Elsewhere in this section we’ve had a look at the all of the different types of game that you can play on Gala Bingo’s site. We’ve explored what to expect from a game of 90 ball bingo, 80 ball bingo, 75 ball bingo and 50 bingo. Now we’re down to the last variation of one of the nation’s favourite games, the 40 ball variation of bingo.
The Premise
Tickets for 40 ball bingo feature eight spaces, arranged in four columns that are each two rows deep. Whereas in 90 ball bingo you’ll find that some of the spaces on your ticket are left blank, that doesn’t happen with 40 ball bingo. Instead, each space has a random number between 1 and 40 assigned to it.
You’ll be able to buy just a single ticket for 40 ball bingo games in most instances, but do bear in mind that other players will likely be buying the maximum number available and will therefore stand more chance of winning than someone with just a solitary ticket. Typically people tend to buy strips of tickets and in 40 ball bingo a strip consists of 5 tickets.
If you’re on this site then you probably know how bingo works, but just for the avoidance of doubt we’ll explain in a little more detail now. For this game there are 40 balls ‘placed’ into the pot, hence its name of 40 ball bingo. Each ball has a different number from 1 to 40 on them and they are mixed up and then ‘drawn’ at random, with the number being read out. If you have a ticket with the corresponding number on it then that number gets ‘marked off’, with the aim being to mark a certain amount of numbers off in order to win a prize.
Winning
If you were to play a game with more balls involved, such as 90 ball bingo, then the ways that you could win prizes would be numerous. The more balls there are or the specific the shape of the ticket, the more options there are for how you win. Obviously that is not the case with 40 ball bingo. The game is much more about speed of play and moving on to the next one as soon as the first has been won, so you’ll find that the methods of winning are far more narrow.
Normally the first prize is won by getting something like 1 line or a particular pattern. For example, in the Rainbow Riches game on the Gala site the first prize is given to the player that achieves a ‘Full Clover’, or four numbers marked off in a square. The second prize in 40 ball bingo games goes to the first player to mark off all numbers on their ticket. This is often called House or Bingo.
Features & Jackpots
Some 40 ball bingo games will have added features, but they don’t necessarily work in the same way as 90 ball bingo games. In the larger games a Feature normally offers the player that achieved House the opportunity to win further money by playing a random game or something similar. In 40 ball bingo the Feature tends to be based more at rewarding people who play regularly; this is a game with a quick turnover after all. So you might find that if you play 40 games then you’re rewarded with some bonus money.
Sometimes specific games might offer something like 1ToGo or 2ToGo as a feature. This is where there is a pot of money set to one side that is shared out between any users who find themselves looking for just 1 or 2 balls when someone wins House. Again, this isn’t the case with every 40 ball bingo game, so keep your eye out in specific rooms for this Feature.
Jackpots also tend to work slightly differently in 40 ball bingo rooms than in the likes of 90 ball or 75 ball bingo rooms. Instead of one large, progressive jackpot that is won when House is achieved within a certain number of calls, you might find that there are several smaller jackpots, which are won after a specific length of time and shared out between all players of the game. It’s worth bearing in mind that games can be operated in different manners from each other, so what’s written here isn’t exactly set in stone. That said, this is the most common way for 40 ball games to work right now.
Example Games on Gala Site
There is, at this moment in time, only one 40 ball game on the Gala Bingo site. That is Rainbow Riches, which works in a very specific way. The game itself has two prizes, the first for the aforementioned Full Clover and the second for House.
The Feature is called The Wishing Well, with users who have managed to collect 40 Gold Coins rewarded with a £5 bonus, £2.50 of which can be used in the Rainbow Riches Bingo Room and the other £2.50 is for the equivalent slot game. The room often has 1ToGo or 2ToGo games and there are also three jackpots. For more information on this game head to the Rainbow Riches Bingo Room description on this site.
