How did Craps get started?

Craps started as a dice game called “Hazard”, which dates back to Bernard de Mandeville in New Orleans in 1813. Hazard is thought to be a descendant of Azzahr, meaning 'the die'-a game played by Arabs. The game evolved as it traveled from the Arab countries to France and then England. By the early 1700s, formal rules for Hazard had been established.

France adopted the English version of Hazard and is thought to have been brought to America by early French settlers. In the mid-1700s, when the English defeated the French in Canada, the French settlers relocated to Louisiana. The game of dice was played on river boats, clubs and wharfs and a simplified 'American' version of craps was developed.

The game moved West along with the frontier and is a popular game today that is played all over the United States and around the world. Although Craps is considered to be a difficult game to learn and understand, it is getting more popular.

In bank craps, which is the common game, played in casinos, the casino banks the game. The players play against the house and the casino covers all of the bets of all of the players. Poker and Black jack became more popular over the years and has since surpassed craps. However, craps is seeing a come back in popularity once again in online and land based casinos.

Whenever you hear shouting going on in a land based casino, it’ll sound like a party is going on, and that’s because you’re playing along with others. The idea of craps being a team effort is what appeals to many people, however for others; the essence of the game is to make money, and lots of it. At a craps table, it is possible to make quite a lot of money playing.

Craps looks like a difficult game to grasp however once you understand the concepts of craps and you get the hang of the game; it is quite easy to follow. When playing online, it’s quite different as you’re not playing in a group but rather just against the house. The rules are the same but the action may be different. To some, it’s more exciting as they are just focused on the money, and the skill in attaining the money.