Provably Fair Casinos: Are Blockchain-Based RNGs the Future of Trust?

The Provably Fair technology is certainly revolutionizing the online gambling industry, and in this article, we'll cover the facts that prove this. With the emergence of cryptocurrencies and the blockchain, the world saw so many changes, some for the better, and some for the worse, depending on how you see it. But one thing is for sure: thanks to blockchain technology, Provably Fair is making online gambling more transparent, primarily at crypto-focused platforms, like Bitcoin and USDC casinos, allowing players to double-check the game outcomes and see whether they have been rigged or fair.

Thanks to blockchain's transparency, being a public ledger, Provably Fair is a technology that allows players to verify the outcome of the game and know with certainty that the outcome was not rigged in any way. It provides players with data that tells them exactly how the game results were determined, giving them full oversight of their entire gaming experience. What's more, every single game round is verifiable, so there's no way for you to miss out on something and later on ponder whether you've been robbed of a win or not. With zero manipulation, you can rest assured that your game was played out fairly, all thanks to this amazing, clever tech. 

How Does Provably Fair Work?

With the underlying blockchain tech, Provably Fair uses cryptography and complex max to guarantee that your game outcome is pre-determined, even before you place your bet. That way, any possible manipulation is eliminated. 

Random numbers are generated by both the player and the online casino, alongside variables, which are unique identifiers for each game, each round. There are three key variables used in the process. The first one is a player seed, a unique number generated by the game or chosen by you before you start playing. The second one is the server seed, which is the number that the game server generates, not shared with you until later so that you don't dare to cheat in the game. Finally, you have nonce, a number that starts from 1 or 0 and increases with your bets. This number ensures that the outcomes of each of your game rounds are fair and unique. 

How Does the Player Get All of This Info?

After the server seed is generated, through a process called hashing, is turned into a string of characters, and is shared with you before you start playing the game. Think of hashing as a data encryption tool, or in simpler terms, as an envelope where the outcome of the game is written, to be checked after you finish the game. 

The player seed gets combined with the server seed as soon as you start playing. The nonce is added to this mix, and that’s how the outcome is determined randomly and fairly. This is done through a process that uses complex math and algorithms to ensure that no one tampers with the outcome. 

Finally, the second you finish playing the game, you get the original seed revealed. Check it against the hashed version you received before you started playing and see whether they match; if yes, you can rest assured that your game was completely fair. 

Are RNG and Provably Fair the Same?

You probably know that standard online casinos use RNG to prove to you that your game outcomes are fair. Random Number Generators are algorithms that also generate random numbers for the game outcome, controlled and approved by third-party auditors like eCOGRA or iTech Labs, for instance. The algorithm produces results that are seemingly random and unpredictable but generated in a closed system, one that you have no insight into as a player, but you must trust the auditor's approval to know that it gives you fair results.

And while Provably Fair has the same purpose, it is not the same like the RNG, as it does not need any third-parties to verify the fairness of the game outcome. Players can check it for themselves, see what the game outcome was pre-determined to be before they started playing, and that gives them full control over the entire gaming process, guarantees to them that the games they are playing are completely safe and fair. 

With RNGs, you must trust the casino’s word regarding the fairness of the games, or in other terms, trust that if the casino holds a seal of approval by a respected auditor, the games are safe to play. With Provably Fair, you get to check for yourself, and not leave it to some strangers to guarantee to you that your online gambling experience on the site will be fair. Sure, both game software providers and online casinos have their RNGs rigorously tested before the seal of approval is granted, but why trust that when you can check for yourself, with Provably Fair?

Is Provably Fair the Future of Trust Across the Online Gambling Industry?

Finally, we can give you an answer to this question; and the answer is probably (pun intended). Given how Provably Fair is going strong at the moment of writing, and plenty of players and operators have put their trust in it, a way bigger acceptance of the technology is expected. 

Even though standard RNGs are still the ones accepted by the regulatory frameworks, given how the online gambling industry is expanding globally with the speed of light, alongside cryptocurrencies and blockchain usage, expectations are that the importance of this technology will be acknowledged even further in the future. The most important thing is that the tech has players' support and given how operators wish to cater to players in the best way possible, more and more of them will start leaning more towards Provably Fair than to RNGs. 

At the end of the day, the technology has proven to be quite useful and functional, not to mention trustworthy, therefore, we are yet to see what the future holds for it. Since it is on an upward trajectory and is even poised to become integrated with Web3 and other emerging innovations, we expect nothing but success for it.