Resorts World Las Vegas is set to open on June 24. You can bet I’ll be there in the first few days to check things out. If I find anything playable, I’ll play a lot and sit back and wait and see what comes in the mail. I suppose you could say that’s my standard M.O. at casino openings.
Some of my best results ever have been at casino openings. Often the new slot director was an assistant slot director at the last place worked and doesn’t understand how much of a difference there is between the two positions. The net effect is that new casinos sometimes open much looser or more generous than is profitable for them — and that’s good news for the players.
On the other hand, the two newest casino openings in Las Vegas, the Circa and the Mohegan Sun at Virgin Hotels Las Vegas, have been video poker wastelands. Well, Circa does have 8-5 Bonus, but that’s the only game above 98% I found there. And the slot club only pays 0.2%. I did play at Circa when it opened, primarily because they have a $400 sign up bonus if you’ve never played at the D or Golden Gate previously, and I qualified. I played $60,000 in coin-in, which was three times the amount required to get the signup bonus. Several months later, I received eight weeks of $25 free play and $150 in food. That was nowhere near enough to make up for 8/5 Bonus, so that’s not a place I’ll be returning. Not to mention, it’s the loudest casino in town and I’m far too old to appreciate that.
At the Mohegan Sun, I had received $20 free play before the place opened but went in and found no games at all worth playing. I didn’t even get my card and play off the $20. I’ll check again in six months or so to see if they’ve loosened up any.
So, with that recent history of Las Vegas casino openings, I’m not really optimistic about the video poker at Resorts World. But I won’t know for sure until I go there and look. Which I will do.
I’m willing to be pleasantly surprised, but prepared to find the place unplayable. That seems to be the direction video poker is heading these days.
I’ve been wrong before. Hopefully I’m wrong this time.
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Thanks for the report on Circa and Virgin, which confirmed my suspicions.
I suspect that if you looked around, you’d also find six-to-five Blackjack at both places.
The place you put 60,000 through and the other, can you share with us your net profit or loss?
Virgin, I believe is all 3/2 bj. One of few good things about the place
I believe that the entire point of following Bob Dancer is that the answer to questions like this one is “It makes absolutely no difference.”
I’m not trying to be a dick, but to maybe help you start thinking along these lines.
Two things:
1. Resorts World is a STRIP casino, and that alone tells you most of what you need to know. Strip casinos always have the worst-EV video poker in town out of all the hotel/casinos in Vegas. All the “brass” of all hotel/casinos know that the Strip is where uninformed, clueless, impulsive visiting gamblers (mainly from California) will want to stay when they go to Vegas, and they will play video poker machines somewhat like they play slot machines, not knowing or caring that VP is actually a game of skill in addition to luck, and their minds won’t contain anything that would tell them that the pay tables are bad, so they will play machines with bad EV and won’t even play them well. They will hold “kickers”, which should never be done except in certain VP games that pay 2,000 coins for AAAA + a 2 or 3 or 4 (or similar rare combos). They will hold a single Ace or face card when playing Deuces Wild, also something you should never do. And so on. This is guaranteed profit for the casino, so it has no incentive to put good-EV machines on the floor.
2. To George Buchert: I don’t think there’s anything wrong with trying to be a dick, so go ahead. Being a private investigator is a respectable occupation.
Agreed with Circa Bob. We went in a few months ago and unplayable video poker and certainly the loudest casino I remember being in. Way too old for that.
Although I have been following the progress of Resorts World Vegas, I doubt that this casino will have playable videopoker at all. The construction costs have been so high so the casino has no incentive to attract the pros. Much rather I believe it will become just like most other Strip casinos with mediocre videopoker or good videopoker with poor players club values in return. Still, it’s going to be an interesting moment to see that opening as it will surely be in the news around the world.
I have time and patience to return and visit Las Vegas. If necessary, I can wait until 2023. The current rental car rates and some hotel rates are just too high to make it a worthwhile trip so I rather stay at home. Cyprus is a great place to go for gambo as a European gambler. Vegas has to understand that it cannot treat all non-US-citizens and international travellers like fools forever. In fact, there are options in other countries. No need to jack up the hotel rates and on top of that, charge ridiculous resort fees and still expect us Europeans to visit like Vegas is the only gambo place on Earth. This is just a reminder that hopefully by 2022 things will return to the old normal as we used to have it.
From Switzerland
Boris
I may be wrong, but the last casino that I can remember that opened with good video poker and tried to attract players was The Palms, and it became a runaway hit… For years The Palms was on top of the heap, people drove the extra miles to hang out there, it had a vibe. I think Resorts World looks spectacular, I look forward to wandering around and taking it in, but my confidence is low as far as them bucking the Strip trend of offering crappy video poker pay tables. On the horizon however is The San Manuel Band Of Mission Indians, a tribe that aggressively markets players, a tribe that does not sit on their hands, they could shake up Las Vegas and force the others to act. The Palms re-opening can not come soon enough, I just do not understand the Gaming Control Board’s insistence that the process take months, the tribe is a thriving business that has a solid track record, it should be a no brainer… And I hear you Mr Dancer, loud places are not my bag, if I want loud noises I will go to a hockey game or piss the wife off…
Just because it’s a Strip casino does not necessarily mean it will have no good games. SLS, on the corner of LV Blvd and Sahara, opened up with 99.95% Double Double Bonus, among other games, for $5, $10, $25, and $50 machines. The Wynn opened up with $1 Full Pay Deuces Wild. The M (on Las Vegas Blvd, although too far south to fit most person’s definition of The Strip) opened with Jacks or Better in a 99.99+ version, in stakes up to $100, and NSU Deuces Wild up to $50. They had a 0.30% slot club with double points every day for the first two months.
These all opened up after the Palms did, and with much better pay schedules, at least for well-heeled players. (I wasn’t checking out quarter games at any of these places. I know that’s all some of my readers play, but at openings I’m looking out for number 1 because the good games won’t last long, even if they are there.)
The possibility for good games is there. We won’t know for sure until we go check it out.
Perhaps this has been discussed multiple times, but why don’t the strip casinos offer full pay video poker? For example, I would sit and play 10 play 9/6 Jacks or better quarters for hours (like I do at South Point). If there is only 6/5 bonus, I may sit at a bar and just play $20.
I’d rather lose a few hundred dollars in a couple hours than $20 in 10 minutes.
Help me understand.
Speaking of bad pay tables in Vegas; I have been watching Anthony and Andrew’s podcasts at the Crown & Anchor.
6/5 video poker. Are you kidding me? How much are they paying you?
Bob, give us your opinion on that, Please!
And, Who is this Andrew guy? Anthony, you have lowered your standards with this guy.
It’s interesting to note that in America, videopoker is a very popular game and is being played in countless different varations. At the same time, while the European casino market is not actually a small one and people like to gamble everywhere in most countries, videopoker has no value of interest to the casinos, nor to the customers. There are places where you can play videopoker, but of course, the odds are terrible and the manufacturers of these machines set up videopoker just like it’s another slot game with auto-hold option (some decisions are clearly false but can of course be corrected), and some games are so different that it’s hard to figure out the true odds (Admiral’s World of Poker requires for instance another bet if you opt to draw to your dealt hand, so the game is completely different and nothing compared to the great games offered in Las Vegas by IGT. The best place for videopoker if anybody cares to know, that’s France, but even there the rules are ridiculous. The casinos charge a 12% tax (or maybe even more by now) for every hand-pay higher than 1500 EUR. Without any option of a refund, of course. So, it’s clear that there are zero serious videopoker players and it’s pointless to try to find good games all over the continent. It’s probably 100x more likely that Resorts World will offer some good games in the high limit area for Mr Bob Dancer and some other professionals.
From Switzerland
Boris
From
Anthony plays a few hundred dollars coin-in on a terrible pay schedule (expected loss perhaps $10-$15) and gets a free lunch and a beer or two. And then he goes back to work.
How much do you spend for lunch?
You are completely missing the point. These are not videos about how to choose a beatable game and we’ve made it clear that 6/5 BP is not a good schedule (but it’s the best in that bar). We shoot at C&A because they welcome us being there and that’s not common in Las Vegas. Also, if you watched the videos, you’d understand that this is a positive-EV play because of the bonuses and other factors (as Bob brings up). As for Andrew, he’s a producer and he creates the videos. He has a novice understanding of video poker, which makes him the perfect foil for what we’re doing. So what exactly is your beef with him? Sorry, but I’m growing weary of some of these off-base comments. People like to puff up and point fingers, but they should understand what they’re talking about before they do.
Anthony may be able to play daily at C&A , play very fast while eating lunch and thereby expect a loss of only $10-15 over a reasonably short period of time. But very few will be able to do this and still hit the rare royals and 4 aces necessary to achieve such a small loss. I think it more reasonable for average and vacation players to assume an EV without the royals, straight flushes and 4 aces in the mix when deciding where and how much to play.
i wear earplugs everywhere.
I love staying downtown and selectively play good VP @ 4 Queens, Plaza, California and in the back room a little @ El C.
Derek Stevens casinos are very popular, just not with me.
Downtown is a great place for double coupon runs from LVA & ACG.
I need a car to roam from Southpoint to Red Rock.
From Ellis Island to Gold Coast
I haven’t stayed on the strip for years.
Vpfree2.com
I like Anthony and Andrew’s videos. I believe they are doing more educational videos of
Video Poker instead of other YouTube folks who make mistakes and play big stakes with bad paytables.
If it’s like the one in NY (upstate not Queens), don’t hold your breath. You will likely get a free room but freeplay and paytables sucketh.
I’ve enjoyed the shows, especially the VP Pop Quiz(s). Two gorgeous guys providing on-demand VP training right in my home! Being able to ‘pause’ each hand, figure it out for myself first (or look it up) before it is played. And going through the previous episode to show us the errors…who can complain? Another benefit of being an LVA follower.
I would never begrudge or critique anyone playing any video poker machine, there are so many bad plays and games on casino floors that the very worst paying video poker game is a great value when you compare. Slot machines in general are just rotten in my opinion, but they are keeping the lights on, feeding the stockholders, they are the reason we could find some decent play. I don’t go to Las Vegas to try and make a living, I gamble for the fun and competition, the day I become numb to losing is the day I stop trying to find advantage plays. In the long run its good for advantage players that some people just play and don’t care, otherwise there would be no video poker machines in casinos. The same “logic” I believe in applies to live poker, if all the players were as good as I am, it would just suck, there would be no action, no money changing hands. Enjoy your lunch Anthony, you get to live in Las Vegas, something I can only daydream about, not every single time you play should be for “it all”…
What a charmer!
Anthony, the Anthony/Andrew videos ARE terrific; please keep them up! A few questions about Crown & Anchor, if I may… They have two locations; you’re referring to the original one on Tropicana Ave, right? As it’s not a casino, is it fairly easy to get one of their slot/loyalty cards? (Self-service machine, perhaps?) I do periodic day trips from the L.A. area, hence the time-related questions. Agree that, even with that pay table, looks like a great overall value (and, a lot of fun); definitely want to do it soon.
Tim — the answer to your question will take some time. I’ll use it as a jumping off place for another blog in a few weeks. Look for it!
Keith, I said nothing about losing $10 or $15 over a reasonably short period of time. I said an expected loss per lunch. I’m sure there are days where Anthony loses more than $100. And there are other days where he scores a royal, four aces, or whatever and ends up ahead.
Successful gambling involves taking a long term view of your results. If you can’t, or won’t, do this, a whole lot of the things I write about won’t make any sense to you.
The videos we shoot at C&A are at the west side location, Spring Mountain/Decatur, but both are good and have the same programs. You just have to show your DL to get a card that works at both. There’s a play-$20-get-$20 sign-up bonus.
Keith, you missed the point of the videos. The first thing he says is “Don’t play fast”. The idea is to take $20 or $40 , play while you have lunch and the expected loss should cover your meal. Let’s say you play 200 hands over the course of your lunch. You have wagered $250. On 6/5 bonus poker, you will lose 3.1% long term. If you discount the royal, straight flush and aces , you lose another 3.1%. But that is the wrong way to look at it. You will hit one of those hands every 3000 hands on average. So, yes, if you play once, your odds aren’t very good of hitting one of those hands. In that case, you lose about $15.50. Sounds like a deal for lunch and a couple beers.
You also still have the chance of hitting one of those big hands. Now, if you are going to play 1000 hands per hour and play for 4 hours, not a good deal. As a lunch play, it’s a pretty good deal. Plus many of the bars run promos on top of the lunch and drink deal.
So far, the reviews I’ve read are showing mid/high limit 8/5 Bonus Poker and 9/6 Double Double Bonus as the best payback games.