The house always wins

Are you a gambler? It's not for me, but lots of people enjoy gambling. There's nothing with spending money you can afford to lose on gambling as entertainment. Just don't risk too much and don't get addicted.

The main problem with gambling at casinos or online is that the house always wins. Every game is set up so the casino makes a profit on average. If you're going to gamble, you have to plan on losing your money. The odds are against you.

But what happens when you take away the house? If there's no centralized entity to take a cut, then 100% of the money placed as bets can be paid out as winnings. This improves your odds.

There's also no one to ban you for counting cards. Black Jack is famous for actually being a profitable game for skilled players, but if you win too much, casinos politely ask you to never come back again. Removing the casino encourages skilled play.

The main thing you lose by gambling on blockchain is the casino experience: cheap hotel rooms, free cocktails, questionable buffets, and overpriced shows. Blockchain isn't going to put casino operators out of a job any time soon.

But for people who want to gamble online with friends or strangers, blockchain is well suited to the task.

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-Luke

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P.S. This is actually a great smart contract project for anyone. Build a decentralized poker game with crypto betting. It can all run on chain.