When you play live dealer casino games at an online casino, you’re making use of several systems that operate simultaneously to deliver a high-quality experience in real time. Although it might seem as simple as opening an app on your smartphone and launching the game, it’s a more involved process on the backend.
Dissecting how live casinos work is a fascinating look at broadcast production, software manipulation, hardware installation and maintenance, and the complexities of internet technology. After all, the whole point of live dealer games is to replicate a physical casino experience virtually. Gambling regulations add another layer of complexity, too. That can be a big undertaking, but it all comes together to create one of the key benefits of online live dealer casino games: a real-time, immersive experience delivered right to the player’s screen.
Without getting too technical, every aspect of the process has to work well for the games to run smoothly. That begins with the player’s internet connection.
Streaming Requirements For Live Dealer Casino Play
While many people are familiar with the maximum download speeds of an internet connection, that’s just one part of the necessary web systems that not only broadcast games online but also allow players to take part in them live. There are many components to internet connections and streaming requirements that depend on the player as much as the studio.
Latency
If you’ve ever watched a live stream of a sporting event and gotten a text from a friend who’s at the game about an exciting moment before you saw it happen, you’ve experienced latency in this context. Put simply, it’s the time difference between when an action occurs offline and when people who are watching online see it occur.
Ideally, online casinos can shrink this effect as much as possible by having access to a high-speed connection, priority on an internet network, the right networking hardware, as well as programs with the right software running on high-spec computers, and taking the necessary steps to maintain those systems. However, latency relies on the player as much as the live studio and online casino.
If your internet connection is slow or unstable, your device is running on old software, or your hardware is out of date, you might experience more latency than you would in an ideal situation. Online casinos try to account for this by making sure that they’re doing everything they can to lighten the load on their end while still delivering a quality experience.
Quality
Access to the best connection speeds available won’t matter as much if the quality of the video itself is poor. This is why live casino studios invest in the best hardware, including lighting, cameras, and networking equipment, as well as the best software, such as the latest video production software, to ensure the best bitrates, frame rates, and resolutions.
Think of it like using the best and newest projector to watch a film that was shot in the 1930s and hasn’t been restored. The hardware is great but this won’t matter if the source material can’t take advantage of it.
There’s more technology behind these games that players never notice if the games are running smoothly.
Technology Behind Live Dealer Games
Hardware and software that make live dealer games pop on the screen and deliver amazing gambling experiences might seem simple but without them, none of the games could go on. It’s a symphony of systems that work in concert in each studio.
Cameras
Probably the most obvious pieces of hardware in the setup are cameras. They enable players to watch the action and see the results of their wagers.
Online casino studios, like the private live dealer studio operated by BetMGM in Michigan, have state-of-the-art cameras positioned to give players an optimal view of the action regardless of the specific game happening. BetMGM and its partner for live dealer games in Michigan and New Jersey, Evolution, spare no expense in other ways.
Optical Character Recognition
When you play a live dealer game online, you can watch the action unfold. Many players ask, however, how the game interface knows what the dealer is doing. That’s where the optical character recognition hardware and software come in.
This system translates the dealer’s actions into computer code so the game’s software can respond, helping to settle bets and track plays. The system allows the dealer and players to focus on the action instead of having to do these tasks manually.
Game Control Unit
While dealers are in full control of their tables, they have assistance to ensure they stay on top of everything happening. The game control unit is like a croupier’s best friend.
Gaming tables in BetMGM’s and Evolution’s studios include sensors that transmit data and keep track of actions in the games. The difference between this and optical character recognition is that the game control unit focuses on what happens on the table instead of the dealer’s actions.
Monitors
Another essential tool for dealers to run games smoothly is monitors. These monitors provide up-to-date information on the game at hand for dealers and help them monitor live feeds to ensure quality.
Without monitors, dealers would be working blind as far as the stream goes, just hoping that what they are doing is being received by players correctly. It’s part of the defense against any mishaps.
Other Considerations
A final important consideration is staff professionalism. Presenting a live dealer game is a coordinated task that requires more staff than the dealer players see on the feed.
From those operating cameras to software engineers to lighting experts and people who keep the studios clean and elegant, many people work behind the scenes to bring your favorite live dealer games to you. Working in an online live dealer casino also requires special training for dealers as they need to run the games and have an on-camera presence as well.
The Rise of Advanced Online Casino Technology
Online casino technology has already come a long way but it’s far from stagnant. The future of technology in online casino games could include new uses for artificial intelligence (AI) and augmented reality (AR).
For an idea of how these systems have already advanced live dealer casino experiences, many casinos use AI to deliver customized game recommendations and promotions to players with greater efficiency than humans could distribute the same materials. AR remains a new frontier for live casino games.
Imagine a future where instead of watching the games on your phone, the dealer and the studio appear in your home via virtual reality. While it might seem futuristic now, it could very well be the live dealer casino experience of tomorrow. While it might seem futuristic now, it could very well be the live dealer casino experience of tomorrow as technology continues to evolve.
Play Live Dealer Games With BetMGM
No matter where technology takes the live dealer casino experience, BetMGM will be on the cusp of the latest advances in gaming. BetMGM has the best live dealer games and is committed to giving players the ultimate live casino experiences in new ways with its valuable partnerships.
For players who want to dive deeper into this format, exploring a comprehensive guide to live dealer casino games and understanding the differences between live dealer and regular online casino games can provide key insights into what makes it so unique.
When you register for BetMGM, you’re putting yourself at the forefront of live casino technology as well. Your feedback and your playing choices will guide BetMGM’s investment in the next generation of live dealer games.
