slots

What are your other favorites at the casino?
pokeherguy
Senior Member
Posts: 413
Joined: Thu Feb 22, 2007 10:27 pm

slots

Post by pokeherguy »

I've never been much of a slot player but everyone else I know has always played them because the hate vp. Its gotten to the point I can't get anyone to go to the casino with me anymore because they are all complaining about how tight the machines have gotten. I've heard that term several times over the years (the machines were tight) but have never paid much attention to it until lately. I've got to admit the machines are not like they used to be. I've made it a point to walk from one end of the casino to the other at least once while I'm there in search of jackpots my last three trips. I still see a lot of players but not once in all three times did I see a jackpot, which does seem a little odd because while I very rarely played slots I saw jackpots all the time. The folks I know must not be the only ones complaining because they have now started announcing when jackpots are hit. Been going to the casino for a lot of years and not once had I ever heard them announce jackpots. Aren't slots pretty much like vp though, only difference is the payback percentage ?

vidopoker
Senior Member
Posts: 414
Joined: Mon Dec 10, 2007 1:34 am

Post by vidopoker »

at least with VP you have some control over how you play. once you get the draw, you can discard and hold certain cards to better your outcome. and some vp machines can return over 100% with perfect play in the loooong run. you don't see too many slots that return over 99% and even then, only one slot machine on a bank is required to return 99%. the rest can be set to return much lower than that. and with vp, you know the return ahead of time b/c the pay schedule is right there on the screen. with slots, you never know what you're getting.
on a normal wknd trip to vegas, i will probably play 1 hr of slots the whole 3 days and many,many hours of vp. it's more fun to play a game that requires some thought and skill as opposed to just sitting there and hitting the spin button.

EDC1977
Video Poker Master
Posts: 2001
Joined: Wed Aug 15, 2007 3:12 pm

Post by EDC1977 »

Vido, thats the beauty of playing VP vs. slots. Whether you're pushing a button marked spin reels or one marked deal/draw, it's still pushing a button but you know in advance what the payout expectancy is whereas slots don't have a listed ER, only payout schedules for each hit. Better to be in control of your destiny than to totally leave it up to an RNG. Thats my take on it.

shadowman
Video Poker Master
Posts: 3587
Joined: Mon Oct 23, 2006 5:42 pm

Post by shadowman »

It could be the casinos have lowered the payout on the slots or it could be there aren't as many people playiing. I know that is true everywhere I've been playing over the last year. With fewer people playing you won't see as many jackpots. It could be both.

pokeherguy
Senior Member
Posts: 413
Joined: Thu Feb 22, 2007 10:27 pm

Post by pokeherguy »

When you say lowered thier payout on slots how would that work? On a slot machine you still have the payouts on the front of the machine. I have noticed the same slot machine at different casinos that might pay 60 credits for triple bars while the other casino pays 80 credits for triple bars. I'm sure with all the job layoffs around the area attendence has to be down and even on weekends it could be that people aren't tossing quite as many dollars in as before. Whatever the case may be its does seem to be having a negative effect on people as far as whether they should go or not. The people I run into more or less are saying "whats the point, I'm not going to drive all the way down there to donate money". Best I can tell though the casinos are trying very hard to attract more customers with all the free room offers and such. Theres just not as much money floating around right now so it stands to reason that would be the case in the casinos also.

MikeA
Video Poker Master
Posts: 1615
Joined: Tue Oct 24, 2006 3:50 pm

Post by MikeA »

Pokeherguy,

"They" don't have to change the number of credits paid out on specific hits for slots as they do for Video Poker to change the overall amount of payout for the machine.

With LEGAL Video Poker machines, the only way to control the payoff or RETURN on the machine is to lower the paytables (making flushes pay 5 instead of 6 for one credit bet for example)

However on slot machines, they don't have to lower the number of credits payed out for, say 3-cherries in order to reduce the payout! They can control the frequency that those 3-cherries are likely to come up! And, they can change that frequency LEGALLY within boundaries. If they reduce the frequency, then they are reducing the return unless they increase the frequency on some other jackpot or payoff hand to compensate.

The State that the casino operates in will have a regulation that sets a floor on the lowest return a slot machine can have. So as long as the casino stays at or above that floor, they can "TIGHTEN" the machine all they wish by adjusting what amounts to the frequency that the payoff hands hit.

cddenver
Video Poker Master
Posts: 2269
Joined: Tue Mar 13, 2007 9:54 pm

Post by cddenver »


The State that the casino operates in will have a regulation that sets a floor on the lowest return a slot machine can have. So as long as the casino stays at or above that floor, they can "TIGHTEN" the machine all they wish by adjusting what amounts to the frequency that the payoff hands hit.
 
In most states that floor is 80% and based on theoretically perfect play.  So in practice, the actual return could be less than that.  Ouch.

MikeA
Video Poker Master
Posts: 1615
Joined: Tue Oct 24, 2006 3:50 pm

Post by MikeA »

In most states that floor is 80% and based on theoretically perfect play.  So in practice, the actual return could be less than that.  Ouch.

How can you have less than perfect "slot" play

Theoretically, "they" could reduce the payout on VP to 80%. Can you imagine the paytables on something like THAT?

cddenver
Video Poker Master
Posts: 2269
Joined: Tue Mar 13, 2007 9:54 pm

Post by cddenver »


How can you have less than perfect "slot" play

 
Ha, ha, I think I may have you on this one!  I don't play slots myself, but aren't there slot machines where you have the option of doubling your wager (or something like that) based on the result of an initial spin?  Where there's a possible strategy.  Perhaps the slot equivalent of Faygo's Favorite VP? (DD Stud) 
 
Maybe one of our slots players will help me out on this one.

pokeherguy
Senior Member
Posts: 413
Joined: Thu Feb 22, 2007 10:27 pm

Post by pokeherguy »

{How can you have less than perfect "slot" play}
 
Over here we actually have lock-&-roll slot machines. You push the button the first spin then decide what to hold for the second spin.

Post Reply