Can Casinos Tighten Slot Machines
- Can Casinos Tighten Up Slot Machines
- Can Casinos Tighten Slot Machines
- Do Casinos Tighten Up Slot Machines
- People still think that, in the middle of a Thursday night, casinos tighten machines for the weekend. They swear they've seen the machines open; they must be changing the payback on those machines. My wins/losses go in spurts. I win for months at a time, then lose for several visits.
- If you've ever contemplated spinning the reels of a slot or have, in fact, spun one (or a few!), you've probably asked yourself a few questions every serious player in the iGaming industry has - can slot machines be rigged to trick the player, what are the odds of winning slots, are slot machines honest, and do casinos manipulate slot machines at the player’s expense.
Casinos can and will tighten machines from time to time, but the decision to do so is not taken lightly, and it’s certainly not done with any type of regularity. Unfortunately, it is far more.
Dispelling Slot Myths
By Henry Tamburin
Here are some popular misconceptions about slot machines and why they are false.
'Casinos can tighten or loosen the payback on a slot machine at will'
Many slot players believe that casinos can get more money from players by decreasing their paybacks on slot machines (tighten them) before a busy holiday weekend when the casino is crowded with players. The fact of the matter is that in most gaming jurisdictions they can't change a machines payback without first notifying the state regulatory agency with a lot of paperwork. In some states the local gaming commission must be present when the change is made. It's literally too much of a pain for casinos to lower the paybacks for a short period of time and then turn around and raise them.
'She stole my jackpot'
You've either read the stories or seen it happen in person. A player is playing a machine then decides to take a break and some other player jumps in, plays, and hits the jackpot. If the first player would have played a little while longer that jackpot would have been hers. Right? Nope. The reason is that the likelihood that the first player would have hit that jackpot if she played longer is slim to none. A Random Number generator that the computer chip uses to determine the results of each spin is constantly running even if the machine is idle. The RGN spits out a sequence of random numbers hundred of times each second (remember each sequence of numbers corresponds to the symbols that you see on the reels). Whatever the RGN number was at the split second that you hit the spin button or pull the handle is used to determine the symbols on each reel. Therefore the likelihood that the first player if she stayed and played would have hit the spin button at the same exact time as the second player did is highly unlikely.
'A Machine that just hit the jackpot won't hit again soon'
The RNG determines the results of your spin. It doesn't know or care what happened in the past. Your chance of hitting the jackpot on the next spin is the same regardless of when the jackpot was hit.
'You'll get a better payback if you alternate pulling the handle and hitting the spin button'
When you do either it tells the computer in the slot machine to get the number that was generated by the RNG, which will determine the symbols you see on each reel after they stoop spinning. The results will be the same regardless of whether you hit the spin button or pull the handle.
'Looser machines are placed near entrance ways to casinos to attract more players '
Back in the old days when slot machines were not as popular as they are today, that may have been the case. But nowadays slot managers order slots machines with nearly the same paybacks as their competitors for each denomination of machine and group slot machines by denomination and types on the casino floor.
'Always ask the slot attendant where the better paying machined are located'
Slot attendants are hard working folks but they don't have any more knowledge then you or I as to which machine will pay off next. They'll offer advice on which machines to play if asked by players because if the player gets lucky and hits a jackpot they know they will receive a tip.
In every area of entertainment – art, films, sports, entertainment – a plethora of myths and legends have sprung over the years. This is especially true in areas such as gambling, where players are generally suspicious that the house (casino) will try and increase its already clear advantage. Today we’ll take a look at some of the popular slot machine myths, and try and separate myth from reality…
Myth: Slots are programmed for a designated payoff cycle. Even though this cycle can contain thousands of spins, once it reaches its end, the outcomes will repeat themselves in the exact same order as the last cycle.
Fact: False. Each spin is completely random, independent from all previous spins.
Myth: Slot machines are programmed to pay off a particular percentage of bets. Thus, after a jackpot is hit, the machine will tighten up to get back in the balance. On the other hand, when the jackpot has not been hit for a long time, it is overdue and more likely to hit.
Fact: Each spin is independent for past spins. Consequently, the odds are always the same – it makes no difference when the last jackpot occurred or how much the game paid out in the last hour, day or week.
Myth: Machines pay more if a player’s slot club card is not used
Fact: False. The mechanism determining the outcome of each play doesn’t consider whether a card is used or not. The odds are the same with or without one. Furthermore, by not using you player’s card you are denying yourself valuable comps and sometimes cash back from the casino.
Myth: Using a player card enables casinos to report any winnings to the IRS
Fact: If you’ve won over $1,200, the casino reports you no matter what. If you have a net losing year, the casino may have evidence of it, and such statements may be used as evidence to declare offsetting loses to jackpot wins.
Myth: Slot machines can be manipulated remotely by the casino’s slot department to tighten the slot. You better tip the staff well or else…
Fact: There is some truth to the stories that a machine’s odds can be changed remotely. What’s known as “server-based slots” are still in an experimental phase and are and in a vast minority compared to the classic one-armed bandits roaming the casinos. However, regulations are enforced to protect the player from possible abuses, and in any case, once the player inserts credits into the machine, no change can be made. For the more “traditional” machines, someone would be required to physically open the slot up to make any change.
Myth: the machines closer to the doors, entrance/exits and overall heavy traffic areas tend to be more “loose” while those in quieter areas tend to be “tight.”
Fact: There is no correlation between slot placement and the machine’s payouts.
Myth: Slot machines are more inclined to be “looser” during slow hours on slow days of the week. On the other hand, when the casino is busy, management tightens up the machines.
Fact: Casinos try to strike a good balance between being profitable and having players that leave the games happy. If the slots are too tight, it’s less likely the player will return to this casino, so management want the slot machines loose enough to give the player what’s called a long “time on device,” meaning that he spent enough time on the slot machine to warrant a future return to the same casino.
Myth: Some lucky SOB hit a jackpot on the machine you just left – you would have gotten that jackpot if you kept playing. #%&@!
Fact: Surprise – Not true! There’s a computer chip inside the slot machine that runs the Random Number Generator (RNG). The RNG continuously cycles through numbers even when the machine is stands idle. These numbers correspond to the stops on the wheel that display the winning or losing symbols that you see when the reels stop. When you hit the spin button or pull the slot’s handle, the RNG picks the combination at that given microsecond. If you had stayed at the machine, there’s no guarantee whatsoever that you would have stopped the RNG at the exact nanosecond to display that same combination of numbers. In the time it takes for you to sip your drink, the RNG has cycled through thousands of combinations.
Myth: The temperature of the coins will affect the machine’s payout
Fact: Not true. The machine is not affected by temperature and does not need a sweater or bathing suit. It doesn’t matter if you play hot, cold, old or new coins (unless their chocolate coins, which no machine accepts). The coin slot is a mechanical device and is impervious to name-calling, pleading, hugs or swearing.
Can Casinos Tighten Up Slot Machines
And – perhaps the most underrated slot machine myth of all…
Myth: There are tiny leprechauns working inside the machines. If they don’t like your face – you don’t win.
Fact: completely false…slots area totally mechanized (and today, mostly computerized). Also, there’s hardly any room inside for any leprechauns.
Can Casinos Tighten Slot Machines
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Do Casinos Tighten Up Slot Machines
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