life-changing prizes, but thanks to Evolution Gaming, each and every player gets the chance to become a participant. Why wait for your name to be called down to the studio when you can sit back and wait to know your chance will (eventually) come?

Entertainment is put at the very core of Evolution Gaming’s live casino game shows and they’ve been extremely successful with Crazy Time, Monopoly Live, Lightning Roulette, Mega Ball, Dream Catcher, Deal or No Deal, Lightning Dice and Football Studio.

Crazy Time

Crazy Time is a colourful wheel loaded with bonus games and multipliers and was styled on their extremely successful Dream Catcher money wheel concept. Fun and excitement reach new heights with this one with guaranteed multipliers in each round. Bets can be placed on multipliers of any of the four bonus rounds – or all if you like, as you attempt to hit a top win of up to 25,000x your stake!

A spin of the main wheel initiates a spin of the 1×2 slot machine to the top of the wheel, which in turn will either reveal a multiplier for one random bet spot or a bonus game. These can boost single spot bets or bets within the stated bonus game (if awarded).

Bonus games are interactive and produce different results for each player:

Cash Hunt Bonus: A shooting gallery made up of 108 random multipliers. Shoot the iconic funfair symbol once the countdown timer begins and a cannon will take aim and fire at your chosen symbol to produce a win.
Coin Flip Bonus: A 50/50 toss for multipliers on both the red and the blue side of the coin.
Pachinko Bonus Game: This big wall of pegs will provide a short-sharp burst of fun as the live dealer inserts a puck into the top of the wall. Land on a double value to double the multipliers to the lower of the wall and get a re-drop of the puck. Multipliers can reach 1,000x in this bonus game.
Crazy Time Bonus Game: A gigantic money wheel with multipliers of up to 20,000x make up this bonus feature and prior to the wheel spinning, each player selects a flapper. The host initiates gameplay by pressing the red button and when the wheel comes to a stop, the player wins the multiplier for their chosen flapper. Flappers pointing to double or triple options on the wheel will boost the multiplier values and grant another spin of the wheel.

Monopoly Live

Monopoly Live is a virtual game based on the iconic board game, only a mega wheel is used to provide more thrills and cash spills. Like Crazy Time, players must place bets one where they think the wheel will come to a stop; will it be a multiplier, a chance opportunity or 2/4 rolls on the board game? Landing on 2 or 4 rolls with an active bet will grant you two or four rolls on the board.

Mr Monopoly drops his newspaper in the studio and takes you into a virtual world where Mayfair and Go to Jail are very much on the cards. Multipliers are added to the properties prior to rolls commencing; the better the property, the higher the multiplier!

Rolls launch Mr Monopoly into action and rolling a double will grant and additional roll. Monopoly Live was awarded EGR’s Game of the Year 2019 and Gaming Intelligence’s Game of the Year 2020.

Lightning Roulette

Lightning Roulette is not just European roulette, it’s electrifying! Al the usual betting options are there; straight up bets, corner bets, odds/evens, red/black and so on, but the pay-outs are very different to what is classed as ‘standard’. Placing a bet on a straight-up number will only produce a return of 15:1, which is far less than half of what you usually get, however, with standard European roulette, you don’t get multipliers of up to 500x in each round!

Playing is simple; you place your bets where you think the ball will come to rest on the wheel. As the wheel spins, the live host will pull on the leaver and a strike of lightning hits the studio. As many as 5 numbers are randomly chosen and a multiplier of between 50x and 500x is applied to those numbers. If you have an active bet covering any or all of these numbers and the ball happens to land in the pocket of any of these corresponding numbers, you win the stated multiplier!

Lightning Roulette was awarded Product Innovation of the Year at the Global Gaming Awards and G2E Las Vegas and EGR’s Game of the Year 2018.

Mega Ball

Mega Ball is a giant lottery game with a bingo twist. A custom-built ball drawing machine houses 51 multi-coloured balls. Players simply purchase bingo-style tickets before the countdown timer reaches zero and sit back to see if they have matching lines. Prizes are awarded based on the number of lines produced on tickets. The Mega Ball is drawn last with a multiplier as initiated by the host; if you complete a win with this Mega Ball, your winnings are multiplied by the stated amount!

Dream Catcher

Dream Catcher was the first title in the gameshow series where 1x, 2x, 5x, 10x, 20x and 40x can be won instantly after each spin. Place your bets on where you think the wheel will come to a stop to win! If the wheel stops on a 2x or a 7x, the wheel is spun again and if you’re placing a bet on the winning outcome, your winnings are multiplied accordingly.

Deal or No Deal Live

Deal or No Deal Live is played with briefcases opposed to twenty-two identically sealed red boxes. The first stage in the game is to spin a 3-reel vault in an RNG-based qualifying round. Each spin will set the money in the biggest prize briefcase by as much as 500x. If you qualify, you’re into the main gameshow round where cash values are eliminated in each round. When you reach the end, the phone rings and the live host answers. A mystery figure has put an offer to you and your job is to predict whether the money in the briefcase will be higher than the offer. You’ll be asked “Deal or No Deal”. If you think the offer is higher than what’s in the briefcase – you deal, but if you think you could win more – no deal!

Classic Casino Games by Evolution Gaming

Multiple game variants ensure players have a great time but not just with gameshows. Each game offers a customisable screen with camera angles that can be controlled from home. A chat community allows you to engage with the host and other players at the table, all without having to leave your own home. Statistics will be readily available to help make better betting choices. Game history also aims to be an effective tool when looking to place winning bets. Streaming is done via flawless HD quality and gives that one-on-one style environment which is only typically found in a land-based casino.

Other games offered by Evolution include:

Live European Roulette
Immersive Roulette
French Roulette
American Roulette
Speed Roulette
Auto Roulette
Instant Roulette
Double Ball Roulette
Dual Play Roulette
VIP Roulette
Salon Prive Roulette
Mini Live Roulette
Native Speaking Roulette
Dedicated Roulette
Ruleta en Vivo

More Table Games:

Craps
Live Blackjack
Speed Blackjack
Infinite Blackjack
Free Bet Blackjack
Power Blackjack
Salon Prive Blackjack
VIP Blackjack
Blackjack Party
Dedicated Blackjack
Lightning Baccarat
Salon Prive Baccarat
Multi-Camera Baccarat
Live Baccarat Squeeze
Live Baccarat Control Squeeze
Speed Baccarat
Lightning Baccarat
No Commission Baccarat
Dual Play Baccarat
Baccarat Multiplay
Super Sic-Bo
Dragon Tiger
Casino Hold’em
Jumbo 7 Jackpot Side Bet Casino Hold’em
2 Hand Casino Hold’em
Side Bet City
Ultimate Texas Hold’em
Three Card Poker
Caribbean Stud Poker
Progressive Jackpot Caribbean Stud Poker
Texas Hold’em Bonus Poker
First Five Jackpot Side Bet Texas Hold’em Bonus Poker

First Person Games

First-person games were labelled a world-first for Evolution; a casino vertical combining the best of RNG and live casino gaming. The gaming environment is designed to recreate that real casino floor, only there’s no host and no chat community. First Person games are designed in a way as to allow you to control the speed in which you play; no more placing risking and irrational bets just to beat the countdown timer. Visuals are stunning and the gaming atmosphere can only be described as immersive, however, it’s not as real as live casino games.

Superior as they may be, the camera angles are set; zoom out upon entering the game, zoom in when placing bets, move to produce gaming outcome and zoom out again. All the usual statistics are on display; the history of the game, hot and cold numbers (roulette) and so on, but for more of an immersive experience, you can switch straight to live by pressing the ‘go live’ button on the screen.

First Person Games are as follows:

First Person Roulette
First Person Blackjack
First Person Lightning Roulette
First Person Dream Catcher
First Person Mega Ball
First Person Baccarat
First Person Dragon Tiger
First Person Football Studio
First Person Craps

Football Studio not only offers a casino game experience but live match commentary, chat and goal celebrations from top-flight football games. But how do you play? Simply bet on which if the two cards are dealt will be the higher card!

Evolution Gaming Timeline

In 2008, an agreement was signed with German online sports betting, poker and casino company Bet-at-Home. A year later in 2009, Riga production studio where the magic happens, was quadrupled in size to meet with soaring customer demand. Two new live casino tables launched; Red and Gold for VIP players and Evolution Gaming signed agreements with six more leading operators; 888, SportingBet, Ladbrokes, Unibet, Paddy Power and SkyBet.

Not only did they need to expand their Riga studio to 2,000+ square meters for more tables and more offering, but in 2010 they picked up their very first award – two actually; Software Rising Star of the Year and Live Casino Software Supplier of the Year at the EGR awards. In 2011, it was all about emerging into two new jurisdictions – Italy and Denmark and to ensure they were ready for the launch, Evolution Gaming made sure their live casino games were SKAT-compliant for Denmark’s re-regulated market. It’s all about the ‘firsts’ for Evolution Gaming and another came this same year when ADM (formally AAMS) approved the developer to become the first live casino dealer in Italy.

Mobile phones – we can’t live without them nowadays – they’re personal organisers, reminder services, a device to help keep in touch with friends and relatives, a payment service, an alarm clock and so much more! In 2012, mobile phones were very different to what we have nowadays and as basic as they were it was a surprise when Evolution Gaming released its first-ever mobile game! The concept was truly remarkable and changed the way we play online casino games for good! No longer were customers required to sit at their desks to enjoy what they had to offer, but they could take their favourite games out and about with them for more of a convenient way to play! It was a busy year for them in 2012 with the launch of Live Casino Hold’em, obtaining a class 4 license by the Malta Gaming Authority (MGA) and Lottomatica Vegas Club live casino TV started to air directly from the Riga studios.

In 2013, they became the first live casino operator to gain New Jersey Waiver approval and as such, made way for entry into the United States. Riga studios became the largest single-site casino operation in Europe, and they celebrated the launch of their 100^th live table. More awards came in 2014; Immersive Roulette was crowned EGR Game of the Year and they nabbed the EGR Live Casino Software Supplier of the Year award for the fifth year in a row. A partnership with SHFL saw the launch of live three card poker and a Malta-based studio opened.

Live Baccarat Squeeze emerged to become one of Evolution Gaming’s best played Baccarat games and the long-awaited and long-anticipated multi-camera Immersive Lite launched. Caribbean Stud Poker joined the ever-growing list of live casino games and Dual Play Roulette launched at the real Dragonara Casino in Malta (streamed live from the casino floor!), allowing players to experience the thrills of a real casino venue from the comfort of their own surroundings. Another building is acquired in Riga to cope with player demand. In Italy, Evolution Gaming’s new studio at Casino de Spa goes live to Belgium’s A-license holders. An award was handed to the software developer again this same year; Live Casino Supplier of the Year for the sixth year in a row and they listed themselves of the Nasdaq First North Premier on March 20^th.

It’s onwards and upwards for Evolution from this point when in 2016 – a decade after launching, their 7^th European studio launched in Bucharest, Romania, to become the first fully certified live casino in the country! Next, the UK had a taste of their success when The Ritz Club and The Hippodrome – two very successful land-based casino venues in London started to stream Dual Play Roulette live. For a 7^th year in a row, the EGR Live Casino Supplier of the Year award went to Evolution Gaming. Finally, this year, Aalst studio goes live to become their sixth, thanks to a partnership with Napoleon Games.

In 2017, not only were they named the fastest growing employer in Latvia, but usurpingly, they won Live Casino Operator of the Year at the EGR Awards for the 8^th successive year! Dream Catcher – a new super-sized lucky wheel crammed with multipliers is launched. Grosvenor’s Victoria Casino started to stream Dual Play Roulette live from the casino floor and the new Dream Catcher wins Digital Product of the Year at G2E in Las Vegas. Dual Play Roulette was installed at Genting’s Resort World in Birmingham ahead of live launch and a new live casino studio was announced – this time in Tbilisi in Georgia. Mega cash was pumped into Live Casino Hold’em to afford players a progressive jackpot chance when playing and a new progressive jackpot was also added to live Caribbean stud poker.

A number of awards were handed to Evolution Gaming in 2018, which we detail in the next section. This same year, Ezugi was acquired by Evolution and Infinite Blackjack (with unlimited seats) was launched. Atlantic City in New Jersey was the destination that became another first for the developer as they launched their first live casino studio in the USA. Progressive jackpots were added to live Texas Hold’em poker for more thrills and winning opportunities. ICE 2018; the annual gaming convention saw the unveiling of Lightning Roulette, which then went on to become an award-winner. The New Westminster area of British Columbia, Canada became home to the 8^th live casino studio and as a result, was the first major expansion outside of the EU!

Let’s take a look at the game launches for 2019; Deal or No Deal Live becomes the world’s first 24/7 game show; a game based on the popular UK television game show of the same name. Super Sic Bo launches as their new dice category and talking of dice; Lightning Dice joined the ever-growing portfolio of immersive casino games. Monopoly Live; again, the world’s first live casino game with augmented reality and a boardgame bonus round with rolls and virtual property purchases, Free Bet Blackjack joins the line-up of Infinite range of games and Dream Catcher and Lightning Roulette are re-created in first-person format (no live studio setting). Many an award was also won this year and the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board awarded Evolution Gaming a license.

By the Autumn of 2020, Evolution Gaming had made quite the impression, despite the world in which we were faced with! Let’s rewind to January 20202; while many of us were making New Year’s resolutions for the year ahead, mother-nature had other plans. Instead of champagne and celebrations, we were thrown into a global pandemic and the whole year altered businesses and lives around the world. As things began to open up again, more casino games and slots were being released. Evolution Gaming eyed this period as the perfect moment to announce a rebranding – no longer would they be known as Evolution Gaming but just Evolution and at the same time secured a gaming license for entry into the South African market.

A 9^th live casino studio was launched and a 2^nd in a studio in Pennsylvania, a live casino also launched in Lithuania and a series of games emerged too; Crazy Time; another gameshow wheel crammed with impressive features and pays, Power Blackjack, Mega Ball; their first lottery/bingo game, Lightning Baccarat, super-fast speed Blackjack and more first-person verticals: First Person Baccarat, First Person Dragon Tiger and Football Studio.