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How New Slots Work
Slot machines are getting increasingly flashy. A few years ago, video machines with oversized screens, multiple games, like those you find at Carrefour des Jeux, and other gimmicks were all the rage. Today, a whole new generation of slots is being developed. Slot machines are becoming much more interactive and look a lot like video poker. On these new slots, you will be able to make choices about which symbols to hold or discard, based on a certain internal and intuitive logic.
Modern slots are controlled by a computer chip called a random number generator, which continually churns out strings of numbers whether the game is being played or not. Pulling the handle of a machine or pressing the spin button, releases the reels and selects one of these randomly generated numbers. Each number corresponds to a certain set of symbols on the reels. That is how the outcome is determined. The force of the pull has nothing to do with where the reels stop.
Since this computer technology, regulating the payout is a science. By adjusting the random number generator, a slot technician can make a machine 'tighter' (pays out less often) or 'looser' (pays out more often). In the old days, slots often had a built-in edge of 20 to 30 percent or more. But players flocked to machines with the higher returns. Casinos did the sums and realized it was better to get five percent of a lot than 30 percent of nothing, hence, most Vegas slots now return 95 percent of the drop (slightly less on nickel machines), leaving the house with a five percent edge.
Certain casinos boldly advertise 98 or 99 percent payouts, but read the small print. It's usually 'up to 99 percent'. That means one machine on the floor might be set at 98 or 99 percent, if that. Short of running 2,000 to 5,000 plays through similar machines and comparing payouts, there is no way to find out which slots are set tight or loose. Payout percentages are supposedly verified by the state Gaming Control Board, but it rarely checks unless a casino advertises something absurd. The real advantage for the house comes with the constant repetition of slot plays. For instance, a player with $50 starts betting $1 per pull on a quarter machine (via four 25cent bets per pull). Sometimes the player wins and those winnings are reinvested, the drop might only be $50, but they are giving the casino $240, say, of action every hour. A five percent edge is substantial enough for a slot machine to retain about $12 an hour (five percent of $240). That is a hold equal to nearly a quarter of the original bankroll.
With a little less luck and the fact that the payout percentage factors in the big jackpots are definitely lower your money could vanish or disappear even quicker and sometimes without you even knowing it. Over time, even an edge of half of one percent grinds down players, which is why so many of them stumble away from machines empty handed not having even a single penny in their pockets.
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