With so many superstitions, myths and rituals that cycle around the gambling community, today we will look at the sort of myths that frequent the slot machine gaming sector and whether there’s an element of truth to any of them. As with many aspects of our world, bringing in experts to help provide truth and clarity is never a bad idea.
While it might shoot down some of the mystique, it’s always best to clear up any myths, especially if you believe they give you an edge in slot gaming. Slot machine gaming requires no strategy or skill, it is entirely random, and this is the most important takeaway from today’s interview. Mette Bergmann will provide us with this clarity today. The one thing you must understand is that slot machine gaming is meant to be a way to unwind and relax, and there is no point in looking for myths that can help you gain an advantage, as unfortunately, none exist.
Mette, thanks for joining us today. We’ve got a few questions about some of the weird and wonderful myths of the slot machine world.
Thanks for interviewing me. I am happy to shine a light on some of the stranger elements of slot machine gaming. Slot machine players and gamblers can be incredibly superstitious and prone to believing bizarre things regarding casino gaming. As a casino expert, I can help clarify this for you and your readers.
So, the house always wins?
Yes and no. Clearly, Las Vegas isn’t built on people winning millions of dollars, but if you look at the top 10 biggest casino wins of all time, it’s almost exclusively slot gaming that features. The house having an edge doesn’t mean that the house always wins; it’s important to clear that up from the onset.
Are the odds fixed for the house to win permanently?
Again, not quite. Yes, there’s a house edge. If there weren’t, casinos wouldn’t be a viable enterprise. Although the purpose is to help the customer unwind and enjoy their time at the tables, with the potential to earn money, this is never guaranteed. This applies to slot machine gaming even more than other forms of casino gambling. For instance, poker is one game with strategy, and you can use some form of skill to gain an edge over other players. However, slot machine gaming is purposely designed to be completely random. The house always wins, but that doesn’t mean every player always loses either.
If a slot machine jackpot pays out, this means it can’t payout again immediately?
No matter what type of slot machine game it is, whether it is a non-progressive jackpot, a progressive jackpot or whether it is local to that specific machine or spread across several casinos, the algorithms remain the same. Theoretically, a slot machine might not pay out for years, and then it could pay out twice within a week. It is randomly generated, which is an approach that continues to work.
It’s like in roulette gaming; if 12 red numbers come out in a row, that doesn’t mean red is less likely to come out next. Each time is an even split. Slot machine algorithms work in the same way. Just because somebody has won the jackpot doesn’t mean it won’t happen again immediately. There have been instances, albeit rare ones, where casino gamers have won jackpots twice in quick succession, sometimes on the same game. For some reason, a lot of people think this myth is true. If they hear of a recently paid jackpot, they will move on to another machine or game within the casino, but this isn’t how it works.
Okay, that sort of answers our next question. If a machine hasn’t paid out for a while, isn’t it more likely to pay out?
The law of averages usually dictates that a random slot machine jackpot will pay out at some point. So, it might feel like if a machine hasn’t paid out for years, then it is more likely to cough up the jackpot sooner rather than later. Again, this is another myth that I can debunk for you. Similar to the roulette analogy I made in answer to my previous question, each spin of a slot machine game has the same random generator. It doesn’t matter if it’s the first spin after a jackpot has been won or it hasn’t paid out for a decade; the odds do not change.
Slot machine gaming is a game of luck, and there’s no strategy you can use to give yourself an advantage. This is perfectly reflected in the odds. Randomly generated winning jackpots are impossible to predict; it’s the game’s whole premise. Before the age of online gaming, when slot machines were physical machines that you’d put money into, this myth carried a lot more weight.
If somebody was feeding coins into a machine, and the machine was filling up, players in Las Vegas would wait for somebody to finish putting their money into it. Before the days of sophisticated computer algorithms, lever-operated machines were more likely to pay out if the machine was full of coins and hadn’t paid out for a while. The odds weren’t slimmer, but they were designed not to overflow with coins.
However, that’s how gaming looked before the internet. It’s challenging to comprehend and almost impossible to explain how sophisticated and random these designs are now. There is no strategy you can use, and there’s no chronological timescale of whether the machines will or won’t pay out.
Does using a bonus code mean you’re less likely to win?
Again, this is a popular myth in slot machine gaming circles, but it is untrue. Bonus codes, by design, are structured to bring you to a online casino and show what the site has to offer. Why would a slot machine game design and the random payout suddenly change because you’re using a bonus code? If you’re using $30 of bonus codes or $30 of your own cash, this is a drop in the ocean for an industry that generates tens of billions of dollars of profit annually. The whole point of bonus codes is to entice you into playing the games, and you receive the same odds as any other player, regardless of the payment method or codes they use.
Some studies have shown you’re more likely to return to a casino if you win. As I have alluded to, gamblers are superstitious types. If they’re shopping around using a dozen bonus codes and lucky enough to win a slot machine jackpot via any of these providers, they will likely return and deposit actual money next time. Therefore, it would make no sense to discriminate against people who are using bonus codes instead of real money.
Do land-based slots have a better chance of paying out than online slots?
All these machines use the same random number generators. This remains the same regardless of whether you play a slot game on your phone or in a physical casino. The most prominent game designers and providers who have brought us the most notable slot titles of the last few decades don’t design two different games for two different types of players. Not only would it be less cost-effective, but it would take more time and money.
Although the switch to digital casinos has become more apparent over the last 10 years, by simply strolling through some huge casino floors in Vegas, you can see how popular slot machine gaming is. The sounds, bright lights and vivid, engaging imagery that slot machines use bring in a whole range of gamers. Plenty of land-based casino players will play online and vice versa, so there’s room for both in the sector. However, in answer to your question, they both have the same chance of paying out, which is randomly determined by the technology engrained into these highly intelligent designs.
Thanks, Mette. So it seems safe to say that most slot machine superstitions and opinions are untrue?
Yes, I mean, if you think you have an edge over the house, then any belief that drives this false opinion is demonstrably incorrect. It can be exciting to add a bit of mystique to your bet; sports bettors will often do it when they avoid a bet on a particular team for many reasons. Some slot machine gamers employ the same method and will only play on one type of machine or game that one provider creates.
Ultimately, none of this actually matters. The aim of playing a casino game is to unwind. If you’re sitting there trying to find myths and how to gain an edge, you’re wasting your time. If you are playing slot machine games to try and turn a profit, this is also dangerous. Responsible gambling is essential; set yourself ample time and deposit limits, stay away from the myths and conspiracies, and enjoy the games for what they are. You’ll have a lot more fun than stressing out over myths that are false and actually hinder your gaming.
