Ask The Slot Expert

Dear John,

I was talking to a slot technician or maintenance man some time ago and asked him if it makes any difference whether a person drops 1 coin or 3 or 5 into a video poker machine. Is the same hand going to be dealt regardless of the number of coins played?

His answer was "the instant that the first coin is registered, the machine electronically prepares two layers of five cards each, one to make the HOLD selection from, and the other layer to draw from and it doesn't make any difference how many coins are played, the same hands are going to show."

Can you verify this or explain the sequence of events when a machine is activated? Are the results the same when using coins or using the credit button?

Thanks,
Gene

Dear Gene:

The sequence of events the technician described is essentially correct. Different machines have different programs, so some machines may operate a little differently. Generally speaking, there is some action by the player that causes the program to lock in the current value of the Random Number Generator (RNG) and determine the cards that will be used in the hand. The action could be one of the following: dropping in a coin, pressing the Bet One button, pressing the Max Bet button, or pressing the Deal/Draw button. There are many ways to initiate a game, so the program most likely uses a set of actions, any one of which causes the program to poll the RNG.

Manufacturers are reluctant to release detailed information about how their machines work because the information helps cheaters. In fact, manufacturers are currently considering a suggestion to change the programs so they choose only the five cards for the initial hand when the game is first started, rather than all 10 cards that may be used in the hand. When the machine draws all 10 cards at once, RNG cheats have an unlimited amount of time to figure out where the RNG is in its cycle while the machine patiently waits for them to make their hold decisions.

Best of luck in and out of the casinos!
John

Send your slot and video poker questions to John Robison, Slot Expert, at slotexpert@home.com.

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