Russian roulette is far more perilous than sitting at the traditional roulette table. The stake is one's own life. The principle is the same. A wheel is spun and the odds that the ball falls into the right slot are non-existent.
How does Russian roulette work?
In Russian roulette, the roulette wheel is the drum of a revolver. The drum is loaded with only one bullet and it is rolled. A shot is fired when the drum stops spinning. The peril in this game is that the focus of the gun barrel is someone's temple. Sometimes the target dies, sometimes they do not. There is room for five bullets in a classic revolver, so the risk of dying is 20%. Some traditional revolvers have room for 6 bullets, so the player's chances of survival are improved.
The history of Russian roulette
Here is how the phenomenon of roulette first appeared in Russia. According to a myth about Russian roulette, it all began with the bourgeoisie. They were bored and developed the Russian roulette game for the sake of having an occupation. However, they did not get that rush of adrenaline, but rushed death.
Their version of Russian roulette involved that two combatants challenged each other. The challenger pressed the revolver against the opponent’s temples. If the opponent survived, it was their turn to shoot the revolver.
Another myth goes back to the Russian army, where officers wanted to prove their mental strength. It is also said that bored jailers also played Russian roulette with the prisoners as targets. They bet on whether the prisoner would survive or not.
Movies about Russian roulette
A movie about Russian roulette known throughout the world is “Deer Hunter”, which was released in 1978. However, Russian roulette was known in Sweden long before thanks to the film “Smiles”, which was released in cinemas in 1955. Even the television series “Heroes” includes an episode about Russian roulette.
