History Main / BettingMiniGame

* Casino Night Zone in ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog2'' with its slot machines (including one which, if you weren't quick enough, you were doomed to be bounced back into as soon as you were done) and then the Bonus Stage of ''Sonic and Knuckles'' which was basically the same thing stuck into the perpetual-rotating dimension of the first Special Stages.

* ''VideoGame/RedDeadRedemption'', yet another Rockstar game, has poker, blackjack, horseshoes, liar's dice, and five finger fillet (jabbing a knife between you fingers really fast). Playing of these in multiplayer when exactly one player is using a skin from the [[HalloweenEpisode ''Undead Nightmare'']] DLC is a bit jarring.

Also see MonsterArena, InevitableTournament, LuckBasedMission.

Optional gambling mini-game that has the player wagering [[GlobalCurrency in-game money]] on a game of chance. This can range from games [[LuckBasedMission based entirely on random chance]] (e.g. slots, roulette) to competitions involving some degree of skill (e.g. card battling), although an element of luck is invariably involved.

* The original ''VideoGame/LeisureSuitLarry'' had casino games that could easily drain all the money from the player, and of course running out of money was a NonStandardGameOver. However, you need to play the games because to win the game Larry needs more money than he actually has; SaveScumming, away!

** The vending machines themselves tend to be a bit of a gamble. However, ''BorderlandsThePreSequel'' has a greater chance if getting legendary loot.
** The Grinder from ''BorderlandsThePreSequel'' is also still a gamble. Even with the right recipes, whichever weapon you get from the available pool is still random.

* The MECC game ''Yukon Trail'' has two kinds: a legitimate wagered card game, and a game of Three Card Monte that's just as much of a scam as the real thing (although you can eke out a few dollars with lower bets).

* In ''VideoGame/{{Alundra 2}}'', you can bet your gold on bull fights.
* You could also gamble in a casino. One of the gilded falcons you could collect to get item upgrades could be won by winning a wheel spinning game a number of times in a row. Problem was, the odds of winning any given spin was about 1 in 3 - with the possibility of no winner (like a regular roulette wheel). You had to win 4 times in a row in order to get the falcon - literally odds of 1 in 81 assuming you never hit black. There seemed to no pattern you could follow to achieve victory, only odds and guesswork. The wheel would always stop amongst a certain set of 5 consecutive spaces dependent on the starting position. With this information in hand the odds of winning 4 times in a row goes up to a minimum of 1 in 39 (which admittedly is still pretty bad). What made this sidequest worse was the fact that even after acquiring the gilded falcon, you had to win 4 times in a row all over again to get one of the [[HeartContainer Life Vessels]]

* The original ''UltimaVII'': if you join the corrupt Fellowship, the Rat Race casino game pays 6 to 1. Since it has only four possibilities, you can make as much money as you want by repeatedly betting on all four at the same time. Corruption pays, though this game was also infamous for having memory problems if too much gold was created. It also had a virtue (roulette) wheel at the pirate town. You could bet on any or all of the eight virtues... which paid out at 10 to 1.

** ''VideoGame/SuperMario64 DS'' has 8 betting mini-games (all which are from Luigi, and the '''Pair-and-Gone and On''' mini-game does not have coins, so it doesn't count), and some of the mini-games must be unlocked by capturing Green Bunnies/Rabbits (they will only appear when playing as Luigi). The money used in the mini-games are coins (obviously). However, the coins in the mini-games are not used in-game. Three of these mini-games (Pair-a-Gone, Picture Poker and Memory Match) are also in ''VideoGame/NewSuperMarioBros DS''. Again, the mini-game coins are seperate from the coins in the main game.

** ''VideoGame/SuperMarioBros2'' makes you play slots between levels with the coins you've collected, but that's okay, because that's all they're good for. A player who's reasonably good at timing his button presses can gain an extra life for nearly every coin he puts in once he's gotten one. There's a similar minigame in ''VideoGame/SuperMario3DWorld'', but it doesn't fit the trope because you don't bet coins.
** ''VideoGame/SuperMarioLand2SixGoldenCoins'' has a hill conveniently located near the castle where a player may play a wheel of fortune game for items and extra lives... or he may get some coins in return. Naturally, the more coins that are put in, the better the prize selection. Again, that's all these coins are good for and unlike in all other Mario games, collecting 100 of them doesn't automatically get you an extra life.

* ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAuto: [[VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoSanAndreas San Andreas]]'' features a number of ways to bet money, including horse racing, low-rider bouncing and casinos with games such as poker, roulette, and pool. How much money you can bet is determined by a "gambling" statistic that improves each time you place a bet. You can end up in debt to the casino if you bet more money than you have, which eventually causes loan sharks to randomly attack you.

* ''VideoGame/RedDeadRedemption'', yet another Rockstar game, has poker, blackjack, horseshoes, liar's dice, and five finger fillet (jabbing a knife between you fingers really fast).
** Playing of these in multiplayer when exactly one player is using a skin from the [[HalloweenEpisode ''Undead Nightmare'']] DLC is a bit jarring.

* The ''Franchise/HarvestMoon'' franchise usually has one of these in its games, taking the form of horse racing. ''VideoGame/HarvestMoon64'' is infamous for a glitch that allowed you to bet on the horses then cancel, which would refund your money, but not cancel your bets, allowing you to bet massive amounts of money, risk-free.

** In all Pokemon games starting from ''[=HeartGold and SoulSilver=]'', there is no Game Corner whatsoever -- don't even bother importing from Japan because they've been removed there too. They did reference them in Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire by referencing the Mauville Game Corner from the original, but the Game Corner sadly closed down.

** In all Pokemon games starting from ''HeartGold and SoulSilver'', there is no Game Corner whatsoever -- don't even bother importing from Japan because they've been removed there too. They did reference them in Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire by referencing the Mauville Game Corner from the original, but the Game Corner sadly closed down.

** In all Pokemon games starting from ''Black and White'', there is no Game Corner whatsoever -- don't even bother importing from Japan because they've been removed there too. They did reference them in Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire by referencing the Mauville Game Corner from the original, but the Game Corner sadly closed down.

Gamers of questionable morals will often exploit these mini-games by saving, setting themselves up for a huge payoff (such as by betting their entire savings on a longshot), and [[SaveScumming reloading until they win]]. Developers often attempt to discourage this behavior by limiting the amount of maximum bids to a reasonable level, but by then it's usually not worth bothering, as you could probably profit faster merely by going outside and [[MoneySpider slaughtering random monsters]]. Alternatively, some games will save the outcome of the bet before revealing it to the player, rendering cheating in this fashion too complicated to bother with in most cases.

* ''SteambotChronicles'' features a mech-fighting arena you can place bets in. Midway through the game you can use SaveScumming on one particular matchup and rake in more cash than you'll ever need. To a lesser extent, you can also play pool against certain characters and bet on your ability to win.

* Unsurprisingly, the casino-themed ''Pinball/JackBot'' is full of this trope. The four casino games allow the player to go double-or-nothing with the points won from the game. Shooting a timed shot under the left ramp will award double the amount won from the game, but the winnings are forfeited if the shot is not made. Its WizardMode, "Casino Run," is nothing but this: You shoot shots to build up a value, then pull the slot machine to redeem it. As long as time remains, you can do this as many times as you'd like. However, getting three bombs from a spin causes you to lose all of your points gained in "Casino Run" and ends it immediately.

* The ''Franchise/HarvestMoon'' franchise usually has one of these in its games, taking the form of horse racing. ''VideoGame/HarvestMoon64'' is infamous for a [[GoodBadBugs glitch]] that allowed you to bet on the horses then cancel, which would refund your money, but not cancel your bets, [[GameBreaker allowing you to bet massive amounts of money, risk-free]].

* ''[[Pinball/WHODunnit WHO dunnit]]'' lets players bet points in Roulette and play an embedded Slot Machine at various times. The Slot Machine will always give a reward, and even offers chances to turn a losing pull into a win.

* This is the main appeal of Creator/{{Capcom}}'s ''Pinball/HighRollerCasino'', which allows players to play six gambling mini-games to score points: Blackjack/21, Craps, Hi-Lo, Poker, Roulette and Slots. Each game is accompanied by a playfield toy or obstacle for its corresponding game, and players can even cheat to turn losses into wins.

* A lot of the ''Franchise/FireEmblem'' games have an arena, in which you make a bet, and then a unit of yours trades blows with an opponent until one of them falls. It's a complete scam, especially since FinalDeath is in full effect.

* ''VideoGame/TalesOfSymphonia'' has a casino, but the games aren't playable... unless you're playing the Japanese PS2 version, that is.

* ''VideoGame/{{Gun}}'' had a Texas Hold'em mini-game, a form of Poker for those not familiar. Frankly, it was dismal but you could win literally 40 dollars (this was a lot in the game) and you would have to try really hard to lose but it was very tedious. Not knowing anything about Poker I managed to beat all 6 levels of the mini-game in order to get the 100% bonuses.