A casino lobby looks like one shop with a lot of shelves. It is closer to three separate businesses sharing a shopfront. Pokies, table games and live dealer games are built on different mathematics, carry different house edges, and, most importantly for anyone holding a bonus, are counted completely differently by the casino.
This page is about that structure: who sets the odds in each category, where the actual number is written, and why the games with the best odds are the ones a bonus will not let you play. Last checked 25 September 2026.
How operators divide the lobby, and what the labels mean
Note what the label means here. At this operator Casino Games is the software category: the computer versions of table games, dealt by a random number generator with no human in them. Live Casino is a separate menu for the streamed versions of the same games. Online Slots is a third. Spin Casino, a sister brand on the same licence, uses the same three way split.
Worth knowing because the categories are not always honest. The tiles showing under Casino Games in the screenshot above are pokies: UFC Gold Blitz, Fire and Roses Joker, Amazing Link Zeus, Break da Bank Again. The menu promises table games and the grid delivers reels. Read the game, not the shelf it is on.
Three categories, three different answers to the same question
| Category | Who sets the odds | Can your decisions change them | Where the number is written |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pokies | The studio builds it, the operator picks which configuration to run | No. Stake size changes the amount at risk, never the return | The game information screen inside the game |
| Software table games | Fixed by the rules of the game | In blackjack and video poker, yes. In roulette and baccarat, only through which bet you pick | The rules or paytable screen |
| Live dealer | Fixed by the rules of the table | Same as above, plus the choice of table | Printed on the felt, and in the game rules |
The first row is the one most people get wrong, and it is explained in full on game providers. A pokie ships in several return to player configurations and the operator chooses which to install, so the same named game at two casinos can pay differently. Nothing you do at the machine alters that.
The house edge, side by side
These are the standard figures for the standard rules. They are not promises about a specific table, they are the arithmetic of the game when the rules are the common ones.
| Game and bet | House edge | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Baccarat, banker | 1.06 percent | Eight decks, after the 5 percent commission |
| Baccarat, player | 1.24 percent | Pays even money, no commission |
| Blackjack, basic strategy | Around 0.5 percent | Depends heavily on the rules. Blackjack paying 6 to 5 instead of 3 to 2 wrecks it |
| Roulette, single zero | 2.70 percent | Same on every bet |
| Roulette, double zero | 5.26 percent | Nearly double, for an identical looking table |
| Baccarat, tie | 14.36 percent | The worst bet on a good table |
| Pokies | Commonly 3 to 6 percent | Set by configuration. Check the game information screen |
Baccarat and blackjack figures from the standard eight deck analysis. The roulette figures are 1 in 37 and 1 in 19 respectively, which is simply the extra pocket doing its work.
The part that decides what you can actually play
Here is the rule nobody puts in a games guide. The categories with the lowest house edge are the ones a welcome bonus counts least, or refuses entirely.
At the brand we tested, the standard welcome offer carried a wagering requirement of 70 times the bonus with a 7 day expiry. Pokies counted 100 percent towards it. Table games counted 10 percent. Live dealer games were excluded completely.
| Category | House edge | Bonus contribution at the brand tested |
|---|---|---|
| Pokies | Highest of the three | 100 percent |
| Table games | Low | 10 percent |
| Live dealer | Low | Excluded |
Read down those columns. The weighting is not arbitrary and it is not hostile, it is arithmetic: an operator cannot let you clear a wagering requirement on a game it barely profits from. But the consequence for you is concrete. If what you want is blackjack or a live table, a welcome bonus is close to worthless and it locks your own deposit while you try to clear it. The mechanics are on casino bonuses, and the version with no wagering at all is on no wagering bonuses.
Where to go from here
| Page | What it covers |
|---|---|
| Online pokies | Why a pub pokie in New Zealand must display its return and a maximum win notice, and an online one need not |
| Live casinos | Two suppliers, most of the lobby, and what the multiplier games actually cost |
| Live blackjack | The one rule to read before sitting down, and where it is printed |
| Live roulette | Single zero against double zero, and what Lightning and Mega versions trade away |
| Live baccarat | Three bets, and why one of them is a mistake |
| Game providers | Who builds the games, and why eight famous names are four companies |
What is fair, and what fair does not mean
Random number generators at established studios are tested by independent laboratories, and the games behave as published. That is what fair means in this industry: the game does what its paytable says over a very large number of rounds.
It does not mean the game is even money. Every game on this page has a house edge, which is the point of the business. It also does not mean a game is ever due, that a cold machine owes you anything, or that any staking pattern changes the arithmetic. Each round is independent, and Evolution says so on its own Crazy Time page: each spin is independent of the previous ones, which renders existing statistics useless for predicting future outcomes. That sentence is worth remembering next time a site sells you a live statistics tracker.
The New Zealand position
No online casino holds a New Zealand licence. The auction that decides who may apply begins on 29 September 2026 and the first licences are expected from early 2027. Autoplay will be prohibited for licensed operators and is not prohibited now. The full sequence is on New Zealand online casino law, and the control tools that do exist today are on responsible gambling.
Which casino game has the best odds?
On standard rules, blackjack played with basic strategy has the lowest house edge, usually around half a percent, followed by the baccarat banker bet at 1.06 percent. Single zero roulette is 2.70 percent on every bet. Pokies are generally the highest of the three categories and vary by configuration.
What does RTP mean and where do I find it?
Return to player is the long run percentage of stakes a game returns, and the house edge is the remainder. For a pokie the figure that applies to you is the one in that casino’s own game information screen, reached from a menu inside the game, because studios ship games in several configurations and the operator chooses one.
Why do table games count so little towards a bonus?
Because their house edge is low. An operator cannot let a wagering requirement be cleared on a game it makes very little from, so contributions are weighted down or the category is excluded. At the brand we tested, pokies counted 100 percent, table games 10 percent and live dealer games not at all.
Are software table games and live dealer games the same?
The rules and the maths are usually the same, the difference is how the result is produced and how fast. A software table is dealt by a random number generator and runs as quickly as you click. A live table is dealt by a person in a studio and runs at the pace of the table, which is slower, so an hour of it costs less at the same stake and the same edge.
Is video poker worth learning?
On the right paytable it has one of the lowest house edges in the building, and unlike a pokie your decisions genuinely change the return. The catch is that the paytable varies between versions of the same named game, so the figure depends on which one the operator installed. It sits under Casino Games rather than in the live lobby at most operators.
Can I play these games in New Zealand dollars?
Many operators serving New Zealand accept NZD, and live tables show their limits in it. That is a convenience, not a legal status. No operator holds a New Zealand licence, so currency tells you nothing about oversight.
About the author: Matt Donaldson
Editor and casino reviewer, Christchurch
I check the player journey, including the terms, games, support and account controls. A payment result appears as first-hand evidence only when it is in the recorded test.
Each category score is based on what was observed. If a feature was not checked, it is marked Not tested.
Read Matt's profileClear reviews for New Zealand readers, built from recorded observations and updated when the source or market status changes.
- Evidence before adjectives — each claim is tied to an action, source, date, device, amount or operator reply recorded during the review.
- Four categories kept separate — Player Safety & Trust, Games & Usability, Bonuses & Terms, and Banking & Withdrawals are assessed on their own evidence.
- Honest scores — whole points from 1 to 5 only. When a category was not checked directly, it is marked Not tested.
- New Zealand status checked — access, transitional permission, an application and an issued DIA licence are described as different things.
- Updates stay visible — time-sensitive terms and regulatory claims are checked again, and confirmed errors are corrected.
