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My brother used to work in a bar and asserts the following: Some days he would work all day and see people put money in a machine and not win anything much (e.
by random_comment 9y ago
My brother used to work in a bar and asserts the following:
Some days he would work all day and see people put money in a machine and not win anything much (e.g. jackpot never came up). Believing that the machine had a payback rate that would balance out over a few hours/days, he would deliberately put a bit of money in at the end of the 'no winner days', and would often win enough that it made it worthwhile overall.
Anecdotal, but it seems consistent with your understanding and is a source of an edge.
- mod 9y agoI own a bar and a few of these machines, and I can assure you they don't work that way. (I have several family members who believe they do, though) Each spin has an equal chance of winning. The payback is adjustable in the software, but it does not pay extra when it's behind. Of course, sometimes the jackpot is larger and that's a better time to play (but still not a good time).
- random_comment 9y agoIn the US & AU, I know they use a Theoretical Hold Worksheet which pre-specifies the win/lose ratios and is required for every machine. That worksheet doesn't make use of past wins/loses, i.e. it is stateless. This matches what you say. However, I do not know what the situation is in the UK/EU at present, and I do not know what it was 20 years ago (when my brother was working there).
- makomk 9y agoIn the UK, it's common for gambling machines in places like pubs to have "compensated" payout odds that are are dependent on the history of wins/losses. Odd quirk of our regulations.