Evolution in Canada
The live studio behind Crazy Time, Lightning Roulette and Dream Catcher: how its live tables, game shows and RNG games differ, how the RTP is shown for each bet, how to check it inside a game, and where its games are offered in Ontario, Alberta and the rest of Canada.
Key facts
- 2,000+ live tables and game show sets, by the studio’s own count
- 96.08% Crazy Time’s highest published RTP; its other bets return as little as 94.41%
- 5 Canadian jurisdictions on its licences page: Ontario, Alberta, B.C., Quebec and Atlantic Canada
What Evolution games are like
Evolution is a live studio: a dealer or a host runs each round with real cards, wheels or dice, filmed in a studio and streamed to your screen. Next to its live games it makes First Person games, RNG versions of the same tables and shows. The group also owns NetEnt, Red Tiger, Ezugi, Big Time Gaming and Nolimit City; this page covers the Evolution brand.
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Live tables
Blackjack, roulette, baccarat, poker and dice games dealt by a person in a studio. Card readers and wheel sensors record each result, and every table runs on a clock that is the same for all players. A Speed Roulette round takes about 25 seconds, about half a standard live round.
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Live game shows
A host spins a large wheel or starts a draw. Crazy Time (2020), Dream Catcher and Monopoly Live each use a wheel of 54 segments. In Crazy Time about 1 spin in 6 lands on a feature round segment, according to Evolution, and only players with a bet on that segment take part.
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First Person games
RNG versions of live games and shows, such as First Person Blackjack and First Person Craps, drawn as animated 3D tables. You start each round yourself, and Evolution’s games website runs them in demo mode with play money.
- Live or RNG: check the name
“First Person” in the title means an RNG game. Some of them have a button that opens the live table of the same game, which runs on the table clock, with real cards and other players.
- Table limits differ by table and site
Each table shows its minimum and maximum bets in a Bet Limits panel, and the help screen says these limits may change from time to time. Its Vancouver studio was built so that each Canadian jurisdiction can offer shared or dedicated tables, so the tables and limits in your lobby can differ from another province’s.
- Streamed from studios around the world
Evolution runs studios in Europe, North and South America and Asia. Its Canadian studio in Metro Vancouver was built for the provincial lottery corporations; its main hubs are Riga, Malta and Tbilisi.
- Multipliers are paid for by the game
In shows and “Lightning” tables, random multipliers are funded by lower regular payouts or by a fee: Lightning Baccarat charges 20% on every bet. The long-run average stays at the published RTP while results swing more.
How RTP and house edge are shown
Evolution’s live games publish a return to player (RTP) for each bet, not one figure for the whole game. At a table the RTP comes from the rules and the payouts; in a game show every spot on the betting grid has its own. These are the figures our guides give for Evolution games and for the live tables it runs.
| Game and bet | RTP | House edge | Long-run average cost per C$100 bet |
|---|---|---|---|
| Live baccarat, Banker | 98.94% | 1.06% | C$1.06 |
| Live baccarat, Player | 98.76% | 1.24% | C$1.24 |
| Live European roulette | 97.30% | 2.70% | C$2.70 |
| Dream Catcher, bet on 10 | 96.58% | 3.42% | C$3.42 |
| Crazy Time, highest-returning bet | 96.08% | 3.92% | C$3.92 |
| Crazy Time, lowest-returning bet | 94.41% | 5.59% | C$5.59 |
| Dream Catcher, bet on 40 | 90.81% | 9.19% | C$9.19 |
Averages over a very large number of rounds; a single session can end anywhere above or below them. Crazy Time’s range is published by Evolution; the Dream Catcher figures are calculated from its wheel layout. Baccarat and roulette edges are those of the standard rules.
In an Evolution game the bet you pick sets the cost, not only the game. In Dream Catcher a bet on 40 costs about 2.7 times as much over time as a bet on 10, and versions with multipliers, fees or side bets have their own figures. The help screen of the table you open lists the RTP of every bet.
How to check the RTP in an Evolution game
Evolution’s help screens have a section called Return to Player. This is how to find it, using the First Person Blackjack demo on desktop, checked on 20 October 2026.
Open the game where you play
Check the table on the site you use. Tables, rules and limits can differ between sites and provinces, so a review page or the studio’s demo is only a guide.
Open the help screen
In First Person Blackjack it is the question mark in the row of four small icons at the top right of the game window, the third icon after sound and settings and before full screen. It opens a panel titled How To Play.
Choose Return to Player in the menu
The panel has a menu on the left. Under Return to Player the demo gives “the optimal theoretical payout percentage” for the main blackjack bet as 99.29%, followed by lower figures for the Perfect Pairs and 21+3 side bets. “Optimal” means it assumes the right decision on every hand.
Check the bet limits
The Place Bets section of the same panel points to the Bet Limits panel, which shows the minimum and maximum bet at that table. Side bets have their own limits.
At live tables, check before the countdown
Live tables and game shows have no play-money version, so we could not open one. Their help screens list the RTP for each bet; read it before the betting timer starts, and if you cannot find it, ask the operator’s support team.
What the games look like
Evolution’s live tables and game shows have no play-money version, and we do not use the studio’s photos of its dealers and hosts. The screenshot below is from the free demo of First Person Craps on Evolution’s own games website, taken on 13 October 2026. For illustrations of live studio tables, see our live dealer games guide.
Evolution games in our guides
Six of our game guides use an Evolution game as an example. The figures below come from those guides.
| Game (links to our guide) | Type | What the guide shows |
|---|---|---|
| Crazy Time, Dream Catcher, Monopoly Live | Live game shows | Crazy Time returns 94.41% to 96.08% depending on the bet, Dream Catcher 90.81% to 96.58% across its six number bets |
| Speed Roulette | Live roulette | About 25 seconds per round, so about twice as many rounds an hour at the same 2.70% edge |
| Lightning Roulette | Multiplier roulette | Random multipliers on a few numbers each round; a standard straight-up bet pays less to compensate |
| Speed Baccarat, Lightning Baccarat | Live baccarat | About 27 seconds a round against about 48 at a standard table; Lightning Baccarat charges a 20% fee on every bet |
| Live Craps, First Person Craps | Live and RNG craps | The house edge of every bet; screenshot of the First Person Craps layout |
| Super Sic Bo | Multiplier sic bo | Random multipliers on a few bet areas, so payouts and RTP differ from a standard table |
Is Evolution available in Ontario, Alberta and the rest of Canada?
A game studio does not run casinos. It supplies its games to operators and provincial platforms, and in a regulated province it needs its own registration first. This is where Evolution stands, as checked on 20 October 2026.
Ontario
- Regulator AGCO
- Class Supplier
- Open market Since 4 April 2022
Evolution lists a certificate of registration as a supplier with the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO). It went live with several operators on 4 April 2022, the day Ontario’s open market launched, with its live games, game shows and First Person games plus NetEnt and Red Tiger slots. Since October 2021 the provincial lottery corporation’s own site has also streamed its tables from the Vancouver studio. Under the Registrar’s Standards, each game must be approved by the Registrar or certified by a registered independent testing lab before it goes live.
Alberta
- Regulator AGLC
- Class Critical gaming systems provider
- Valid until 13 July 2027
The public list of gaming registrants kept by Alberta Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis (AGLC) shows two Evolution companies, Evolution Gaming Malta Limited and Evolution Malta Limited, as iGaming critical gaming systems providers, both expiring on 13 July 2027. Evolution has supplied the province’s Crown platform since 2021 and says it extended its games to licensed operators when Alberta’s regulated market opened on 13 July 2026.
Rest of Canada
- B.C. Supplier registration, studio in Metro Vancouver
- Quebec Authorized supplier
- Atlantic Canada Registered through Nova Scotia
- Manitoba, Saskatchewan Not confirmed
Outside Ontario and Alberta, each province offers online casino games through its own Crown platform, and the territories have none. Evolution built its Metro Vancouver studio under a 2017 agreement with British Columbia’s provincial lottery corporation and lists a supplier registration with the province’s Independent Gambling Control Office. It also lists an authorization from Quebec’s Autorité des marchés financiers to contract with a public body, and a Nova Scotia registration for lottery equipment supplied to the Atlantic lottery corporation. We have not confirmed Manitoba or Saskatchewan. Our guide Are online casinos legal in Canada? covers each province.
Testing and fairness
- Tested before a game goes live
Evolution’s website does not name the labs that test its games; its footer carries the eCOGRA seal. In Ontario every game must be approved by the Registrar or certified by a registered independent testing lab.
- Machines read the result
At live tables, card readers, wheel sensors and optical character recognition pass each result to the game server, which settles the bets. The dealer announces the result but cannot change it.
- Live and RNG parts
The main result of a live game comes from physical cards, a wheel or dice. Random multipliers and First Person games use a random number generator, which is tested in the same way.
- No memory in either
Each round is independent. The results board shows past rounds only, and a long run of one result makes the next round no more or less likely.
Frequently asked questions
Play within your limits
Evolution’s live tables run on a clock and the house edge applies to every round, whichever bet you choose. Set a time and money limit before you start and treat any spend as the cost of entertainment. 19+ (18+ in Alberta, Manitoba and Quebec). Free, confidential help: ConnexOntario 1-866-531-2600, and every province’s helpline is on our responsible gambling page.