'If Bond were a gamer, what would he play?'

Words: Ladbrokes.com

With casino games on the rise, we sat down at the office with a stash of coffee and came up with the following list: just who, if you could recruit them, would bring you gaming success? Read on, Padawan…

Roulette

One of the most iconic casino games ever devised, roulette is more than just a game of a ball randomly falling into one of the allotted numbered slots. It is a game of chance, probability, luck and mathematics. This is a game where you can play the numbers and where probability and an understanding of the randomness of the universe, the effect of forces and gravity and how order comes from chaos, would be very useful.

Roulette Dream Team: In our celebrity roulette dream team, we would combine the mathematical mind of Carol Vorderman with the scientific analytical skills of Stephen Hawking in order to forge a team to crack the numbers and turn prediction and theory into profit. Of course, no dream team would be complete without that notoriously lucky casino connoisseur: James Bond. For the suave element, he gets the nod as team captain.

Slots

Slot machines are arguably the most random of all online casino games. They have come a long way from the end of the pier machines that used to dispense halfpennies and pennies to the lucky winner.

With cumulative jackpots, a massive variety of winning lines and hundreds of potential winning combinations (and a variety of sub games to play in addition to spinning the slots), our slot machines dream team needs people who not only understand all of these features, but who also have that uncanny knack of hitting the jackpot!

Slots Dream Team: Something of a sporting theme here. First to be included is F1 superstar Lewis Hamilton, his combination of analytical mind, lightning fast reflexes and eye-hand co-ordination giving him the edge over his competitors. With him we’d team the man whose good fortune saw him hit the slot machine jackpot on a trip to Las Vegas only then to lift the World Darts title this January: welcome darting ace, Adrian ‘Jackpot’ Lewis!

Poker

The game of poker is as deep as the ocean and as complex as unravelling a plate of spaghetti. The subtle nuances of the game, the bidding process and understanding as much about who you are playing against as the card that is dealt, mean that the ultimate poker player for our dream team would not only need to be able to read the cards, but his opponents. In addition, our dream team needs to have a deep understanding of the game at all levels and to remain in total control of their emotions.

Poker Dream Team: As a singles game, our poker dream team would consist of just one person. A lot of pressure, then, and it took a while to come to the decision. But that person, after much deliberation, could only be the erstwhile resident medical genius, confirmed poker player and Sherlock Holmes-inspired Gregory House MD, played by Hugh Laurie. House’s poker experience, combined with his ability to read people, show incredible insight and hide his emotions make him a formidable poker opponent.

The Dirty Dozen – did we get it right?

Our boffins studied long and hard before compiling our teams: but did we choose right? Who would you choose?