A casino, also known as a gaming house or gambling hall, is an establishment for certain types of gambling. In addition to traditional table games like blackjack, craps, and roulette, casinos offer electronic versions of these games as well as other games such as video poker, baccarat, and bingo. Some casinos also have restaurants and bars. In some states, casinos are located on reservations and operated by Native American tribes.
Some casinos attract high rollers who gamble for large amounts of money. These players are often given special treatment, such as being escorted to the game floor by a personal host or receiving free room and food comps. To encourage such play, casinos display prominently displayed promotional materials such as banners and wall posters that announce current or upcoming promotions. Many casinos also have newsletters that inform customers of these offers.
Statistically, most casino games have a house edge that gives the casino an advantage over the player. This advantage can be calculated by examining the odds of a game, or the expected value of the wager (as described by the mathematical concept of variance). In games where skill is involved, such as blackjack, the house edge is more complex and is determined by the rules of the game and the number of cards dealt. Mathematicians and computer programmers who study these odds are called gaming mathematicians or analysts.
Gambling has been a part of human culture for millennia, with evidence of dice games dating back to 2300 BC and the first written records of card games in 800 AD. In 2008, 24% of American adults reported visiting a casino, a figure that has been rising steadily since 1989.
