One of the biggest complaints in the post-pandemic era has been that Las Vegas casinos have gotten greedy. In the early 2020s, minimum bets increased, while paybacks decreased at many casinos that cater to tourists. While video poker is mostly going the wrong direction, the tide is starting to change at table games.
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Nine casinos removed triple zero roulette
The rise of triple zero roulette was one of the biggest gripes among table game players. Nine Las Vegas casinos removed all triple zero roulette tables over the last several years. Tropicana did it before closing in 2024. Durango, Green Valley Ranch, Rio, Sahara, Sunset Station, Treasure Island, Encore, and Wynn now operate with no triple zero roulette tables. All had at least one at some point. They either converted the tables to double zero or removed them from the casino floor.
While Binion’s and Luxor moved to dealing all roulette as triple zero this year, several casinos have gone the opposite direction. Vegas Advantage has noticed some triple zero tables at houses still dealing it have been converted to double zero. Horseshoe moved its triple zero roulette table to the pit that opens last.
Caesars Entertainment casinos introduced major gambling upgrades over the last year
Caesars casinos have always had a reputation for being tighter than their competitors. The company decided to do something about that over the last year.
Blackjack upgrades
The first step was introducing a 3:2 blackjack game to every one of their Las Vegas casino pits. That was common before the pandemic closure, and a little after it, but was lost at Cromwell (now Vanderpump), Flamingo, Harrah’s, Horseshoe, Linq and Paris about five years ago. Only Caesars Palace and Planet Hollywood had 3:2 blackjack in their pits before this upgrade. The others only dealt it in the high-limit table game room, or not at all.
Today, all Caesars Entertainment casinos in Las Vegas deal a 3:2 blackjack game. Most are $25. Some are $50, while others can drop to $15 during slow times. Some are dealt from shoes, while others are from continuous shuffling machines. This is the type of info Vegas Advantage Patreon members receive.
Double down after splitting on double-deck games
Caesars recently added double down after splitting to all double-deck blackjack games. This was previously only available at double-deck games at the higher-end properties. It matches all other Las Vegas Strip casinos, which have permitted doubling down after splitting at double-deck games for the entire time Vegas Advantage has surveyed blackjack.
Crapless craps odds increased
All Caesars Entertainment casinos in Las Vegas started the summer with 1-2-3-4-5x crapless craps odds. That meant players could only bet single odds on 2 and 12 and double odds on 3 and 11. That recently changed. Today, all Caesars crapless craps tables allow odds up to 3-4-5x, meaning the 2, 3, 11, and 12 all allow triple odds, matching MGM Resorts.
Craps Field now pays triple on 12
The last big change at Caesars casinos is that the Field now pays triple on 12 at all dice tables. That cuts the house edge in half, from 5.56% to 2.78%. Nearly all Las Vegas Strip casinos now pay triple on a Field 12. Sahara and The Strat were the only exceptions, as of our last survey of those properties. The Strat only deals crapless craps. It has no traditional craps table.
Binion’s and Four Queens removed forced side bets
Binion’s and Four Queens abolished mandatory side bets for all table games. The previously forced side bets on blackjack and some poker pit games are now all optional. Forced side bets can triple or quadruple the house advantage.
Plaza installed a stand on soft 17 blackjack table with unlimited re-splits
In February, Plaza added a unique blackjack table that is the loosest six-deck blackjack game in Las Vegas. At $25, it matches Strip high-limit rules. Players can double down before and after splitting, surrender, and re-split aces. It goes a step further by allowing players to re-split any pair except aces an unlimited number of times. The game is streamed live on YouTube, something some players may find a deal-breaker.
The Strat added single zero roulette
The Strat still deals triple zero roulette. However, it converted one roulette table to single zero. Strat had it a few years ago and brought it back. At $15 or $25, depending on the time of day, it is the cheapest in the market. Plaza deals $25 single zero roulette in its streaming room. All other Las Vegas single zero roulette is $50 or higher.
Minimum bets are dropping
Minimum bets have been dropping in all market segments. Excalibur and Luxor introduced $5 6:5 blackjack in recent years. Oyo brought back $1 blackjack, though Downtown Grand removed it about the same time. Several off-Strip properties committed to dealing at least one table of $5 3:2 blackjack, including Palms, Silver Sevens, and Virgin. That is in addition to ones that have always dealt $5 3:2 blackjack, like Jerry’s Nugget and South Point. South Point returned to at least one $5 craps table open at all times.
Rio has $3 craps from 3am to noon daily, and is $5 many other hours. It was previously $3 until 3pm. Palms and Gold Coast also dropped craps to a $5 minimum. Palms increased craps odds to 10x, even on crapless, which also starts at $5.
Roulette is also dropping in price at some casinos. Rio deals double zero roulette for $5 during slow hours. Virgin had $5 double zero roulette during our last visit. Gold Coast and The Orleans are other off-Strip casinos that deal $5 roulette.
Hopefully, this is just the beginning
Vegas Advantage noticed more positive changes on nearly all of our survey days. We predict this is closer to the beginning than the end. Hopefully, that prediction ages well.
