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John Grochowski Gaming Guru - Page 126  A shuffle through the gaming mailbag9 March 2010
Q. I often play Multi-Strike poker, which has random "free rides." It seems to me that the frequency of the free rides is controlled by the casino and can be adjusted to suit them. The frequency is not posted as part of the payback table, therefore, although the player has more payback information than a slot machine would give him, he has significantly less than regular video poker provides. ... (read more)
Double Double Bonus Poker2 March 2010
Double Double Bonus Poker is one of the most popular video poker games around. Players love the 2,000-coin jackpot for a five-coin wager when four aces are accompanied by a 2, 3 or 4 as the fifth card. On a quarter machine, that's $500 — a nice secondary jackpot below the usual $1,000 for a royal flush.
... (read more)
6:5 blackjack23 February 2010
My friend Bob is a blackjack player from way back, one who knows his basic strategy even though he's not up on all the math behind it.
"Explain something about 6:5 payoffs on blackjacks," he phoned to ask. "You warn against it all the time, and I know it's not as good as getting the usual 3:2. But is it really all that bad?"
It really is, I told him. ... (read more)
Slots let you choose volatility16 February 2010
Whether you know it or not, volatility is one of the primary factors driving your experience whenever you play the slots. A high-volatility game will put more of its return in big jackpots, while a low-volatility game will give you a gentler ride, with more frequent small hits.
Slot manufacturers put out ... (read more)
No hole card blackjack9 February 2010
Blackjack regulars know that the game has a mix-and-match set of rules. The dealer might stand on all 17s, or hit soft 17. You might or might not be permitted to double down after splitting pairs. You might be permitted to double down after any opening hand, or your double downs might be restricted to totals ... (read more)
A shuffle through the gaming mailbag2 February 2010
Q. We watched a guy at video poker win four jackpots on the same multi-hand Spin Poker machine in about 15-20 minutes. What are the odds of that happening? His jackpots were $1,250, $1,290, $8,010 (royal flush) and $2,580, or something pretty close to that. We couldn't believe there weren't a ton of security or technicians checking out this machine. ... (read more)
Conversation with a slot player26 January 2010
Maggie is a friend of a friend of my wife's, someone I met at a holiday party when someone told her I was just the person she needed to talk to about slot machines.
"Tell me how to win," she said, and I laughed. That's the most common request I get about slot machines, and it's one I can't fulfill. ... (read more)
New Year's resolutions for gamblers19 January 2010
The new year promises to be one of new games, new ways to play, new technology and, of course, some old problems.
To a casino player, the most important of those problems is that sometimes the money just goes too fast. When it does, make sure you're in control, and not let your losing day spiral into bigger ... (read more)
Report from G2E 2009, part 412 January 2010
All the most successful video poker games have been based on five-card draw poker. When you see one that's not, like the old game Double Down Stud, you know that its best chance of survival is to attract a small niche of loyal players.
So I'm not one to get giddy over a non-draw game, not even one that seems well designed to capitalize on the popularity of Texas Hold'em. ... (read more)
Keno: Live and video5 January 2010
Casino games do not always easily coexist in live and electronic versions.
Video blackjack has never built much of a following, while the live version is the most popular table game in U.S. casinos. Mechanical or video versions of roulette and craps have been tried, with little success. Video poker has ... (read more)
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