Bingo Games & Patterns

Some people think of bingo as being the same basic game which is played in exactly the same way from one bingo hall to another and one online bingo site to another. Nothing could be further from the truth! There are variations on the bingo game with differing rules, structures and patterns to suit different tastes. Two of the most common differentiations in the game are 75 Ball Bingo and 90 Ball Bingo.

75 Ball Bingo is the most popular form of the game in America, where up to 75 balls are called from 5 columns of fifteen balls, each column corresponding to one of the bingo letters. The bingo cards that are used in this version of the game have twenty-five squares, five across and five down and each column is marked with a bingo letter. Each square has a random number on it, ranging from numbers 1 to 75. To win at 75 Ball Bingo you have to be the first player to match the game pattern on your card with the balls called out. There is a huge combination of the patterns on the cards and there are static, corners, coverall and variable varieties.

90 Ball Bingo is the traditional bingo game of the United Kingdom and Australia and is similar to other forms of the game in that the customer buys cards and mark out the numbers that they have as they are called out. The player to complete the pattern is the winner. The difference between 75 and 90 Ball Bingo is the set up of the cards – in 90 Ball Bingo the cards have 3 rows and 9 columns, and 5 squares in each row contain some numbers from 1 to 90 as opposed to just 75. The winning patterns are always identical and there are 3 patterns in each game, each of which will have a prize associated with it. You can try out both types of bingo online at Jackpot Joy Bingo and also the excellent Sun Bingo website.

It is therefore always important to ensure that you know which pattern you’re playing!

• The Static pattern is a standard and well-known bingo pattern which cannot be changed or alternated and can only be won when each cell is marked on the bingo card.
• The Variable pattern is where variable patterns can be rotated in 90 degree increments.
• The Four corners pattern is where the player has to get the numbers at the four corners of the board in order to win the prize.
• The Coverall is sometimes called the ‘Blackout’ and is where players have to cover all numbers on their board. There is often a jackpot with this game where the prizes change the more calls that are made.
• The Wild pattern are bingo cards with scattered patterns that stay in the same place but may be anywhere on the card.

These are just a few of the patterns that you will find in bingo, others include: Diamond, Checkmark, Bowtie, Barbell, Block of 8, Arrowhead, Airplane, Loveletter….. the list goes on and on.