Beating the Slots

11 July 2020

By John Marchel

Today’s modern casino slot machines are all-electronic, offering a multitude of betting options and CD-quality sound along with fabulous designs. They come in countless variety of sizes, types, and shapes, including sit-down, stand-up, one-line, two-line, three-line, five-line, three-reel, four-reel, five-reel, and big-bertha types.

If this is not enough for you, there are video slots that will take up to 25 coins and feature multi-win lines. With these new machines you don’t need to pull a handle, you can just push a button, but a handle is installed to keep traditional players happy with familiar equipment.

When it comes time to play slot machines, here are some suggestions: The standard places for loose slots are always changing.

The casinos hire a slot manager whose job to make the most revenue for the least cost. Remember, todays machines cost thousands of dollars, and the casino wants their investment to pay off in a reasonable time and manner.

You might not find them near the front door or near the end of the aisles anymore. These spots are now reserved for mid-paying and tight slots. Some casinos are changing loose slots locations to elevated carousels and areas that are highly visible from all angles.

The thinking behind this is that players are more apt to play where they see winners. Remember, loose machines are few and far between, and there are more mid-pay and tight machines scattered around loose machines. Consider these locations:

• Near the cashier booths is a popular location for loose slots. Players waiting for payouts are enticed by the sound of bells going off, and seeing excited winners collecting their wins.

• Loose slots can be found near coffee shops, those same winning sounds are designed to induce diners to eat quickly and get out there and win some money.

• The task of locating that loose slot still remains for the smart player. All slots in a specific area are not loose, but a bit of work on your part will help you to locate those that are.

• Take your time and walk around observing the slot action. One method to find winning machines is to view the payout window on machines. See what past players cashed out for before they left.

• Start with machines that you are comfortable with, ones that you have won on before. For example, you might have had good luck in the past with Double Diamonds or Blazing 7s. Past experience will give you some idea what these machines are all about.

• Always read the payoff information on front of each machine. It will tell you the payoffs for the amount of coins. This will help identify which machines are better for the price you pay to play.

BET YOU DIDN'T KNOW

• Australia with only .03 percent of the world’s population, has twenty percent of the world’s slot machines.

• It was in 1931 that four Reno area Piggly-Wigg’s installed the first slot machines in supermarkets.

• By law, Colorado slot machines must payout a minimum of 80 percent verses Nevada where the minimum is 75 percent. However, just like Nevada, reports to the Colorado state regulators indicate a much higher payback on slots throughout the casinos within the state.

• Slot machines were first introduced to Monte Carlo casino in Monaco in 1932, 53 years after the casino first opened.

• French casinos, which have always banned American-style slot machines, suddenly had a change of heart in 2006. The “bandits manchots,” as they call them, now account for 92 percent of all French casino business.

• The bar symbol used on slot machines today was derived from a Fruit Gum logo. The gum was dispensed in slots designed by Herbert Mills in Chicago in 1910, and other fruit symbols on slots were derived from the gum flavors. Mills told authorizes that it was not a gambling device, since it dispensed only gum and not money.

• Playing slot machines is essentially the same as playing the lottery every five seconds.

• It was Bill Harrah, founder of Harrah’s casinos, who first incorporated bells and lights on slot machines.