Editorial

Wednesday, 20 May 2009 05:49 Last Updated on Monday, 22 June 2009 05:43

Slot machines have long been known as an easy way to lose your money. That’s because it takes no real skill or in-depth knowledge to simply keep feeding the hungry one armed monster with coins until you either run out or hit the jackpot. But that’s not the be all and end all with slots. There are several little known secrets to vastly improving your chances of winning at slots. We’re going to let you in on those secrets right here!

Vegas vs Atlantic City

If slot machines are your thing, then make Las Vegas your new home. The New Jersey State law says that all slots must have a minimum 83% payout rate. This means Atlantic City casino owners set all their slots to 83%. Nevada has no such law, so Las Vegas casinos set their some machines very high to attract people to play them. When you find a constant payer, chances are its payout rate has been set as high as 99%, which is offset by plenty of other machines with much lower rates. In this case, you have found gold, because you can play it for hours while building up your comps points to incredible levels and walk away with some nice bonuses.

Bigger Bets Equals Bigger Payout Percentage

A little known fact is that higher denomination slots machines tend to reward their players with higher payout percentages. Guess what? Lower denomination machines have lower payout percentages. This information can be found in the “American Casino Guide” for 2009, which states that in Las Vegas casinos along The Strip, 25 cent slots pay at 88.34% whereas the payout rate on $25 slots rises to 96.47%.

Togetherness Doesn’t Pay
   
Casino owners are very shrewd businessmen and they know that people tend to play slot machines in pairs or groups. For this reason, they always put one low paying machine next to a high paying one. This means that husband and wife partnerships are doomed to lose because while one may seem to be winning often, the other will be feeding a bottomless pit and the combined losses will be heavy. For this reason, smart slot machine players always play solo. If you are in a group, spread yourselves out as wide as possible for the best chances of coming away winners.

Max Bets

One way of maximising your winning potential on any slot machine is to always bet the maximum amount each go, as long as your bankroll allows you to. That’s because in general, slots only produce their biggest jackpots with the maximum bet. 

Big Jackpots Equals Fewer Payouts

This may sound obvious and it is, but the bigger the jackpot on a slot machine, the smaller the hit rate. Big progressive jackpot machines bide their time building up the value of the jackpot, while only giving away a few meagre wins. This is to ensure their attractiveness to players in search of that big, life changing win. Everyone else is just feeding the beast hoping to be that one lucky person. Normal slots will pay out far more often and with far higher value payouts.

If They Win Often, Play Them

Some slot machines in casinos are set up to win more often than others. They are usually the ones placed in high profile, or high traffic areas, where people will see them first. When new players walk into a casino and see people winning often on slots machines, they’ll be more tempted to play them. Seek out machines that pay often and you’ll be in with a much better chance of coming away with a profit.

It Won’t Payout When Due

Some slots players watch machines being played for while and then decide that a particular one is due to payout. So they’ll move in as soon as the machine’s occupant has lost all their money. Unfortunately, this theory doesn’t necessarily hold true and a slot machine that’s not paying out can quite happily continue not paying out until the cows come home. While a slot machine’s payout percentage is fixed, its payout schedule is completely random. That means one machine is no more likely to pay out than its next door neighbour no matter how many spins it’s been through.

Points Make Prizes

Comps are like supermarket reward points you build up for spending so much money. It makes sense to join a casino’s comps club as soon as you enter. When you hit a certain level of spending, you get comp points that you can exchange for free stuff, such as free hotel rooms, gifts, drinks and food etc. These can add up to quite a high value and compensate you for cycling certain amounts through machines or on the tables. This doesn’t mean the amount you lose, just the total amount you bet, which will of course include winnings spent on further bets. As an example, if you were to play a slot machine with a 97% payout rate, you’ll be losing $3 per $100 over time. You may only lose $30 but effectively cycle $1,000 through the machine, which can earn you as much as $500 in free stuff, which is a nice profit to walk away with.

Most of these tips apply to land casino slot machines, some for the obvious reasons of placement and location. Playing online slots comes with a whole different set of rules which set them apart from their real to the touch counterparts. Often, online slots games are set with lower payout percentages than real world casino slots, making them harder to beat, but that’s a topic for a completely different article.