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Bingo Variations: Options for the Enthusiast

Bingo's variations are numerous and many. For the most part however, it is a slow game until the tension tightens, when you only have one number waiting for you. Then the magic of the game shines. Then you find yourself at the edge of your seat, waiting for a number or a letter, your chest tight and ready to help you shout out that magic word.

Victory in the game can come from a variety of conditions, often set before the game even begins. Here are a few of the more common types of bingo games.

Traditional or regular bingo is when all you have to do is completely mark a single, straight, horizontal, vertical or diagonal line of numbers. Commonly for this game, the cards posses a five-by-five set of squares, like a small chessboard. Often, the center square is marked free. Since this is an easier form of bingo, the victory pay out isn't as good as for other games. Blackout games are more exciting and last much, much longer. In these games, the objective is to mark off each and every number on their cards to yell the magic word. These are often played larger bingo halls or larger games, to prolong the excitement and to account for the large money that comes into the game from each player for paid players.

Other patterns have come into play as well. The X-Pattern is an old favorite, also used on five-by-five cards, with the common free spot as the center. Another favorite is the four corner pattern, wherein the objective is to mark the four corners of your card. More patterns are emerging, thoroughly influenced by the booming online casino industry.

Patterns aren't the only way that Bingo can be spiced up. Speed bingo is another often used play style, where the game goes twice as fast. It adds a sense of urgency to a game which is, for the most part, relaxed. The game does not necessarily always have to be about money - it can also suit other purposes.

The bingo card could serve as a marker for a complex and exciting scavenger hunt, easily done by replacing the numbers with items. This could easily serve as a quick ice breaker at a party or to keep children occupied on holidays.

Bingo has been a staple game for so long for good reason - it's simple, it's fun and has enough variations to keep it from being stale. If you're a bingo enthusiast, why not try one of the variations? Double your fun!