Deal or No Deal Live is Evolution's attempt to recreate a live version of the popular game show Deal or No Deal. As someone who has always been a fan of the main show, I instantly fell in love with the live casino game and marveled at how well it imitates the original.

The game has a decent 95.42% RTP with a maximum payout of up to 500x your initial stake. You can bet as little as $0.10 and up to $900, depending on your preferred casino. Like most live dealer games, there's no demo version for Deal or No Deal, but the $0.10 minimum bet makes the barrier to entry relatively low. If you’re considering whether to play this live game show, read my detailed review to see if it’s worth your time.

Deal or No Deal Live by Evolution attempts to simulate the real-life game show inspiring it. When I first opened the game, it greeted me with a spin wheel that would decide my qualification for the game proper. I had to spin the wheel continuously until a sequence of gold segments aligned at the upper part of the wheel.

Once I scaled through the qualification stage and got into the main game, I couldn't help but notice the striking similarity between this game and the Deal or No Deal TV show. It's not a perfect 1:1 copy; trying to achieve that would be absurdly expensive and unrealistic. But you can't get closer without losing much of the game's pace.

In the interface's foreground is the mic-touting male presenter responsible for anchoring the game. Behind him in the background is a female co-host dutifully revealing the content of the briefcases for every game round. Around them are numbers 1 through 16, representing each briefcase on the screen and how much it contains.

One of the briefcases will be in the foreground with the presenter, which is the final one you'll have if you fail to accept any of the Banker’s offers. The rest will be in the background with the female co-host, who will open them in batches of three or four at a time for each of the game’s rounds.

At the start, you'll have no idea what number is for which briefcase, but as the lady behind opens each briefcase, you'll see a number you can match to the numbers on your screen to determine how much is in each briefcase.

Deal or No Deal Live fundamentally differs from its TV inspiration in several ways. For one, there are 16 briefcases rather than 26, making the games faster to free up the host for other rounds. Also, the TV version of the show has a lady for each briefcase, but only one lady is in charge of all 16 briefcases in this life adaptation, reducing clutter and making it easier for players to follow.

Furthermore, you don't get to say “Deal” or “No Deal” whenever you want to accept or reject an offer. Once the host announces the banker's bid, you get two buttons towards the lower part of the interface: a golden “Deal” button and a black “No Deal.”

Deal or No Deal Live has an interface that closely resembles the eponymous TV show while eliminating the unnecessary bells and whistles to make for a faster and more engaging gaming experience.

Deal or No Deal Live uses the same rules as the original game show. If you’re familiar with the similarly-named TV show, you already know how this game works, but I’ll provide some explanations for the uninitiated.

Deal or No Deal Live has three phases: the qualifying phase, the top-up phase, and the game show proper. In the qualifying phase, you try to align gold segments to qualify for the show. If you’d rather not keep spinning a wheel until you are eligible, you can click “Instant” to start the game for 18x your initial stake.

After scaling through that process, the game directed me to the Top-Up Wheel. The idea of the Top-Up Wheel is to increase your potential return from the game by loading up the briefcases with significant amounts of money before the game begins.

As soon as I finished with the Top-Up Wheel, I got to the third and final phase: the game round. At this point, you can see the host, who will introduce you to the game, and his assistant opening the briefcases in the background at the host’s request.

The host’s assistant will open three or four briefcases for each game round to reveal the content, while the banker will make an offer on the player’s briefcase. Then, the host asks the big question: Deal or No Deal, and two buttons will come up so you can state your decision.

Selecting “Deal” will ultimately end the game, crediting you with the value of the banker’s offer. On the other hand, choosing “No Deal” will push the game to the next round, revealing the content of another two or three briefcases before the banker makes another offer.

The game eventually comes down to two briefcases: yours and one other. At this stage, you can choose to have any of them, and your final reward will be your chosen briefcase’s content.

Deal or No Deal Live is unlike any casino game I've played. If you're considering it, here's what to know about the game before jumping in:

RTP

The average RTP of Deal or No Deal Live by Evolution stands at 95.42%, which is a decent number considering the 96% industry average. However, Deal or No Deal isn't a wholly randomized game like slots. With a strong strategy and some experience, you should be able to outperform the RTP consistently.

Maximum Win

The maximum amount you can win on Deal or No Deal Live is 500x your initial bet amount. In practice, wagering $5 can potentially fetch you up to $2,500 on the rare occasion you achieve the maximum multiplier.

Betting limits

The minimum bet for Deal or No Deal Live is $0.10, but the maximum bet amount depends on the casino you're playing at. I've seen figures between $200 and $900 for the upper limit, but you may want to check with your casino's terms and conditions for clarification.

Being a live adaptation of a TV show, Deal or No Deal Live is relatively lean on bonus features. The single feature that might qualify as one is the Top-Up Wheel, and here’s how it works:

Top-Up Wheel

The Top-Up Wheel is a spin wheel with random multipliers ranging from 5x to 50x to modify the amount in some of your briefcases. To get started, you select any of the 16 briefcases and proceed to spin the wheel. Whatever multiplier you land would be the value of the money in the chosen briefcase.

The Top-Up Wheel is typically only available for a limited period, so I had to use it quickly before the time ran out. Using the Top-Up Wheel is also optional; you can skip directly to the game without using it.

I've always been a fan of the Deal or No Deal game show, so it's only natural that a live adaptation of the show appeals to me. Opening the game for the first time, the outstanding similarities between the real thing and the live adaptation were striking.

The presenter doesn’t appear to be a native English speaker, but I heard everything he said clearly. Deal or No Deal Live by Evolution understandably only allowed me to indicate my decision using buttons labeled “Deal” and “No Deal,” compared to the original game, where the players voice their choice.

I tried the game with $2 and set the qualification difficulty to “Very Easy” during the Spin the Wheel phase to save time. Thanks to the setting, it took me only two spins to qualify for the game, although I had to sacrifice $36 for the convenience ($18 per Very Easy spin).

At the Top-Up Wheel, I added extra money to a couple of briefcases during the 40 seconds allotted for the phase. Once the time elapsed, the main game interface loaded, revealing the host and the co-host. The game started immediately, and I quickly got down to business.

Deal or No Deal Live by Evolution is a live game, however, it still offers a free version called First Person Deal or No Deal to play it for free like other free casino games. You may also want to catch up on a few episodes of Deal or No Deal before jumping into the real money game to familiarize yourself with the rules and how the game works.

As someone who has seen nearly all the game show episodes, I was ready for the challenge. I simply found a casino offering Deal or No Deal Live for real money, created an account, made a deposit, and launched the game.

Playing Deal or No Deal Live for real money at my favorite online casino was quite a journey. The Top-Up wheel gave me some good spins, and then the main action started. The thrill of making decisions based on the banker's offers is something I haven't experienced in any other real money casino game. I was stubborn enough to resist many tempting offers, which led me to a final prize.

Not all online casinos offer Deal or No Deal Live, but it's available on many wagering platforms. Generally, if a site offers live games from Evolution, they'll likely feature the game. Alternatively, you can use my list of the best casino sites for Deal or No Deal Live, consisting only of top platforms I've vetted for legitimacy, security, and fairness.

Just like the live Deal or No Deal version, the First Person variant consists of three stages – qualification, top up, and the main game show. All you need to do is qualify, top up the number of briefcases you want, and select Play to kick-start gameplay.

Here, you can play the game in two game speed modes – normal or fast. Negotiate with the banker for more money and answer the question: Deal or No Deal?

In my opinion, both versions are basically the same. The only significant difference I noticed is the game speed mode and the absence of a presenter. However, First Person Deal or No Deal is available in demo mode. You can play the Deal or No Deal Live casino game in demo mode to learn the basics before trying the live version.

Deal or No Deal Live by Evolution isn’t a classic casino game like blackjack or baccarat, making it one of a kind. With a 95.42% RTP, 500x maximum payout, and a maximum stake of up to $900, there’s very little to complain about with Deal or No Deal Live.

While these numbers are ordinarily impressive, they still underscore the fun experience of playing Deal or No Deal Live. From the mental calculations when deciding whether to accept or reject a deal to the exhilarating feeling of eventually hitting a huge multiplier, Deal or No Deal Live is undoubtedly one-of-a-kind.