The explosion in popularity of the digital industry has gradually led to online betting becoming the favoured approach for gamers around the world. According to the latest studies, online gambling been on a consistent rise over the past decade to the point where it is a multi-billion dollar industry.
One of the biggest advantages to online gaming and perhaps the biggest reason for its rapid rise over the past decade is just how accessible it is. Players can take gaming with them wherever they go, have seen their choice of house grow exponentially, and now have a plethora of new opportunities and wagers that they can place thanks to the instantaneous nature of the digital world.
Here’s a run through of just some of the new forms of bets and wagers players can now make when playing online.
Virtual Betting
One of the best features of wagering online is the added sense of community you can build up through things such chat windows. The reach a casino now has stretches right across the world, and the development of livestreams of classic tabletop games such as Roulette, Blackjack etc. has evolved in the gaming sphere to better utilise the conversations and interactions that players have online.
What’s more, the emergence of livestreaming on online streaming platforms such as Twtich.tv has led to an altogether new form of wagering. Houses and operators can now rerun old livestreams, have them constantly rolling either exclusively on their own page or simply as a filler for when these games aren’t live so that the action is constantly rolling 24/7.
Sites such as Unikrn have really managed to help innovate this unique form of wagering with their expertise, giving their users a chance to predict the outcome of a round or play and then rolling on any one of the thousands of vods they have stored from Twitch.tv streams over the past few years.
AutoPlay Bets
Video slots are undoubtedly amongst the most popular ways of gaming online, and have continued to ride the wave front and centre as the scene has continued its rapid rise over the past decade or so. Online slots house a multitude of diverse and passionate communities, all with their own tastes and preferences, and the range in themes, aesthetics, gameplay and promotions is a testament to both this strand of gambling’s popularity, as well as its immense ability to change and sprout off in different directions.
Video slots are a lot flashier and represent a much adrenaline-pumping faster experience than traditional slot machines a user might find in a real world casino. Maybe fuelled by this, more and more video slot machines have begun to implement an ‘autoplay’ feature as a means of placing bets. Simply set the wager level and the amount you’re willing to bet, hit the autoplay button and the slot will continue spinning away until you say stop.
This new form of wagering allows users to sit back, maybe take on multiple games at a time and ensure that their fast flowing experiences remain as uninterrupted as possible.
Esports Betting
Playing video games professionally, known in the industry as ‘Esports’, has also become an multi-billion dollar industry in its own right with the blossoming of online streaming, advancements in gaming technology, the global situation over the past year and the influx of heavy hitting partnerships with companies and bodies right across the board.
Betting on video games, be it traditionally through markets or virtually through old streams hosted on site, has become a popular activity with Esports fanatics and a decent way of lining their pockets to boot. These wagers bring with them some new variants of wagers depending on the title. Esports fans can check out the latest CS:GO, Fortnite or LoL odds and, whereas something like football might only have a couple of outright markets on the scoreline or results, they will have the choice on betting on everything from the result, the amount of rounds played, the maps picked, the top point scorer etc.
The popularity of Esports has also coincided with the rise of informal moneymatches between players where they might bet against eachother for in-game currency, real world cash or certain items in the game. Microtransactions and customisable features in video games has also led to gambling on skins, heroes, and other customisable features to become more and more prevalent on online betting sites.
