Slot machine advantage play

What are your other favorites at the casino?
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lazydeuce
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Re: Slot machine advantage play

Post by lazydeuce »

A couple more banking games to look out for are Rescue Spins(by Aruze, I think) and Alice in Wonderland(not sure of the brand).
These games are a bit older and are generally on the way out, but last year Alice in Wonderland was still in Las Vegas at the Palazzo, the El Cortez, and Binions.
The only Rescue Spins which I found, were just two machines at the Palazzo.

I made decent money in Laughlin on the Rescue Spins, when the Riverside and the Golden Nugget each had several, a couple of years ago......but they are gone now. It's a somewhat complicated game so read the instructions if you find one...but I'll give you a summary on how to approach them.

You're looking for the remaining spin meter to be less than 75 or so, along with a high multiple. The multiples can be as high as 12X and it occurs if the previous player was max-betting the game for the required duration. You can give the game a bit more leeway(125 spins or so) if the multiple is high.

You'll want to only bet the minimum, which will dilute and gradually lower your multiple, but the money you save makes it a good trade-off because the game doesn't play particularly well during normal play.

Every spin you make, no matter if it's a minimum or max bet, will reduce the spin meter by 1.......and the object is to get the meter all the way to zero so that you may collect your credit award($5.00-$20.00) along with your 8-12 free spins.

This may be the only game where you root against getting into the random bonus round once your spin meter is below 50 remaining spins or so, because it will reset the spin meter back to 500.....and you will have lost out on the bonus credits and the multiplier effect.

One trick I used to do with these games is to turn on the Rescue Spin feature on all of the games in which it was off. For a mere 5 cents I would enable the feature, which could ultimately lead to a good play for me later on in the day.

On the Alice in Wonderland games, you are looking for the flashing lights above the 5 different types of bonus rounds. These lights are displayed on a panel above the game's video reels.......and you are generally looking for lots of flashing lights. If about half out of the 24 symbols are flashing, then the game is a play.....or if any 2 out of the 5 types of bonus games need only 1 more symbol to be filled.

My approach was to minimum bet just 1 out of the 4 screens and just wait for a blue rabbit hole symbol to appear on the reels. When that happens, a bonus game symbol will be added on the panel above, but you won't know which bonus game it adds to, until it happens. The rabbit hole symbols occur quite frequently, averaging maybe every 20 spins when playing single screen.

The ranking of the 5 bonus rounds, based on how lucrative they are, are The jury(gavel symbol), the caucus race(thimble), the rose, the mushroom, and then the tea-party(cup and saucer symbol). The rose and the mushroom can be lucrative if you make most of the correct picks.

Note: I use the "lucrative" loosely and in relative terms.....and in this instance it means about $25.00.

The Rescue Spins had $100.00+ profit potential, though.

Good luck.
   

alpax
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Post by alpax »

Most Aruze games are loud as hell. Now I have the words "Paradise Fishing by Ah-Roo-Zay!" in my head now. Constantly yelling at you every 15 seconds when it's idle.   

You are definitely right about that. I hear that distinct announcer voice many times while playing near any Aruze machine. It gets really loud and dramatic with slow moving reels when the player need one more scatter symbol to enter the bonus round or the spin of the wheel to determine the type of bonus when the player triggers a bonus round.

The only other thing that is stuck in my head is the Radetzky March tone from the Aristocrat machines when someone wins 50 times their bet.

A couple more banking games to look out for are Rescue Spins(by Aruze, I think) and Alice in Wonderland(not sure of the brand).
These games are a bit older and are generally on the way out, but last year Alice in Wonderland was still in Las Vegas at the Palazzo, the El Cortez, and Binions.
The only Rescue Spins which I found, were just two machines at the Palazzo.

I made decent money in Laughlin on the Rescue Spins, when the Riverside and the Golden Nugget each had several, a couple of years ago......but they are gone now. It's a somewhat complicated game so read the instructions if you find one...but I'll give you a summary on how to approach them.

You're looking for the remaining spin meter to be less than 75 or so, along with a high multiple. The multiples can be as high as 12X and it occurs if the previous player was max-betting the game for the required duration. You can give the game a bit more leeway(125 spins or so) if the multiple is high.

You'll want to only bet the minimum, which will dilute and gradually lower your multiple, but the money you save makes it a good trade-off because the game doesn't play particularly well during normal play.

Every spin you make, no matter if it's a minimum or max bet, will reduce the spin meter by 1.......and the object is to get the meter all the way to zero so that you may collect your credit award($5.00-$20.00) along with your 8-12 free spins.

This may be the only game where you root against getting into the random bonus round once your spin meter is below 50 remaining spins or so, because it will reset the spin meter back to 500.....and you will have lost out on the bonus credits and the multiplier effect.

One trick I used to do with these games is to turn on the Rescue Spin feature on all of the games in which it was off. For a mere 5 cents I would enable the feature, which could ultimately lead to a good play for me later on in the day.

On the Alice in Wonderland games, you are looking for the flashing lights above the 5 different types of bonus rounds. These lights are displayed on a panel above the game's video reels.......and you are generally looking for lots of flashing lights. If about half out of the 26 symbols are flashing, then the game is a play.....or if any 2 out of the 5 types of bonus games need only 1 more symbol to be filled.

My approach was to minimum bet just 1 out of the 4 screens and just wait for a blue rabbit hole symbol to appear on the reels. When that happens, a bonus game symbol will be added on the panel above, but you won't know which bonus game it adds to, until it happens. The rabbit hole symbols occur quite frequently, averaging maybe every 20 spins when playing single screen.

The ranking of the 5 bonus rounds, based on how lucrative they are, are The jury(gavel symbol), the caucus race(thimble), the rose, the mushroom, and then the tea-party(cup and saucer symbol). The rose and the mushroom can be lucrative if you make most of the correct picks.

Note: I use the "lucrative" loosely and in relative terms.....and in this instance it means about $25.00.

The Rescue Spins had $100.00+ profit potential, though.

Good luck.
   

I was not able to spot the ReelEdge game over the weekend, it was not a through search again though, slots are everywhere and the video poker machines are concentrated in a few areas. Those Aruze and Spielo games keep getting switched or cycled out frequently, not sure if it is agreement based between the company and the casino. I will look out to see if I can spot the Rescue Spins game, although it is very old like you say it is.

I believe I seen Alice in Wonderland games made by all the major slot providers one time or another, so it does not seem to be a strict Intellectual Property rights like Wheel of Fortune is to IGT or Wizard of Oz is to WMS.

The most common Alice in Wonderland game these days is Alice and the Enchanted Mirror and Mad Tea Party, as well as Chesire Cat. Those are WMS and does not seem to be the games you are describing.

thegreatone24
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Post by thegreatone24 »



The Alice in Wonderland game that Lazydeuce is talking about is made by IGT. That game is pretty old, slot machine speaking it was taken out of Mohegan Sun about five years ago.

lazydeuce
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Post by lazydeuce »

Another game to look out for is called Rock around the Clock, the original. Play when the red shading is showing the time to be 15 minutes or less, before the hour. Each spin will light up(yellow color) one of 4 dashes on the clock hand....and when all 4 dashes are lit up, the hand moves 1 more minute closer to the hour.
The goal is to get the clock hand all the way to noontime to get into one of a few types of bonus rounds.
The player will often get a boost from an animated clock figure which randomly appears and nudges the clock hand part of the way or even all of the way to noontime. This random assist happens more often than not during the course of playing to reach the bonus round.
The bonuses typically range from $1.00 to about $30.00, with a legitimate shot at the $100.00+ 2nd-highest progressive pot.
Last October in Las Vegas I found at least a dozen of these games from Planet Hollywood through the Palazzo on the strip......and at about a half-dozen in the downtown casinos. The Primm Valley resort, Buffalo Bills, and Whiskey Pete's, all on I-15 on the California state line, had about 20 of these games between them.

Do not play the updated version with 3 clocks and about 10 dashes on the clock hands....unless one of the clocks is 2 minutes before the hour or less.

Good luck.

alpax
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Post by alpax »

Before responding to your message about Rock Around the Clock, I can verify that Morongo Casino still has 1 of these machines available. I know for sure it is a Konami game. Since then there is even a gigantic reel version of the Clock which carries 2 small progressives. The other few were upgraded to the latest ones. Typically no one leaves the machines with the clock hand near the hour mark on the version you've mentioned.

I've played it myself about 2 years ago, I never got great results from it. I never got the Maxi (red) or Mega (yellow) tier jackpots from it, although I've witnessed a few others getting them.

I was wondering if you bet the minimum 50 credits or the maximum 275 credits?

lazydeuce
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Post by lazydeuce »

Alpax, sorry for the late response. I almost always play the minimum wager when chasing these banking machine bonuses. Spreading out the risk over many more spins allows the session to play out more to it's normal payback percentage. Big betting could dig a hole which the progressive amount may not bail you out of.

I have a big-betting acquaintance who likes to reach a bit and play the $500/$10,000 Ainsworth progressives at levels lower than I deem to be advantageous.......and he put himself into a bind on one particular game recently.   
He was 15K into it, betting 20.00/spin, with the top meter sitting at $9930+ when I stumbled upon him. To put things into perspective, these top meters move at a rate of 1 cent per every 5.00 worth of betting, so he still potentially had a lot of work and losing to do. And these games play like crap during normal play, also.
Talk about a sick feeling.

I do not know how badly things turned out because I walked away and haven't seen him since.


The only exceptions to the minimum betting strategy which I can think of, are ordinary VP with a high royal or quad progressive......Ultimate X.......and I'll double my 25-cent bet on Green Stamps once in awhile when I'm at 1100 or so, when I just want to wrap things up on the next stamp appearance.

Another consideration is if it's a busy Saturday and I find a Top Star at 70.00 with a 75.00 cap, I may bet 80 cents/spin instead of the minimum 40 cents, to double the speed of the meter and get myself off the play in half the time. That would allow me to move on to bigger and better opportunities.    

watsonwardly
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Post by watsonwardly »

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alpax
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Post by alpax »

Alpax, sorry for the late response. I almost always play the minimum wager when chasing these banking machine bonuses. Spreading out the risk over many more spins allows the session to play out more to it's normal payback percentage. Big betting could dig a hole which the progressive amount may not bail you out of.

I have a big-betting acquaintance who likes to reach a bit and play the $500/$10,000 Ainsworth progressives at levels lower than I deem to be advantageous.......and he put himself into a bind on one particular game recently.   
He was 15K into it, betting 20.00/spin, with the top meter sitting at $9930+ when I stumbled upon him. To put things into perspective, these top meters move at a rate of 1 cent per every 5.00 worth of betting, so he still potentially had a lot of work and losing to do. And these games play like crap during normal play, also.
Talk about a sick feeling.

I do not know how badly things turned out because I walked away and haven't seen him since.


The only exceptions to the minimum betting strategy which I can think of, are ordinary VP with a high royal or quad progressive......Ultimate X.......and I'll double my 25-cent bet on Green Stamps once in awhile when I'm at 1100 or so, when I just want to wrap things up on the next stamp appearance.

Another consideration is if it's a busy Saturday and I find a Top Star at 70.00 with a 75.00 cap, I may bet 80 cents/spin instead of the minimum 40 cents, to double the speed of the meter and get myself off the play in half the time. That would allow me to move on to bigger and better opportunities.    

Pardon my late response to you as well, I do have significant interest in this discussion.

For Rock the Clock game at Morongo casino, the minimum bet is for 50 cents but the maximum bet is for 275 cents ($2.75 a sping) but it is considered to be "Bet Level 10" rather than 5, the proportions are strange. I understand the need to bet minimum to finish out the clock, betting MAX does not matter and the clock hand goes up at the same rate. Even the bonus round for reaching the full hour on the clock with MAX betting does not guarantee a bigger payout, (can be fustrating to get 40 credits a few times and then see your bonus end without being able to pick a disc). I have seen someone win the MAXI (red level) betting 100 (level 2). I have not seen anyone get 3 wild symbols, but MAX bet with stacks of red 7's is a good payout compared to everything else (blue 7's are decent too).

As far as Ainsworth slots, it is becoming very popular in California casinos because of the MAJOR/MINOR progressive jackpots attached to it.

For pennies
$350 - $500 / $20 - $50 for most games
$4500 - $5000 / $250 - $500 for Flying Horse, Buffalo

For quarters
$4000 - $5000 / $150 - $200

For dollars
$9000 - $1000 / $350 - $500

I've seen a screen shot from a Florida casino for the $5 denomination which is $45000 - $50000 for the MAJOR, forgot what the minor one was worth.

Unfortunately, these jackpots cause people to chase them when they are high because it is guaranteed to pay out; they'll lock up a machine for several hours and play through a ton of money (including ATM maximum withdrawals and cash advances from multiple credit cards). Some will even call friends/relatives to come to the casino with money to keep chasing. The casino sees this and since then they've deployed even more of those Ainsworth machines.

I've heard similar stories where this family put in $12k to win a quarter MAJOR starting at $4800, another person put in $16k (and borrowed) to win a MAJOR starting at $9700 but won it at $9965. Sad part is, these people were playing without a casino club card!!!

1 cent for $5 coin in for the MAJOR sounds right for the $1 $9000+ progressives, I think it was $10 coin in for 3 cents on the MINOR. I've played them in the past and those games can get streaky, drought for long stretches but will pay out very good for a small stretch.

I have not had much success with Ultimate X, but from my limited time playing (I played it recreational), I've suffered hundreds of dollars in losses even at dime denomination.

lazydeuce
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Post by lazydeuce »

The Ultimate X video poker games are some of my favorites. I'm in and out in 1 hand and the mathematical advantages can be tremendous.

Of course, you're looking for the hands which read "next hand X 2" as an example. I've found all ten hands reading "next hand X 12" before. Those are dream finds and plays. You need to bet 5 credits per hand. Do not hit the max-bet button because that will cost you 10 credits per hand. Those extra 5 credits do not increase your payout on winning hands, they only allow you to create multiples on the next hand if you have any winners. Advantage players are not interested in creating multiples......we only want to find multiples created by other players.


I'm not interested in those Ainsworths until the meter is at least 95% along the way from it's reset point....and even then I may pass.

Two more banking-type advantage games to watch for which I've heard about but never played......Spy versus Spy and Colossus Suite Success. I've heard on the Colossus games that the meter plus the # of free spins should add up to at least 5 to be considered a good play.

Good luck.

alpax
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Post by alpax »

I have limited knowledge of Ultimate X as I stick with plain old single line games on Game King. I hardly see anyone leave an Ultimate X with a multiplier in tact, otherwise I'd take a shot at it. A dealt full house would always be welcomed, and there are many intricacies to memorize on Wizard Of Odds that I never bothered (e.g. 4 to a flush with 1 or 2 high cards beat a high pair because of its ability to produce a higher multiplier the next hand). Variance is too high for me, losing hundreds of dollars on a 10 hand dime is possible because it is $10 bet a hand. Of course common sense would be to play 5 hand at nickels to lower the cost to $2.50 a hand.

I need to correct my last post with regards to the $1 Ainsworth machines. A $10 bet increases the $9000+ Major by 1.5 cents (goes up 2 cents and 1 cents alternating) and the $350+ Minor by 4 cents.

I'd hardly see jackpots at 95%, chances are it will be chased by those vultures. Sometimes it pans out for them sometimes it does not.

Though I do not play those Ainsworth games myself, I have to give them much credit for the way they've penetrated into the slot market that is long dominated by WMS/Aristocrat/IGT/Bally's. Those progressive jackpots which are high amounts do not require the player to make the max bet of $3-$5 a spin on a penny slot. It can be hit as long as the number reaches the preset random number generated from 9000.00 to 10000.00, and the 4000-5000 range for lower denominations. I've seen low rollers who bet 50 cents or 100 cents win those MAJORs. And psychologically they'll tell their friends and more people will play on those knowing they have a shot (albeit very slim) at winning thousands of dollars by low rolling. Its happened to California casinos, and I see an increased percentage of Ainsworth slots with those progressives on the floor.

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