Gaming Gurus: Strategy Expert Article Archive - Page 76

Multi-Pay Machines

QUESTION: When playing slots and you switch from 1-cent denomination to a $1 denomination, does it change the random number generator or does each coin denomination have its own random number generator?ANSWER: That can differ from machine to machine and manufacturer to manufacturer, but games with very different payback percentages can be programmed using the same random number generator.All the RNG does is to generate random numbers...read more

Would You Play These Hands Correctly?

Time for a little exercise in video poker strategy. Periodically, sample video poker hands will be presented to test your mastery of video poker strategy.Today’s hands are for a full-pay (9/6 or 9-for-1 for a full house and 6-for-1 for a flush) Jacks or Better...read more

The Casino Menaces II

CINDY: Last week in our Thursday column we talked about the mental preparation for playing in Las Vegas, where we will be going for a full week.ABBY: But now we have to look at the games we intend to play and how we intend to play them.CINDY: Should we tell everything?ABBY: Yes, every single thing...read more

Ask the Slot Expert: Slot machine dilemma: bet max at min or min at max

Question: I play minimum bet at maximum denomination. A good example is the popular Lightning Link slots. On pennies the mini jackpot is $10 and minor jackpot is $50 for a $5 bet. At max denomination (dime), the same $5 bet gives you opportunity to win the mini jackpot (now $100) and/or the minor jackpot (now $500)...read more

Say Goodbye

QUESTION: I can’t seem get this into my mind. When do you leave a table? Is it if you have lost a certain amount of money? Is it when you have won a certain amount of money? I hear a lot of players say one thing or another. One person told me that when he lost all the money that he brought to play with then he quit...read more

High Card Flush

Several weeks ago, I answered a reader's question about automatic shufflers. One of the games he mentioned was High Card Flush.In the intervening weeks, several readers emailed me to ask about High Card Flush. They'd never heard of the game and wanted to know if it was something they should look for.I first wrote about it after the 2015 Global Gaming Expo where it was displayed by American Gaming Systems...read more

My Missing Royal Flush

Regular readers of my articles know that I am very partial to low variance, high return video poker games. The game that I enjoy the most, and what I recommend for all serious beginner video poker players, is full-pay, 9/6 (full house pays 9-for-1, flush pays 6-for-1) jacks or better.While this game is not nearly as common as it once was, it can still be found somewhere in most gambling destinations...read more

A Menace to the Casinos

CINDY: A new year is here!ABBY: Are you really that excited about it?CINDY: Well, we do have a week in Vegas to celebrate that we made it through another year. I mean each year…ABBY: Each day…CINDY: Each hour…ABBY: Minute, second, breath.CINDY: Happy New Year! I get it...read more

Ask the Slot Expert: Tip for a comped limo from airport to strip hotel

Question: I visit Las Vegas about 3 or 4 times per year. I play enough that my casino host provides limo service from & to the airport. My question is, what would be an appropriate tip for the driver? Also, my destination is always located on the LV strip...read more

Cost Per Bet

TIM'S QUESTION: I do appreciate the fact that your casino games writers tell us the speed and house edges of all the games or at least the ones you know. I do want to know how the casinos have structures their games to win my money. But there is something missing...read more