Come Together and Play: Think You Know All About Bingo?
Shopping malls, or most of them, would be incomplete without the best online bingo games. Bingo Mania in Starmall, Mandaluyong City. Market Bingo in BGC, Taguig City. Bingo Xtreme in Festival Mall, Alabang. The list goes on and on, which shows that bingo is part of the Filipino way of life. It’s not another game that most Filipinos become addicted to. And there’s more to bingo than how gamblers look at it. Not a few would recall their younger days when they play a game of bingo, or two, during the weekend. They play with their neighbors, if not friends, another way to bond during the free time. Some would wonder if bingo is a local game (like “pusoy”). No. Not really.
Bingo is played all around the world, a 493-year-old game that shows no sign of becoming outdated. It’s easy to learn the rules of this game, even adapt it to any change. Do you want to know how bingo was invented? Let’s have a look:
The Kingdom of Italy was founded in 1861 and no one could point out the state, or community, where bingo was first played. It was called "Lo Giuoco del Lotto D'Italia". It’s still being played every Saturday, a tradition that bingo lovers must see. On the other hand, bingo might have been first played in the UK in the early 1700s, but Britons witnessed the boom during the early 20th century. The wealthy Frenchmen were the first to play a game of bingo while Germans did it for the sake of the children. Playing bingo helped students learn history, mathematics, and spelling, a fact that would surprise the hardcore bingo lovers. How about the US? It’s rather a long story, but let’s zero in the most interesting facts that bingo lovers would be delighted.
Hugh J. Ward, a stage actor, introduced bino in carnivals in Pennsylvania in the early 1900s, but the game took an interesting turn a few days later. Edwin S. Lowe, an entrepreneur and toymaker, was overlooking a fair in Atlanta, Georgia in 1929. Bingo was called “BEANO” back then, and someone accidentally called it ‘BINGO”. It was a Eureka moment for the young salesman, who collaborated with Carl Leffler, a mathematician, after that moment. They came up with more bingo cards, and then the Polish-American marketed it and bought the rights. The rest was history, but it didn’t end there.
The first online bingo game was introduced in 1996, a sign that the one of the oldest, and most popular, games would be updated very soon.
The kind of cards used in Filipino bingo and American bingo differ significantly. A typical Filipino bingo card has a 3x9 grid with numbers ranging from 1-90 while a typical American bingo card has a 5x5 grid with numbers ranging from 1-75. Players would notice the exception of the center square designated as "free”. They can expect a longer game, as more number combinations are possible with these longer and narrower cards.
There are only five letters used in American bingo (B-I-N-G-O), and each number is shouted out separately, such as "B-10" (or "N-36"). It’s done to prevent confusion. On the other hand, Filipino bingo calls out two numbers at once, one from the ones column and one from the tens. Filipino bingo uses all ten digits (0-9), so it’s quicker and easier to yell out two numbers at a time ("23 and 36" or "54 and 67”).
The bingo winning patterns identified in each game would distinguish American bingo from Filipino bingo in another way. Several patterns, including a block of four squares or a straight (vertical, horizontal or diagonal) line, can be produced on the bingo card in American bingo. Numbers can be marked off OR unmarked numbers can also be used to create patterns. On the other hand, there are more digits utilized in Filipino bingo, so the winning patterns are more intricate. Moreover, Filipino bingo features crossed-out numbers, creating a symmetrical pattern in order for the win to deem legitimate. Other winning patterns include "big cross", “four corners'', and "full card."
In American bingo, the host sets the prize pool or sets fixed amounts. On the other hand, there's usually a progressive jackpot in Filipino bingo, which gets bigger with every game until someone wins the prize. The increased winning sums make players more excited about the game while anticipating the next game - and jackpot. .
There are bingo parlors in the US, but you don’t find them inside malls. Furthermore, churches organize bingo games, BUT as social events. Not in the Philippines.
The differences would highlight the fact that different cultures shape bingo as we see it. Fun matters more, so invite your family, or friends, to a bingo game.
