Bingo has grown as an online pursuit with remarkable speed. Once considered the domain of the blue-rinse brigade, it has risen from humble beginnings to become an internet phenomenon, popular with all demographics. Let's take a look at bingo's remarkable transformation...

Automated number generators now take the place of the bingo caller. Bingo cards have been usurped by virtual replacements. But the central attraction of the game remains the same: the lure of hard, easy cash. The potential prizes, though, have inflated way beyond anything seen in traditional bingo halls. The social element of the bingo hall has been maintained, to a certain degree, through chatrooms, allowing players to communicate with their fellow bingo players. This is the modus operandi for all majore bingo sites, such as 32Red.com (click the link to find out more about 32Red bingo).

Gameplay is incredibly simple, which is part of the attraction of online bingo for people who may never consider other forms of gambling, save perhaps for the national lottery. There are two primary variant of bingo: 75 and 90 ball.

The 75-ball version is the one most often played in the US, whilst 90-ball bingo is favoured in Europe, Australia and South America. The aim in both versions is to mark numbers on a card in a predetermined pattern. These patterns tend to vary in the 75-ball version of the game, from straight lines to complex patterns, whereas 90-ball bingo has a much simpler system, as we'll see...

A 90-ball bingo card comprises three horizontal lines and nine vertical columns. The columns go from 1-9, then 10-19 and so on until 80-90 in the ninth and final column. The horizontal rows each contain five numbers. As each number is called out, players cross off any corresponding numbers they may have on their card. Prizes go to the first person to complete a straight line, the first person to complete two lines, and the first to get a 'full house', when all numbers are marked off. Paricipants often have multiple cards, which all adds to the fun of the game - you need to be on your toes to ensure you're marking everyt number off accurately. Players will frequently have five or more cards going at once.

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