Does the Slot Machine Know If I'm Playing with Free Play?

Does the slot machine know if I'm playing with free play or with my players card in or out?

We get this question and variations on the theme frequently. We last answered it several years ago, but after reviewing that, we like it enough to rerun it here (with some judicious editing).

It’s true that with today’s technology, a slot machine is capable of determining if your players card is inserted, if you just hit a 4-of-a-kind, if you’re using free-play rather than money, and if your face matches your ID photo. At the same time, it can be programmed to perform accurate quantum calculations, ascertain your resting heart rate and detect your blood-alcohol concentration, and send Tweets to astronauts at the International Space Station.

In short, slot machines are run by computers; they can determine anything they’re programmed to determine.

All that established, the question is, do they know how, why, and with what you’re playing?

And the answer here is a definitive yes and no. They can know and they probably do. However, by law, they're not allowed to use that knowledge to affect the result of your play.

Nevada Gaming Regulation 14.040.2, regarding electronic gaming devices, states that they all “must use a random selection process to determine the outcome of each play of a game.”

According to Knock-Out Blackjack co-author Olaf Vancura, “Put succinctly, the outcome must be random. There is no way around this. Nothing is allowed to be contrived; nothing is allowed to be predictable. The casino itself doesn't know what will happen when a wager is made. The casino can't know.”

He goes on to explain that the outcome of any spin is an independent event, completely unrelated to any other spins, the amount bet, whether you have a players card inserted, whether you just hit a jackpot or the machine hasn’t paid off for 10 years, or what your playing style is (it can’t “help” you, at video poker for example, if you’re clueless about the proper strategy).

“In summary,” Olaf tells us, “slot machines must be random, with each possible outcome available each spin, with the probability of each possible symbol constant, and with no detectable pattern or dependency on previous game outcomes.”

And here’s more: “It's a myth that if a machine has just hit the jackpot, stop playing, because it won’t pay. The truth is, the machine's next spin is completely unrelated to what just occurred. The machine's random selection algorithm has no recollection of past plays or their outcomes. In the United States, slot machines are not allowed to use so-called ‘reflex logic,’ where coin-in and coin-out or free-play are monitored and probabilities and/or pays are adjusted to target a prescribed hold percentage. This type of machine is strictly forbidden in this country."

Finally, as far as the slot club card having anything to do with the payouts, Olaf tells us, “It might be tempting to think slot machines work this way, but this, too, is strictly forbidden. Indeed, on slot machines, the back-house system that tracks your slot play (via your players club card) provides no feedback to the slot machine having to do with outcome. More often than not, the back-house system and the slot machine manufacturer are two different companies sharing a well-known communication protocol known as the Slot Accounting System.”

So there it is, in plain, technical, and back-house terms. Whatever a slot machine "knows," all results must be random.

No part of this answer may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, without the written permission of the publisher.

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Comments

Donzack Nov-15-2021

Advantage play

Many moons ago while playing video poker at the Pottawatamie casino in Wisconsin the power went out for about 15 minutes. After the power came back on the machine did a good 5 min reboot. Since my players card was never taken out my full name appeared in all the computer language. After more code the words advantage play appeared. Not player but play. Is this tracking merely to see how good a player you are? It was an IGT machine.

Jackie Nov-15-2021

And here comes the rub

While all of that is true, to two things that casinos do use to fill their pockets is pay out tables and statistical occurrences of combinations of symbols.  Irregardless of the type of slot. Discussions here have proven that to be very true due to video poker analysis.

And while outcomes are not supposed to be predictable, slots that have bonus rounds, that round can be predictable and if results in bonus rounds are recorded by a player then that player can eventually obtain a maximum bonus each and every time.

Dave_Miller_DJTB Nov-15-2021

Advantage play

I forget what it means, but it was discussed here a couple of weeks ago I think.

The advantage play they’re talking about is not the advantage play that we all talk about.

Gregory Nov-15-2021

RE: Advantage Play

Advantage Play, is the brand name of the casino management system that casino uses.  It's made by IGT.  https://www.igt.com/products-and-services/gaming/systems/igt-advantage.
Nothing to get excited about.

[email protected] Nov-15-2021

VP Advice

Interesting answer.  I do have one question.  You said the machine "can't 'help' you at video poker".  However, in the past I played video poker machines in Las Vegas that had the option of giving you a suggestion on how to play a given hand.  Don't know if it was perfect strategy, but it did catch things like warning you not to accidentally throw away a low pair when you also have a high pair and didn't hit the hold buttons on the low pair.  Do such machines still exist and, if so, how do they fit into the rules?  I would think that as long as the result is still random the suggestion might still be OK, much like dealers assisting players when setting Pai Gow Poker hands.

[email protected] Nov-15-2021

A Motto To Remember

"The machine's random selection algorithm has no recollection of past plays or their outcomes."

Or as someone once wrote, "Lady Luck has no memory."

steve crouse Nov-15-2021

The Slot Machine

Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of gamblers?
The The Slot Machine knows!

David Nov-15-2021

Slots set aside for free play

There are some casinos that set aside slots for free play only. These slots are tighter than a ... well, you know.

jay Nov-15-2021

Denomination

A couple nuance's to the answer here. When you have a slot with selectable denominations, it is possible to program the machine to have a 95% payback on a 0.25 table but a 97% payback on a 1.00 table. Unlike video poker, the pay tables for a slot give you absolutely no visibility to the payback %% any particular machine is paying. The payback %% of any particular slot is up to casino management. Historically tribal casinos operated in states that had no other gambling, and with a captive market, had tighter paytables as they were the only game in town so they exploited this advantage - I have heard that with competition this has been loosened. The comment regarding free play machines being tighter than a drum might be true but no more true than the house setting any particular machine to low payback. If the machine accepts both $$ and Free pay vouchers the machine would not distinguish between the two.

Lucky Nov-15-2021

Reflex Logic

Article says that "reflex logic" is not allowed in the US.  Does that also pertain to Indian casions?  What about other jurisdictions like FL, their casinos on Indian land or their state regulated casinos?

Larry Stone Nov-15-2021

perfect strategy

at caesars atlantic city there are two video poker units with a 'perfect strategy' sign above them.   they will automatically hold the cards which give the best results.  you can unhold the cards if you wish.  i've never seen this game anywhere else in ac, las vegas or ct.

galeekas Nov-15-2021

not all true

Certain Video poker machines in California (Barona) do help players with their play and strategy. After the hand is dealt, the machine suggests the hand you should play and holds those cards. You choose to keep them or throw them away and change the entire original hand. I find that the held cards are about 95% accurate with proper strategy. The same machines can be programmed and set the same way in Nevada. This feature is switched off here by the casinos who choose not to allow it as a feature. Just like double-up options.

dblund Nov-15-2021

Helpful Machines

I have played such machines in Deadwood SD as well.  They can be a little frustrating initially - I tended to unhold several cards I wanted to hold until I got in the flow of the machines.

O2bnVegas Nov-15-2021

No points while using Free Play

Machines know when Free Play is in use.  No secret there, since you have to dial up the players card system, enter your pin number, select how much of your Free Play to download, etc.  

During use of Free/Point Play, no points are earned. 
So, yes, the machines know when we are using Free/Point Play.

It may be a small difference, but better to not remove the players card to stop Free Play if you can help it, as that ends your "session points earned" and your "session" starts over.  We can miss earning some points by removing the card prior to an earning point.  So either let your Free Play all run out in one session and resume play, or download the amount you want to use at that time.  That way your session points aren't interruped.

Nothing you can do about it if 1) you hit a jackpoint, 2) call for tech service, since the attendant will usually have to remove your players card, which ends the point-earning session.  Can't get those back.

Candy

Question of the Day - 15 November 2021

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