People love to play lotteries as they have the potential to turn fortunes overnight. Lotteries exist in many formats. For instance, there are daily, weekly or fortnightly draws and then there are instant win games like scratch cards.
Invention of Scratch Cards
It was nearly 50 years back in the 1970s that the concept of scratch cards took shape. They were invented by several American computer scientists and this revolutionary concept was loved by people as it provides instant gratification.
The Massachusetts State Lottery launched the very first scratch-off lottery tickets in the mid-1970s. It was called ‘The Instant Game’ back then. Today, the scratch cards are known by names like scratch-off or scratch-out tickets. The concept was welcomed with open arms and soon many other national and state lottos started offering scratch card games. More than a decade later in 1987, the Rhode Island-based American company, AstroMed Inc. patented a scratch card. This development worked as a turning point in the popularity of scratch card games.
Appearance of Online Scratch Card Games:
The scratch card games were limited to offline plays till 1994 when the first online scratch card game made its appearance It was in November 2005 that a website was launched exclusively for online scratch card games. This was the ultimate step in the evolution of scratch cards. It took some time before the online mode gained popularity, but once it did, there was no looking back. Players loved to explore and play scratch card games as it didn’t require any specific skill. They were enticing and entertaining. The best part of scratch cards is that they give instant cash and hence instant gratification, unlike a conventional lottery.
Reasons That Contributed to the Popularity of Scratch Cards
Various reasons added to the popularity of scratch cards, some of which are:
They Are Simple to Play
You don’t require any specific skill set or knowledge of any tips and tricks to play scratch cards. You simply buy them, scratch and see if you have won anything or not. There is no waiting for the result day or the draw time or checking the numbers. Everything is instant, which is loved by many.
They Are Inexpensive
Instant card games don’t cost much to play and most of the people don’t mind trying their luck by spending few bucks.
They Have the Best Winning Odds
The conventional lotteries often have slim winning odds. The odds of winning in big jackpot lotteries like Powerball and MegaMillions stand at 1 in 300 million. In scratch cards, the odds are 1 in 3, which means if you buy 3 cards there is a high probability of winning something in one of them. Though the winning amount is not huge, winning itself keeps the tempo of the players high.
Good Deals Are Available
In the online mode, the scratch card companies keep announcing lucrative deals like buying 10 cards gets 5 free etc. This appeals a lot to the players and adds to their popularity.
Scratch cards had quite a journey that started 50 years back and today they are extremely popular in the virtual world.
