Okay, I’m going to try to blog again and hope all the Web site problems are solved, with no more multiple notification e-mails. Do let me know if you get more than one – at [email protected].
Players Club Locations
I have noticed a new trend in casinos, combining the cashier and players club in one area, with the same personnel handling both kinds of business. I saw this recently at the following casinos: Hooters, M, and the Riviera. This model surprises me. I would think the requirements and training for personnel in these two departments would be very different.
Related to this is another trend that I have noticed, that the area for the players club desk is getting smaller and the location harder to find. The Hard Rock moved their player club desk several times, each area smaller than the last. Caesars Palace used to have two booths, one by the main cashier and one in the Forum Casino. Only the later one exists now and it is a real hike from the hotel and VIP registration desks. Almost seems as if the casinos don’t care if they get new gamblers and they are uninterested in servicing their existing ones. I guess they are making enough money from the clubbers and those who are only interested in spending money on entertainment, shopping, and gourmet experiences?
Tipping
Come the first of January, I may see something disappear from many restaurants, in or outside of casinos, something that has bugged me for years, the “automatic tip.” An editorial in the Chicago Tribune calls that an oxymoron. I have always called it a way for management to force me to make up for their giving low wages to their help. For once the IRS is coming to my side, with a new ruling that those “automatic tips” are wages, not tips. Many restaurants will drop this practice since it would result in their payroll taxes being higher. Read the article to see both sides of this issue.
The Gaming Expo
I attended the G2E this week, as I have done for many many years. As usual the machine manufacturers presented their newest offerings and the trend continues that many of the slot machine themes are based on movies or TV shows. Since I am really not interested in slot machines, I spent more of my time looking at the video poker. And as usual my “guide” in the IGT section was Ernie Moody, my hero for years for developing multiple-line VP. He knows me well so as he showed me how some of the new games work he would say, “Of course you won’t like this one.” He knows I am looking for a game where I might be able to get an advantage!
I noticed that many of the new VP games have a multiplier element, showing that the manufacturers are wanting to capture that large group of gamblers who like games that offer big jackpots. I call it the lottery mentality. Most casual gamblers aren’t looking to grind out small wins – they get an adrenaline rush at going for major big jackpots.
For an advantage player, sometimes these multiplier games, like Super Times Pay and Ultimate X, can offer a positive play with the bonus “rush” of a big jackpot. However, as many have found out and often to their regret, they require a monstrously huge bankroll. The volatility, especially for Ultimate X, is not only not for the underfunded but also not for the faint of heart. Brad and I have the financial bankroll to tackle the game, but we have decided that the occasional jackpot just doesn’t give us enough of a fun experience to carry us through the fast and long losing “drains.” We are happier to “grind out” our advantage.
I actually think that unless the economy recovers (ha!), slot clubs will become largely a thing of the past. Yes, they’ll be used as marketing tools, but there won’t be any but the most paltry benefits. Casinos, being stupid, have reacted to the recession by raising prices and lowering quality of service (the polar opposite of what a rational business SHOULD do in such a situation). Slashing slot club benefits (and gutting VP paytables) is just another way of raising prices. It follows that they would cut down on the physical space occupied by the slot club (and on the personnel manning it) if they considered that aspect of marketing less important.
One thing is true, though: they’ve already proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that people will play bad games and in general, put up with being ripped off, so why would they bother to offer value? (The death knell was when they put in 6:5 blackjack and it didn’t affect patronage AT ALL; that showed them that ploppies vastly outnumber smart players.) Normally, competition would help keep good value in play, but there is far more collusion than competition among casinos. The days of the positive EV play are all but over.
Dan, I think you are confusing Ultimate X with Multistrike.
terrible’s / silver 7’s combined them over a year ago.
As far as making the players club desk remote/inaccessible, my thoughts are that the new players will hunt it out for the advertised $10 FSP signup bonus, or whatever is being offered “free”. Once signed up, the new players have a long way to go before they earn anything meaningful, and can, therefore, be ignored.
Making it nearly impossible to find, however, keeps all those pesky existing players away; you know the ones who ask questions the boothlings are unable, or unwilling, to answer. Such as “what are the rules of this promotion?” Or “Can I get a comped meal, based on my play?”
Jean, if by Ultimate X you are referring to the VP game where the multiplier increases as you move “up the ladder” in a multi-handed game, I understand your reluctance to plow a lot of money into the game over a long period of time. However, I am more than willing to take a $100 bill and “try my luck” at this game, as the potential outcomes can be great. I’ve only played the game twice, and both times I ended up winning considerable $$, as I reached the top (X8) twice, both times with good winning hands.
I was at the Orleans buffet a week before last and there was a sign at one of the food stations. It said, something like take all you want but eat all you take.
I honestly felt like a child being scolded for not eating my veggies In the school cafeteria.
This is Vegas and I am 60 ,plus I paid for the food. Only ate half the cabbage roll.
what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas. Yes even the cabbage roll
I see Ultimate X around a lot and was wondering if it had any positive pay tables. Is the strategy available anywhere?