So who pays for those Volcanic eruptions? Pirate Battles? Carnival Parades? and Glittering Showrooms? Slot Machines. 60-65% of casino revenue is generated by those bell-ringing one armed bandits that seem to multiply on casino floors like rabbits. So how does the average player gain an advantage and possibly win? Well... aside from cheating (which we really don't suggest you get involved in) the only way to gain some sort of advantage is to choose your slots with utmost care and discrimination.
Slot machine games are regulated by each country. Complying with different regulations may mean that a slot maker must change how its games work. The clearest example I can give is how slot games are decided in the United States. Class II slot games decide the outcome on the basis of one random number then configure the display to match that. Gaming machine payouts: return-to-player. Gaming machines, also called fruit machines, slots machines or FOBTs, are required to clearly display the percentage return-to-player figure (% RTP), or the odds of winning a prize. Gaming machines offer different prize amounts depending on their category.
Slot machines in Las Vegas are required by law to payout 75% of the money that goes into them, actual payout in Las Vegas is approximately 95%. Will you be the one that takes the money instead of gives it? That is up to luck, but with a little investigation one can easily learn to identify which machines are more favorable to the player than others. Slot machines are all about the payout... Red White and Blue, Double Diamond, Dick Fucking Clark, Cherry whatever. At the end of the day what every slot player needs to do is look at the pay schedule on the machine they want to play. Very often the same machine one row over will pay 5,000 credits on 3rd credit jackpot while you're playing on a 2,000 3rd credit machine. Plain and simple you're cheating yourself.
Slot Spotlights
A few notable slot machines we here at VT have found more playable, or more interesting, than the other nonsense out there like Leprachaun's Gold or Tabasco Slots or whatever.
Average Slot Machine Odds
We like machines that have the best payouts on the lowest winning spins. These will keep you going longer between larger wins and not enact the ATM-In-Reverse principle seen at many of the larger joints (Venetian being the worst we've experienced).
100 or Nothing
Red, White and Blue
Slot Machine Jackpots Photo Gallery
Wheel of Fortune
Wild Cherry
Slot Machine Payback Percentages
Below are the slot payback percentages for Nevada's fiscal year beginning July 1, 2002 and ending June 30, 2003:
5¢ Slot Machines
The Strip - 90.32%
Downtown - 91.50%
Boulder Strip - 93.03%
N. Las Vegas - 92.97%
25¢ Slot Machines
The Strip - 92.59%
Downtown - 94.83%
Boulder Strip - 96.47%
N. Las Vegas - 96.63%
$1 Slot Machines
The Strip - 94.67%
Downtown - 95.35%
Boulder Strip - 96.48%
N. Las Vegas - 97.21%
$1 Megabucks Machines
The Strip - 89.12%
Downtown - 88.55%
Boulder Strip - 87.76%
N. Las Vegas - 89.41%
$5 Slot Machines
The Strip - 95.33%
Downtown - 95.61%
Boulder Strip - 96.53%
N. Las Vegas - 96.50%
All Slot Machines
The Strip - 93.85%
Downtown - 94.32%
Boulder Strip - 95.34%
N. Las Vegas - 95.32%
The Math of Casino Slot Machines
For every dollar you wager in a slot machine, you will lose 100% - Payback% of that dollar. For example, you're at Bellagio playing the $1 Double Diamond slot, wagering Two Credits ($2) per spin. According to the table, for every $2 spin you will lose 5.33% of that bet... just shy of 11¢. Granted these 11 cents don't get extracted instantly... this is computed over time. So if your bank roll limit is $10 it will take you, on average 52 spins before your bankroll is toast (under $1) and you are out of credits.
How was this number derived:
STAKE x (Payback Percentages) = STAKE x (Payback Percentages) = STAKE x (Payback Percentages) = ...
Repeat calculation until the number gets below the minimum bet - if you play long enough, you're gonna go broke. THAT is a FACT. Slot machines are entertaining, relaxing, require little thought beyond pressing a button. IF you want to truly GAMBLE, you might want to look into Video Poker, and eventually Blackjack as other options.
Granted, sometime in there you just might hit that $500 win on the Wheel of Fortune, or The Elvis progressive might shake rattle and roll $1000 your way... but the math inside the machine determines that you will in fact lose a certain percentage of your wager on each spin, and the more you spin... the more you will lose despite short runs of successful jackpots. If you find you are UP... leave. Every spin of a slot machine generates a random number that has NOTHING to do with previous numbers. SLOT MACHINES do NOT run in streaks (even if you might wish to think they do). Don't expect to get any of the money you put into a machine out of it unless you learn to press the CASH OUT button.
Gamblers Library
Digital Slot Machine Legally Publish Odds Online
VT fully recommends the following books to help you decrease the house advantage on casino card games.
Buy used from Amazon.com and save big bucks!
A fixed odds betting terminal (FOBT, sometimes pronounced 'fob-tee') is a type of electronic slot machine normally found in betting shops in the United Kingdom and introduced in 2001. The terminals allow players to bet on the outcome of various games and events which have fixed odds, with the theoretical percentage return to player (RTP) displayed on the machine by law.[1] Like all casino games, the 'house' (i.e. the betting shop) has a built-in advantage. Typically, slot machine FOBTs have an RTP of 90% to 94% depending on the chosen stake, and standard roulette FOBTs have a long-term average RTP of 97%.
The most commonly played game is roulette. The minimum amount wagered per spin is £1 and the maximum is £100. The largest single payout cannot exceed £500 and this can limit the wager size e.g. the maximum wager on a single number on roulette at odds of 35:1 is £14.[2]Token coins can be of value as low as five pence in some UK licensed betting offices (LBOs).[citation needed] Other games include bingo, simulated horseracing and greyhound racing, and a range of slot machine games.
In May 2018, the national government agreed with a reform campaign to cut the maximum bet for some games from £100 to £2. The terminals allegedly lead some players into problem gambling. The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) announced the policy change, which requires legislation in Parliament.[3][needs update]j
Machines[edit]
FOBTs typically include a touchscreen and a slot for depositing cash. The major hardware manufacturers for the UK market are Scientific Games Corporation and Inspired Gaming.[4]
Legislation[edit]
United Kingdom[edit]
Slot Machine Odds By State
Under current UK legislation, these machines are allowed to offer content classed as Category B2, Category B3 as well as Category C content. The main article tabulates the legal maximum stakes and payouts.
Shops are allowed up to four terminals, although this number also includes traditional slot machines. Most shops favour the new FOBTs over the traditional slot machines. The Gambling Commission reports that there were 33,319 FOBTs in Britain's betting offices between October 2011 and September 2012.[5]
FOBTs have been criticised due to the potential for addiction when playing the machines. They have been dubbed the 'crack cocaine' of gambling by critics.[6][7] In response to this criticism, in 2014 bookmakers represented by the Association of British Bookmakers introduced the facility for customers to set time and money limits when using FOBTs.[8] In October 2017, the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport began studying the possibility of reducing the £100 maximum bet limit[9] and a decision was made in May 2018 to limit the maximum bet to £2.[10] This new maximum bet limit came into effect on 1 April 2019. Multiple bookmakers argued that the resultant loss of revenue could force them to downsize their high street operations (with the industry estimating that 2,100 shops could be collectively closed): in July 2019, William Hill announced plans to close 700 shops, primarily citing the new regulation. MP Tracey Crouch countered these arguments, noting that industry statistics showed downward trends in revenue from physical betting shops in favour of online betting, even before the restriction came into effect.[11]
Scotland[edit]
As a result of the Scottish Referendum on Independence on 18 September 2014, The Smith Commission convened, led by Lord Smith of Kelvin KT. On 27 November 2014 the Report of the Smith Commission for further devolution of powers to the Scottish Parliament was published.[12] Page 22 under the heading 'Betting, Gaming and Lotteries' states 'The Scottish Parliament will have the power to prevent the proliferation of Fixed-Odds Betting Terminals'. All five main parties (SNP, Greens, Conservative, Labour, Liberal) agreed the terms of the report. Devolution of this power to the Scottish Parliament will be enacted through the UK parliament in due course. Page 11 of the report states: 'The UK government has undertaken to produce draft clauses implementing' ... this and ... 'will publish these clauses by 25th Jan 2015'.
Northern Ireland[edit]
There are over 900 FOBTs in operation in Northern Ireland, but campaign group Fairer Gambling argues that they may not be legal under Northern Irish law, as the Gambling Act 2005 only applies in England, Wales and Scotland. In 2015 the Department for Social Development said that only a judge could rule on their legality.[13]
Republic of Ireland[edit]
A 2008 betting review in the Republic of Ireland ruled that the machines should not be introduced in Irish betting shops but would be allowed in casinos.[14]
Money laundering[edit]
It is claimed FOBTs are used for money laundering by paying cash into the terminal, making low-risk bets which involve a small relative loss, and withdrawing most of the proceeds as a voucher which is exchanged for cash at the shop counter.[15] Changes in the UKGC regulators code have sought to eradicate the potential for money laundering.[16]
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^http://www.gamblingcommission.gov.uk/for-gambling-businesses/Compliance/Sector-specific-compliance/Arcades-and-machines/Gaming-machine-categories/B2-gaming-machines.aspx%7C
- ^Bowers, Simon (9 May 2005). 'Roulette machines blamed for rise in gambling addiction'. The Guardian. Retrieved 9 November 2009.
- ^Davies, Rob (17 May 2018) 'Maximum stake for fixed-odds betting terminals cut to £2'. The Guardian.
- ^FOI request to Gambling Commission https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/fixed_odds_betting_terminals_2
- ^Gambling industry statistics April 2009 to September 2012 http://www.gamblingcommission.gov.uk/pdf/Industry%20Statistics%20-%20June%202013.pdf
- ^Coyle, Simon (25 January 2013). 'Rochdale stakes £72m on gambling machines'.
- ^'Roulette machines: the crack cocaine of gambling'. The Guardian. 27 May 2013. Retrieved 27 May 2013.
- ^BBC News https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-26378026
- ^Cheetham, Joshua; Palumbo, Daniele (31 October 2017). 'Bookies brace for possible sales hit'. Retrieved 1 November 2018 – via www.bbc.co.uk.
- ^'Betting machine stakes cut to £2'. 17 May 2018. Retrieved 1 November 2018 – via www.bbc.co.uk.
- ^Davies, Rob (2019-07-04). 'A quarter of UK betting shops could close, with 12,000 jobs at risk'. The Guardian. Retrieved 2019-07-06.
- ^'The Smith Commission'. The Smith Commission.
- ^'Only judge can decide on legality of raft of NI betting machines'. www.newsletter.co.uk.
- ^'Gambling committee chief opposes betting machines'. The Irish Times. 10 October 2008. Retrieved 9 November 2009.
- ^The Guardian, 9 November 2013, The gambling machines helping drug dealers 'turn dirty money clean'
- ^UKGC: Licence conditions and codes of practice