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When Casinos Feature in Video Games: The House Always Wins (Even in Virtual Worlds)

There are a wide range of examples of casino environments and gambling systems appearing in videogames.

They act as mini-games within the main plot and help build and maintain the world to fully immerse players.

Here, we run down the most notable examples of casinos in videogames, including the role they play.

Grand Theft Auto V / GTA Online: The Diamond Casino & Resort

Perhaps the most notable in-game casino, The Diamond Casino was introduced to GTA Online via an update in July 2019, nearly six years after the release of Grand Theft Auto V.
The three classic table games that you will find in any casino – poker, blackjack and roulette – are all available in The Diamond Casino & Resort.

These mechanisms allow players to gamble their in-game dollars while you gain access to “high limit” areas where the maximum bet is $50,000 after completing the missions that came with the update.

Not only does The Diamond Casino & Resort offer these side activities, it also serves a world-building purpose.

A number of new characters were introduced with the update along

Red Dead Redemption II: Poker, Blackjack and Five-Finger Fillet

Another Rockstar game, Red Dead Redemption II is set in the United States in 1889, during the Old West-era.

That makes it smack bang in the middle of the heyday of frontier gambling and naturally the game borrowed these themes for world building.

Arthur Morgan, the character you play as in Red Dead Redemption II, is therefore able to play popular table games of the time like poker and blackjack.

Another mini-game available in Red Dead Redemption II is five-finger fillet where the wager you place dictates the pace that the knife moves, therefore making it harder.

While this is not something you will find in the real world of casinos, it adds to the atmospheric edge of the general story as do your wagers which can influence the story line if you lose big money.

Fallout New Vegas: Blackjack, Roulette and Slots

With a name like Fallout New Vegas, the fourth game in the hugely popular Fallout series could not feature casinos.

The excess that defines Las Vegas was a key inspiration for the game as you navigate the Mojave Desert 204 years after a devastating nuclear event.

Therefore, casinos, which offer blackjack, roulette and slots, play a key role in the story line as does the iconic Las Vegas strip that is populated by casino buildings.

The role of casinos play a clear use in the narrative – survive by gambling in a ruined world.

What Casinos Offer In Games

In these games, and others that we have not discussed such as the Yakuza series, casino games are not just mini-games.

They are microcosms of risk, reward and redemption and play a key role in emerging players in the world – whether that be the Old West in Red Dead Redemption II or the post-apocalyptic Las Vegas in Fallout: New Vegas.

It’s no surprise that developers turn to casino themes when crafting believable, high-stakes worlds. The games mentioned have been around for centuries – from saloons and slot machines to today’s online casinos, where those same timeless games live on in digital form.