So this is a 96.3% machine, meaning that if you played it forever, you'd get back 96.3вў for every $1 you put into it. Of course you can't play it forever, and in the short-term anything can happen, but the longer you player, closer your return will come to 96.3%вђ”meaning you will have lost 3.7% of all the money you bet.
Of interest is that the small payouts account for most of the payback. The single cherry alone provides nearly a third of all the money you get back from the machine. Same for "any bar / any bar / any bar". The jackpot itself comprises less than 1% of the total payback.
Note that some figures are not exact due to rounding.
The RNG is constantly picking numbers
The RNG is always working, even when you're not playing, picking hundreds of random numbers per second. (NV gaming regulations, technical standards, 1.400) the moment you press the button or pull the lever, the RNG picks its 3 or 5 numbers for your play. So if someone hits a jackpot on a machine you were just playing, relax, you wouldn't have gotten it had you kept playing, because you would have hit SPIN at a slightly different time than they did. Every fraction of a second you delay in hitting the SPIN button results in a different combination.
The reason the machine constantly picks numbers is so that no one can discern any pattern in the number-picking process and therefore predict a winner. It's extremely unlikely that anyone could do so even if the RNG didn't keep picking random numbers all the time, because the number of random numbers in a complete cycle is astronomical, but having the RNG pick numbers all the time removes even the fantastically remote possibility that anyone could predict the outcome.
Par sheets
Slot makers create a "par sheet" for each slot which lists the reel symbols and the paytable. From this the payback can be calculated, and a programmer can write the computer code for the slot. This data is similar to the tables I provided above for my fictional slot. I have a separate page about par sheets, along with several actual examples.
Near misses
Earlier we saw how the symbols on electromechanical slots are weighted. There are only 11 blanks on the physical reel, but chances the RNG will pick a blank is much higher than 1 in 11. In fact, it will favor the blanks immediately above and below the jackpot symbol. Hitting these blanks gives players the illusion that they almost landed the jackpot symbol, because the jackpot symbol is physically close to the payline. But it's not mathematically close. In reality, the player wasn't close to landing the jackpot symbol on the payline at all.
As you might expect, research shows that the near-miss effect keeps players playing longer. (journal of gambling studies)
The wizard of odds cites an unnamed source who said that nevada regulations say that a stop on a reel can't be weighted more than six times more than either stop next to it. (link) however, I scrutinized regulation 14 and can't find any such requirement.
Video slots show the actual reels rather than virtual reels. As such, the kind of near-miss described above won't artificially appear on video slots. (in theory, there might be some video slots that use virtual reels, but I haven't seen any evidence of this.) however, video slots use another method to make a near-miss effect: they put fewer jackpot symbols on the 4th and 5th reels vs. The 1st, 2nd, and 3rd reels. When players line up the symbol on the first three reels they'll feel they were close to getting a 4th and maybe 5th symbol, but the reality is that it's much harder to get those right-hand symbols.
In 1988, it was discovered that certain machines were using a different, illegal kind of near-miss technology. The slot would first choose the stops randomly, and if it was a losing combination, rather than showing the actual combination selected, it would choose another combination to display, which was more likely to show jackpot symbols just above or below the payline. (source)
Do I have free will in the bonus round?
In a bonus round where you can pick from multiple boxes which reveal a prize, players often wonder, "does it matter which box I pick? Are the various prizes truly scattered among the boxes, or am I gonna get (say) 10 credits no matter which box I picked?"
For the answer to that we turn to the authority on these kinds of questions, the wizard of odds, who says: "based on seeing par sheets and speaking to industry insiders I can confidently say that if the alternative choices are shown at the conclusion of a bonus round then the game is honest about them. In other words the prizes were randomly determined and what you see at the end is truly how they were hidden. However in games where the alternative choices are not shown the odds are likely similar to a prize wheel, with lower probabilities for the higher wins." (source)
Play slots online
I suggest you play something other than slots because the slot odds are so bad. You could also play online with fake money, because then it doesn't matter if you lose. A good casino for free-play is bovada, since it requires no download and no registration. (if you see a registration box, you can close it and continue without registering.) you can play with real money too, though I hope you won't (or at least won't bet more than you can comfortably afford to lose).
How slot machines work – and why you should think twice before playing them
Author
Professor of casino management, university of nevada, las vegas
Disclosure statement
Anthony frederick lucas receives funding from the sycuan institute on tribal gaming and the university of nevada, las vegas.
Partners
University of nevada, las vegas provides funding as a member of the conversation US.
The conversation UK receives funding from these organisations
The gaming industry is big business in the U.S., contributing an estimated US$240 billion to the economy each year, while generating $38 billion in tax revenues and supporting 17 million jobs.
What people may not realize is that slot machines, video poker machines and other electronic gaming devices make up the bulk of all that economic activity. At casinos in iowa and south dakota, for example, such devices have contributed up to 89 percent of annual gaming revenue.
Spinning-reel slots in particular are profit juggernauts for most casinos, outperforming table games like blackjack, video poker machines and other forms of gambling.
What about slot machines makes them such reliable money makers? In part, it has something to do with casinos’ ability to hide their true price from even the savviest of gamblers.
The price of a slot
An important economic theory holds that when the price of something goes up, demand for it tends to fall.
But that depends on price transparency, which exists for most of the day-to-day purchases we make. That is, other than visits to the doctor’s office and possibly the auto mechanic, we know the price of most products and services before we decide to pay for them.
Slots may be even worse than the doctor’s office, in that most of us will never know the true price of our wagers. Which means the law of supply and demand breaks down.
Casino operators usually think of price in terms of what is known as the average or expected house advantage on each bet placed by players. Basically, it’s the long-term edge that is built into the game. For an individual player, his or her limited interaction with the game will result in a “price” that looks a lot different.
For example, consider a game with a 10 percent house advantage – which is fairly typical. This means that over the long run, the game will return 10 percent of all wagers it accepts to the casino that owns it. So if it accepts $1 million in wagers over 2 million spins, it would be expected to pay out $900,000, resulting in a casino gain of $100,000. Thus from the management’s perspective, the “price” it charges is the 10 percent it expects to collect from gamblers over time.
Individual players, however, will likely define price as the cost of the spin. For example, if a player bets $1, spins the reels and receives no payout, that’ll be the price – not 10 cents.
So who is correct? Both, in a way. While the game has certainly collected $1 from the player, management knows that eventually 90 cents of that will be dispensed to other players.
A player could never know this, however, given he will only be playing for an hour or two, during which he may hope a large payout will make up for his many losses and then some. And at this rate of play it could take years of playing a single slot machine for the casino’s long-term advantage to become evident.
Table games like black jack are not nearly as lucrative – to the casino – as slots. Reuters/toru hanai
Short-term vs. Long-term
This difference in price perspective is rooted in the gap between the short-term view of the players and the long-term view of management. This is one of the lessons I’ve learned in my more than three decades in the gambling industry analyzing the performance of casino games and as a researcher studying them.
Let’s consider george, who just got his paycheck and heads to the casino with $80 to spend over an hour on a tuesday night. There are basically three outcomes: he loses everything, hits a considerable jackpot and wins big, or makes or loses a little but manages to walk away before the odds turn decidedly against him.
Of course, the first outcome is far more common than the other two – it has to be for the casino to maintain its house advantage. The funds to pay big jackpots come from frequent losers (who get wiped out). Without all these losers, there can be no big winners – which is why so many people play in the first place.
Specifically, the sum of all the individual losses is used to fund the big jackpots. Therefore, to provide enticing jackpots, many players must lose all of their tuesday night bankroll.
What is less obvious to many is that the long-term experience rarely occurs at the player level. That is, players rarely lose their $80 in a uniform manner (that is, a rate of 10 percent per spin). If this were the typical slot experience, it would be predictably disappointing. But it would make it very easy for a player to identify the price he’s paying.
Slot machines are usually a casino’s biggest source of revenue. Reuters/andres martinez casares
Raising the price
Ultimately, the casino is selling excitement, which is comprised of hope and variance. Even though a slot may have a modest house advantage from management’s perspective, such as 4 percent, it can and often does win all of george’s tuesday night bankroll in short order.
This is primarily due to the variance in the slot machine’s pay table – which lists all the winning symbol combinations and the number of credits awarded for each one. While the pay table is visible to the player, the probability of producing each winning symbol combination remains hidden. Of course, these probabilities are a critical determinant of the house advantage – that is, the long-term price of the wager.
This rare ability to hide the price of a good or service offers an opportunity for casino management to raise the price without notifying the players – if they can get away with it.
Casino managers are under tremendous pressure to maximize their all-important slot revenue, but they do not want to kill the golden goose by raising the “price” too much. If players are able to detect these concealed price increases simply by playing the games, then they may choose to play at another casino.
This terrifies casino operators, as it is difficult and expensive to recover from perceptions of a high-priced slot product.
Getting away with it
Consequently, many operators resist increasing the house advantages of their slot machines, believing that players can detect these price shocks.
Our new research, however, has found that increases in the casino advantage have produced significant gains in revenue with no signs of detection even by savvy players. In multiple comparisons of two otherwise identical reel games, the high-priced games produced significantly greater revenue for the casino. These findings were confirmed in a second study.
Further analysis revealed no evidence of play migration from the high-priced games, despite the fact their low-priced counterparts were located a mere 3 feet away.
Importantly, these results occurred in spite of the egregious economic disincentive to play the high-priced games. That is, the visible pay tables were identical on both the high- and low-priced games, within each of the two-game pairings. The only difference was the concealed probabilities of each payout.
Armed with this knowledge, management may be more willing to increase prices. And for price-sensitive gamblers, reel slot machines may become something to avoid.
How to play slot machines
In the not-too-distant past, slot-machine players were the second-class citizens of casino customers. Jackpots were small, payout percentages were horrendous, and slot players just weren't eligible for the kind of complimentary bonuses -- free rooms, shows, meals -- commonly given to table players. But in the last few decades the face of the casino industry has changed. Nowadays more than 70 percent of casino revenues comes from slot machines, and in many jurisdictions, that figure tops 80 percent.
About 80 percent of first-time visitors to casinos head for the slots. It's easy -- just drop coins into the slot and push the button or pull the handle. Newcomers can find the personal interaction with dealers or other players at the tables intimidating -- slot players avoid that. And besides, the biggest, most lifestyle-changing jackpots in the casino are offered on the slots.
The following article will tell you everything you need to know about slots, from the basics to various strategies. We'll start at square one, with a primer on how playing slot machines works.
How to play
The most popular slots are penny and nickel video games along with quarter and dollar reel-spinning games, though there are video games in 2-cent, 10-cent, quarter, and dollar denominations and reel spinners up to $100. Most reel spinners take up to two or three coins at a time while video slots can take 45, 90, and even 500 credits at a time.
Nearly all slot machines are fitted with currency acceptors -- slide a bill into the slot, and the equivalent amount of credits is displayed on a meter. On reel-spinning slots, push a button marked "play one credit" until you've reached the number of coins you wish to play. Then hit the "spin reels" button, or pull the handle on those few slots that still have handles, or hit a button marked "play max credits," which will play the maximum coins allowed on that machine.
On video slots, push one button for the number of paylines you want to activate, and a second button for the number of credits wagered per line. One common configuration has nine paylines on which you can bet 1 to 5 credits. Video slots are also available with 5, 15, 20, 25, even 50 paylines, accepting up to 25 coins per line.
Many reel-spinning machines have a single payout line painted across the center of the glass in front of the reels. Others have three payout lines, even five payout lines, each corresponding to a coin played. The symbols that stop on a payout line determine whether a player wins. A common set of symbols might be cherries, bars, double bars (two bars stacked atop one another), triple bars, and sevens.
A single cherry on the payout line, for example, might pay back two coins; the player might get 10 coins for three of any bars (a mixture of bars, double bars, and triple bars), 30 for three single bars, 60 for three double bars, 120 for three triple bars, and the jackpot for three sevens. However, many of the stops on each reel will be blanks, and a combination that includes blanks pays nothing. Likewise, a seven is not any bar, so a combination such as bar-seven-double bar pays nothing.
Video slots typically have representations of five reels spinning on a video screen. Paylines not only run straight across the reels but also run in V's, upside down V's, and zigs and zags across the screen. Nearly all have at least five paylines, and most have more -- up to 50 lines by the mid-2000s.
In addition, video slots usually feature bonus rounds and "scatter pays." designated symbols trigger a scatter pay if two, three, or more of them appear on the screen, even if they're not on the same payline.
Similarly, special symbols will trigger a bonus event. The bonus may take the form of a number of free spins, or the player may be presented with a "second screen" bonus. An example of a second screen bonus comes in the long-popular WMS gaming slot "jackpot party." if three party noisemakers appear on the video reels, the reels are replaced on the screen with a grid of packages in gift wrapping. The player touches the screen to open a package and collects a bonus payout. He or she may keep touching packages for more bonuses until one package finally reveals a "pooper," which ends the round. The popularity of such bonus rounds is why video slots have become the fastest growing casino game of the last decade.
When you hit a winning combination, winnings will be added to the credit meter. If you wish to collect the coins showing on the meter, hit the button marked "cash out," and on most machines, a bar-coded ticket will be printed out that can be redeemed for cash. In a few older machines, coins still drop into a tray.
Etiquette
Many slot players pump money into two or more adjacent machines at a time, but if the casino is crowded and others are having difficulty finding places to play, limit yourself to one machine. As a practical matter, even in a light crowd, it's wise not to play more machines than you can watch over easily. Play too many and you could find yourself in the situation faced by the woman who was working up and down a row of six slots. She was dropping coins into machine number six while number one, on the aisle, was paying a jackpot. There was nothing she could do as a passerby scooped a handful of coins out of the first tray.
Sometimes players taking a break for the rest room will tip a chair against the machine, leave a coat on the chair, or leave some other sign that they'll be back. Take heed of these signs. A nasty confrontation could follow if you play a machine that has already been thus staked out.
Payouts
Payout percentages have risen since the casinos figured out it's more profitable to hold 5 percent of a dollar than 8 percent of a quarter or 10 percent of a nickel. In most of the country, slot players can figure on about a 93 percent payout percentage, though payouts in nevada run higher. Las vegas casinos usually offer the highest average payouts of all -- better than 95 percent. Keep in mind that these are long-term averages that will hold up over a sample of 100,000 to 300,000 pulls.
In the short term, anything can happen. It's not unusual to go 20 or 50 or more pulls without a single payout on a reel-spinning slot, though payouts are more frequent on video slots. Nor is it unusual for a machine to pay back 150 percent or more for several dozen pulls. But in the long run, the programmed percentages will hold up.
The change in slots has come in the computer age, with the development of the microprocessor. Earlier slot machines were mechanical, and if you knew the number of stops -- symbols or blank spaces that could stop on the payout line--on each reel, you could calculate the odds on hitting the top jackpot. If a machine had three reels, each with ten stops, and one symbol on each reel was for the jackpot, then three jackpot symbols would line up, on the average, once every 10310310 pulls, or 1,000 pulls.
On those machines, the big payoffs were $50 or $100--nothing like the big numbers slot players expect today. On systems that electronically link machines in several casinos, progressive jackpots reach millions of dollars.
The microprocessors driving today's machines are programmed with random-number generators that govern winning combinations. It no longer matters how many stops are on each reel. If we fitted that old three-reel, ten-stop machine with a microprocessor, we could put ten jackpot symbols on the first reel, ten on the second, and nine on the third, and still program the random-number generator so that three jackpot symbols lined up only once every 1,000 times, or 10,000 times. And on video slots, reel strips can be programmed to be as long as needed to make the odds of the game hit at a desired percentage. They are not constrained by a physical reel.
Each possible combination is assigned a number, or numbers. When the random-number generator receives a signal -- anything from a coin being dropped in to the handle being pulled -- it sets a number, and the reels stop on the corresponding combination.
Between signals, the random-number generator operates continuously, running through dozens of numbers per second. This has two practical effects for slot players. First, if you leave a machine, then see someone else hit a jackpot shortly thereafter, don't fret. To hit the same jackpot, you would have needed the same split-second timing as the winner. The odds are overwhelming that if you had stayed at the machine, you would not have hit the same combination.
Second, because the combinations are random, or as close to random as is possible to set the program, the odds of hitting any particular combination are the same on every pull. If a machine is programmed to pay out its top jackpot, on the average, once every 10,000 pulls, your chances of hitting it are one in 10,000 on any given pull. If you've been standing there for days and have played 10,000 times, the odds on the next pull will still be one in 10,000. Those odds are long-term averages. In the short term, the machine could go 100,000 pulls without letting loose of the big one, or it could pay it out twice in a row.
So, is there a way to ensure that you hit it big on a slot machine? Not really, but despite the overriding elements of chance, there are some strategies you can employ. We'll cover these in the next section.
Because most players do not understand how slot machines work, whole sets of beliefs have grown over when to play a machine and when to avoid it. Little truth is in any of them. Here's a look at some of the more pervasive slot myths:
Change machines after a big jackpot -- the machine won't be due to hit again for some time. From a money-management standpoint, it makes sense to lock up the profits from a big hit and move on. But the machine is not "due" to turn cold. In fact, the odds against the same jackpot hitting on the next pull are the same as they were the first time.
Play a machine that has gone a long time without paying off -- it is due to hit. Slot machines are never "due." playing through a long losing streak all too frequently results in a longer losing streak.
Casinos place "hot" machines on the aisles. This belief is so widespread that end machines get a good deal of play regardless of how they pay. It is true that not all machines in the same casino are programmed with the same payback percentage. And it's true that casinos want other customers to see winners. But slot placement is more complex than just placing the hot ones at the ends of aisles.
The payback percentage is lowered when the crowds are bigger and demand is greater. It's not that easy to change a machine's programming. Changing the programmed payback percentage requires opening the machine and replacing a computer chip. That's not something to do cavalierly.
The secrets behind how slot machines work
Slot machines are easy to play for the average gambler. But at the same time, their inner workings can seem super complex. This is what gives them their mystique and it makes us feel more at peace with the fact that we don’t have the ability to control the outcome. But the truth is that the mechanisms behind our favorite casino games are actually quite straightforward. Discover how slot machines work and solve the mystery that has been haunting gamblers for ages.
After reading this article, you’ll know all of the slot machine secrets, and how to make the most winnings off of this wily game.
Mechanics of the slot machine
When you think of slots, you may picture a stereotypical machine – three reels painted with 7s, cherries, and the occasional pot of gold. You pull a big lever and the reels start spinning until one by one they come to rest, hopefully right on the jackpot symbol. This is the original design for slot machines: reels, levels, pulleys, and springs working together to make the internal mechanisms move.
It seems almost intuitive that your chances of winning are equal to your chances of losing. We tend to trust analog equipment in that a wheel (the reel) is equally likely to land on any point because of it’s shape. But casinos have always been smart about the odds. These reels are weighted differently for each symbol so you are more likely to get worthless pieces and the jackpot will remain an elusive prize.
Slot machines have come a long way since then. With the rise of modern technology, the traditional slot machine has given way to newer, more advanced mechanics. Inside each machine is a computer that operates on a code or mathematical equation. This slot machine algorithm works as a random number generator, also known as an RNG. These numbers are constantly generated, and depending on the exact moment you click “spin”, you will get different results. Once you spin the slots, numbers that correspond to positions on the reels are recorded, the reels will then land on those spots. So instead of weighting the reels, there are just more numbers that are assigned to blank spots.
The game chooses a random number for each reel and then displays that number onto the position on the reel (with physical machines, before video slots or online slots it meant that the reel actually stopped at that place). What this actually means is that the machine knows what will be displayed even before it displays in front of the player. Again this is also the way that online slot machines work. Therefore, we can understand that there aren’t different cycles and your odds are the same for each spin on each slot machines. The rest is really up to lady luck.
Playing the odds
The RNG that modern slot machines operate on makes the game completely randomized. This may seem less ideal, but in reality it’s a much better system because it prevents cheating both by the player and by the casino. But it’s also important to know that despite the computer being in complete control, it is programmed to give you a very small chance of winning. On a three reel slot machine, for example, the generator selects three numbers between 1 and 64 which correspond to the positions on the reels. This much you already know. But what you may not be aware of is how about half of the numbers relate to blank spots, and only one number matches the jackpot. Mathwise, that looks like 1/64 x 1/64 x 1/64. In other words, your chances of winning the jackpot are 1 in 262,144.
So now that you know your odds, it’s time to debunk a hugely popular myth of how slots work. You have probably heard that slots can have hot or cold cycles, and that a particular slot is due for a win. The truth, unfortunately, is that with this computerized mechanism slots reset after each and every spin. So there are no cycles, as slot machines don’t retain memory of any previous spins. Sometimes it can be hard to believe this because we, as humans, try to look for patterns. These cycles are simply a perception, though. Your chances of winning or losing are the same for every spin.
The final important lesson to remember when playing slots, or any casino game for that matter, is that the casinos will always have the edge. The “payout percentage” or “return percentage” is lower than the actual odds of winning. Slot machines are programmed to adhere to a specific return percentage. Usually this number is around 90 – 95% meaning that however much money a player puts into a machine, they will, on average, receive only 90 – 95% of it back. For a single player on a single round, this isn’t exact. But over the course of eternity, the machine would abide by this percentage. It’s pretty easy to see why slot machines are such a large source of profit for casinos.
While casinos provide thrills and entertainment, it is extremely important to remember that a casino is still a business, and its priority is making money. Namely, off of people who gamble and *ehem* maybe those who play slots.
Making the most of it
Unlike other games where you can understand your odds based on the different betting combinations – here it’s really all random so you can’t learn specific strategies. That being said, it doesn’t mean that there is no skill involved. For example, knowing which slot game to play is an essential skill for every player. Some slot games (especially online) have better bonus rounds which provide more opportunities to win. Some bonus rounds are easier to trigger than others. Plus, learning the paytables and getting comfortable with the game itself will definitely help you win.
Also, remember that the higher the coin denomination, the better the odds are. So, it’s better to play, for example, one coin per line on a 10-cent game than 10 coins per line on a 1-cent game. Because the stakes and wages are higher, the payout or return percentage usually works more in your favor than low denomination machines that pose little risk.
Now that you know all there about how slot machines work, it’s time to try it out for yourself. Click “spin” and see where lady luck takes you!
How do class II slot machines work?
Many gambling enthusiasts in the united states are at least vaguely familiar with the indian gaming regulatory act, US law pub.L. 100–497, 25 U.S.C. § 2701.
Passed in 1988, this federal law established how indian (native american) gaming would be managed and regulated. The act included definitions for 3 types or classes of gambling games. They are usually referred to as:
Congress passed the law to help native american tribes and nations improve their economic status after more than a century of oppression and exclusion in mainstream US society. Many native american groups wanted to build land-based casinos, which would not only attract tourists but create jobs.
There was considerable resistance to this movement in many states, most of which did not allow gambling of any kind. To help resolve the conflicts and provide some clarity between treaties, state law, and federal law, the US government established a framework that eliminated some barriers to native american investment in gambling industries. The law also provided some regulatory limits to respect state laws.
The indian gaming regulatory act introduced some confusion into the worldwide lexicon of gambling games because the distinctions are only observed within US jurisdictions. Other nations regulate gambling with different definitions.
But as the internet became a worldwide communications network in the 1990s and 2000s, most of the content published about gambling dealt with US law and casinos. Although non-US casinos have to observe their own laws and regulations, players who research gambling law on the internet must be careful to distinguish between USA gambling definitions and other gambling definitions.
What are the 3 classes of gambling games?
Class I gambling includes all traditional native american gambling games, most of which are only used for ceremonial purposes or in the contexts of cultural-specific celebrations and ceremonies. These games, which are only available at small stakes, are completely regulated by the native american tribes and nations.
Class II gambling includes all variations of bingo games, player-vs-player card games like poker (where the house does not play a hand in the game), tip jars, pull-tab games, punch card games, and anything similar. Some people mistakenly include lottery games in this category, but the law clearly excludes state-run lotteries and similar games from class II.
Class III gambling consists of everything that is not included under class I gambling or class II gambling. That means the lottery games you play are class III gambling games. Slot games, roulette, dice games, and card games like blackjack where the house is also a player all fall under the class III gambling games category.
So how can there be class II slot machine games?
If you’ve ever visited a native american casino–like the winstar casino in oklahoma, you’ve almost certainly played some class II slot machine games. They look much like traditional slot machine games. They have 3 to 5reels with symbols on them, they pay jackpots, and they do everything else you expect of a slot game.
And yet, they are not slot machine games.
A clever company in franklin, TN, known as video gaming technologies, or VGT, developed electronic bingo games for native american casinos that use the results of those bingo games to emulate slot game action.
In other words, the slot machine cabinets contain two screens, one that displays the results of the bingo game and one that displays the results of the simulated slot game. This dual visualization of the gambling game takes advantage of the fact that at the core of all gambling games is a simple principle:
You’re making a wager on an unknown outcome. What the class II slot games do is take the result of the bingo game to determine what happens in the slot game.
What’s cool about this approach is that VGT was able to add bonus games to the bingo games that work like slot machine bonus games. They’ve developed a huge selection of bingo games that play like slot games. VGT is so successful they were acquired by aristocrat leisure limited in 2014, although the former VGT still operates as an independent subsidiary company of aristocrat.
How do class III slot machine games work?
The key to the hybridization of bingo and slot machine games is the random number generator. Mathematicians have been developing algorithms to calculate unpredictable numbers for hundreds of years. For a detailed look at the concept, read “how do random number generators work?” on jackpots online. Although the RNG does not produce a truly random number, in typical circumstances the number is random enough. Even so, slot game designers use random numbers in multiple ways.
Before I continue, I should mention that US law requires slot game designers to work by different rules from other countries’ slot games. In the united kingdom, for example, the outcome of a slot game is determined by a single random number. In the united states, the outcome of the class III slot game is determined by several random numbers.
To begin with, an electronic slot machine or online slot game uses a software concept called an array to represent each reel. Computer arrays work like rows of boxes, where each box holds one piece of information. The arrays for slot reels may have anywhere from 22 to 256 slots. Each slot in the array holds a symbol marker that tells the slot machine game what to display on the screen.
Slot game designers use special algorithms to decide how often each type of symbol should appear in each slot array. The frequency of the symbol’s use in the array and the size of the array determine how likely or unlikely it is for any single spin of the slot game reels to create one or more winning combinations. The game’s software may award prizes for one or more winning combinations at a time, depending on how many pay lines the game offers.
The random number generator produces a new number every few milliseconds. The number is placed in a temporary memory location called a register. The slot game software grabs the latest random number from the register and uses that to determine what happens next. For example, a 5 reel slot game needs 5 random numbers to pick how many slot positions will be spun on each reel before the reels stop in new locations. If the slot game awards random prizes like progressive jackpots, these are determined by additional random numbers.
How class II slot machine games differ from class III slot machine games
What VGT did was create bingo game software that determines the actual prizes awarded to players.
But to make the bingo games look like slot games, they used the bingo game’s random results as if they are the random numbers that class III slot games use.
To ensure that the slot game winning combinations match the bingo game prize values the VGT games work more like slot games in the united kingdom. The game determines what prize was won and then creates a short video simulation of the slots landing on that winning combination.
Conclusion
How do class II slot machines work?
Either way, the slot games award prizes on a random basis. You could say that US gaming laws are paranoid in that class III slot game software is required to closely emulate the physical spinning of slot reels. In fact, physical slot reel games have been displaying results of these virtual, in-memory array games for more than 20 years. So even when you see physical reels spinning, their stop positions have already been determined within microseconds of your pressing SPIN.
The class II slot gaming experience is a fun gaming experience.
But the bingo game is displayed on a small screen, because VGT’s designers have found that players don’t enjoy looking at bingo patterns as much as they enjoy looking at 3 to 5 reels spinning and stopping on various symbols.
For the player, what matters is that they’re gambling for real money on an unpredictable outcome–and they can enjoy an entertaining evening with friends or loved ones.
How slot machines work from a player’s perspective
Introduction to how slot machines work
In these series of posts, I continue to answer the most common questions about slot machines asked via google searches. This post explains the simple question of how slot machines work.
In this post, I will discuss the operational components of a slot machine from the point-of-view of a slots player. Meaning, the various interface areas on the front of a slot machine. These player interface areas include:
- Service light
- Bonus display (optional)
- Pay table
- Players club
- Results
- Play console
- Ticket in, ticket out (TITO)
Additional relatively minor interface areas are not listed or shown below. These areas are the locations audio speakers, audio volume control (optional), display lights, lever arm, and a hearing aid jack to accommodate those with a hearing disability.
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Service light
A slot machine’s service light is generally located at the very top of a slot machine to be easily visible to casino employees. Because of this uppermost location, it’s also known as the candle within slots terminology.
Slots players can switch on the service light by activating the service button on the player console. Or, it will enable by itself if the player wins a hand pay jackpot or the slot machine develops a service fault. Faults might include lack of paper, a full cash-in condition, mechanical or electronic tampering, or an internal electronic failure such as CPU overheating, etc.
Modern casinos have a slot attendant call/dispatcher communication system using a headset and microphone. This setup is helpful for spotting problems on the casino floor. An activated service light automatically notifies the casino operating system. The casino dispatcher then informs the slot attendant responsible for that section of the casino.
Once the notification is sent out, a lit candle is of little practical use. At best, it guides the responding slot attendant the last few feet to the customer needing attention and, also, provides some reassurance to the waiting customer.
Slots players may activate the candle for a multitude of reasons. In general, they do so to deliberately call a slot attendant to their location, for any of a host of reasons only limited by imagination.
Pro-tip #1: service light
Sometimes slots players need to leave a slot machine briefly but don’t want to give it up to someone else. If this break is relatively brief, say 10-15 minutes, use the service button to call over a slot attendant. The slot attendant can temporarily lock up the slot machine at the request of the player.
The slot machine can be unlocked later by the player via insertion of only their service card … or after 10-15 minutes when the temporary lockout automatically expires. For the specific length of lockout times, ask any slot attendant at your casino.
Bonus display area
If a specific slot machine has a bonus round available, then it will often have a second display area. Video slots may use the same primary display screen but abruptly display the bonus round game theme instead. However, video slots most often have a secondary display screen available for bonus rounds.
The bonus display area is optional and dependent upon the specific slot machine model. The location of this bonus display varies. More often than not, it is high up on the slot machine to be viewable by other players from a distance.
Casinos offset their losses by offering slot machines with bonus round display visible from a distance. Frankly, wins on these highly visible and usually loud bonus displays are seen by many. This obvious win encourages other casino patrons to play slot machines.
Pro-tip #2: bonus round
Bonus rounds generally cannot be activated unless that slot machine’s maximum credits are bet. By not betting maximum credits, the player automatically lowers their odds of winning. If betting maximum credits on a specific denomination slot machine is not affordable, pick another affordable slot machine. I discuss this approach in detail at choosing slot machines.
Pay table area
The pay table area lists information on the jackpot amounts for specific reel combinations. It can also display some or all of the game theme rules. This area may be permanently displayed on the slot machine, or possibly only available through an interactive series of images available by touchscreen.
In either case, all possible wins may or may not be displayed. Sometimes the list is highly abbreviated, and displays only the highest jackpots, due to space limitations. Other times, mainly with touchscreen displays, a series of images can be switched between to view every possible winning combination.
However, pay tables typically provide the highest value jackpot. Slot machine game themes with multipliers or “wild” reel symbols have their most top value jackpots being the result of these reel symbols. Alternatively, it may not show all multipliers or “wild” symbols in the tabulated list of win-reel combinations. Instead, they may be in writing along the edge of the paytable interface area.
But, with large touchscreens has come the capability to provide full paytable information along with game theme rules. Some slot machines now have this feature and, perhaps, more will have it in the future.
Many paytables show the number of credits that would be won for a specific combination of reel symbols. Or, they may show a monetary amount. In either case, these tables have separate columns for winning combinations dependent upon how many credits are bet. The far – right column typically shows the winning jackpots available when betting maximum credits.
Some examples of credit and denomination combinations are:
- 1-credit slot machines having a $100 denomination
- 3-credit slot machines having a $5 denomination
- 5-credit “quarter slots” having a $0.25 denomination
- 300-credit “penny slots” have a $0.01 denomination
Pro-tip #3: pay tables
Frankly, learning the paytable of any slot machines played is a relatively easy way to improve the odds of winning at slots. Many typical slots players believe there is no skill involved in winning at slot machines. Casinos gently foster this misunderstanding, as it is to their benefit. Don’t fall for it.
Traditionally, slots players find it acceptable to play slot machines with visual succinct paytables. Frankly, casinos would instead have their customers spend their time playing a game they don’t understand .
The casino isn’t making money if a player spends time studying or reading until they do understand rather than playing the machine.
One easy-to-learn skill to improve the odds of winning at slots is choosing which slots to play based on their paytables. I discuss this in detail at choosing slot machines.
Players club area
The players club area contains a card reader, numbered keypad, and a small display. A security feature of players club cards is for players to choose a PIN to enter when they wish to access their player account.
Newer-style slot machines have a touchscreen display, which removes the need for a physical keypad. Meaning, it’s part of the touchscreen display.
Bets can be made on a slot machine without a players’ club card. At most casinos, it typically is not required. Neither is the PIN needed to play the device or view basic information. For example, a running total of reward points earned during the current play session is generally on display.
The PIN is required, however, to:
- Access certain portions of player’s casino account
- Transfer banked funds
- Activate “free play” provided by the casino as a complimentary gift
Results area
The results interface area is where the reel combinations are seen after making a bet. Whether a video slot machine or a slot machine with physical reel, this is where the results of a bet are provided.
Interpreting whether a reel combination is a winner requires an understanding of the paytable. This result is fundamental to how slot machines work.
Of course, the slot machine will immediately display the results. A small display beneath the reels shows:
- The total amount of money or credits available in the machine
- How many credits most recently bet
- The jackpot amount won if any
Jackpots are usually in credits, where each credit equals the denomination of the machine rather than the amount bet, as well as a monetary amount.
Player console
The play console typically has physical buttons, a cash/ticket reader, and a ticket printer. The buttons include:
- Cash out for requesting the removal of any player funds in the machine
- Service to request a casino attendant
- A series of buttons for selecting the number of credits to bet, or placing the maximum possible bet
- Cash out for removing any remaining bankroll
- Repeat to making another bet for the same credit(s)
- Denomination to select a specific bet denomination (optional)
The player console may have several possible button configurations, dependent upon the model of the slot machine. Given how often game themes are switched to maintain the interest of players over time, it is common for player consoles to be standardized over many machines within a casino.
Also, it is becoming common for consoles to have embedded displays visible through their semi-transparent button covers. This array of small screens are linked together to show visually stunning composite images displayed across the entire array of buttons.
Ticket in, ticket out (TITO)
By the beginning of the 21st century, the use of coins was removed from casinos. This removal was for the sake of convenience of both the casino and customers. Both had issues with handling so many coins. Customers because of the difficulties inherent with carrying so much weight, but also gambling delays due to full (or empty) slot machine coin hoppers.
Casinos had issues with coins as well, including customer complaints due to delays caused by a full (or empty) slot machine coin hopper. This inconvenience was a coin logistics issue, which also included higher costs of maintaining a larger vault space and coin processing equipment and services. As casinos became more popular, coins became more difficult for everyone.
As a result, ticket-in, ticket-out technology was pulled into casinos. They are now integral to how slot machines work. This automation is the same technology that was beginning to be seen in automated teller machines (atms). Once proven out, this slot machine technology was here to stay like so many others.
Summary of how slot machines work
I’ve discussed the operational components of a slot machine from the point-of-view of a slots player. This explanation of how slot machines work included the various player interface areas on the front of a typical slot machine.
There are additional relatively minor interface areas. These areas include audio speakers, audio volume control (optional), display lights, lever arm, and a hearing aid jack to accommodate those with a hearing disability.
How bingo slot machines work
To understand how, or even why bingo-based slot machines exist, it helps to have a quick background on native-american gambling.
Indian gaming regulatory act
The IGRA was signed into law in 1988 and established the framework for indian gaming. It gave the authority to tribes to conduct, license, and regulate gaming.
Class I, II, and III games
The IGRA created different classes of gambling. Class I refers to simple, traditional social games for small prizes and is not controlled by the IGRA.
Class II games are games of chance based on bingo and similar games, like pull-tabs or lotteries. Class II games are most attractive to NA casinos because they don’t require the tribe to enter into a state compact, nor does the tribe have to pay taxes on class II gaming revenue.
Finally, class III is a catch-all classification for games that don’t fall under class I or II classifications. It includes traditional casino-type games such as true slot machines, roulette, craps, etc.
Bingo-based slots
When you play a slot machine at a NA casino and there’s a bingo card somewhere on the screen, that’s a good indication you’re playing a class II machine instead of a true slot machine.
Whereas class III machines operate in a independent manner, class II machines are really just an elaborate display for the bingo games running in the background. When you hit the spin button, you enter into a game of bingo. Like real games of bingo, class II games require at least two players. If you’re at a small casino that’s not busy, the reels may spin for an abnormally long time while it waits for someone else to join the game.
And while each slot manufacturer may design their class II game slightly differently, they always involves the same bingo elements: multiple players attempting to match certain patterns on their cards compared to numbers centrally called.
Are bingo-based slots fair?
Native american casinos often get a lot of criticism for their self-regulating nature and lack of transparency, especially when compared to vegas casinos which are required to publish all sorts of information like payouts and revenue.
But the fact is bingo-based slots can actually be more transparent than their class III counterparts. Within class II machines’ paytable will be a list of all the winning bingo patterns and resulting pays. With a little bit of effort, you can actually calculate the odds of each pattern and win and combine them to create an “expected return” value which is equal to the game’s payout. Trying to figure out the payout on a traditional class III machine is impossible without running it through millions of spins.
Class II vs class III
Though what’s going on in the background varies between class II and III games, the player’s experience is basically the same. Both types of games have a specific payout associated with them. The bingo balls and cards generated by class II machines come from random number generators, just like class III machines.
So while some are suspicious of class II games and their operation, the end result is practically no different from any normal slot machine.
So, let's see, what we have: learn how slot machines work by reading real facts about casino slots; including the history of slot games and what it takes for you to beat the odds. At how do casino slot machines work
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