Some people just don’t want to believe what we’re telling them, because they saw something and can’t comprehend any other way it could be done:
Why do you guys say that casinos don’t have instant control of slot machines? Yes they do, I saw it with my own eyes! It was about 4am, the casino was almost empty of course. All of a sudden I heard loud screaming as if someone hit a jackpot. I was shocked of course because the area that I was in was practically empty. I got up from my machine to see what was going on.
Alicia
A group of about 6 people, men and women all dressed up in formal dresses and tuxedos, were there. The machine hit 7 7 7, everyone screamed, and then I noticed the cameras. They were shooting a commercial! They fixed their hair, makeup and clothes, the female hit the button on the slot machine again and all 3 jackpot symbols appeared, they all screamed with excitement, this process repeated several more times with either 7 7 7 or the jackpot symbol. After they finished shooting the commercial, a technician opened the door of the machine and did whatever he did (maybe reset). They all left. I was actually the only one left in that area (4:30am). Around 5am I decided to go and play that machine not expecting to win anything and like always the machine did what they are programmed to do, “take your money,” no 7 7 7, no Jackpot. So no one will or can ever tell me that the casinos can’t set the machines. Explain that!
We appreciate the example, Alicia, but when we say casinos aren’t controlling the outcome we mean when a machine is configured for real money wagers. As Brian put it when we shared the question internally,
This is what they call in the film world as acting. They didn’t really win the jackpot.
Brian Christopher
While it’s certainly possible you played the same machine, as you noted it was not acting the same, and the explanation is actually quite simple.
I’m sure you’ve seen casinos hosting slot tournaments. Machines that are normally set up to take wagers are switched into tournament mode, sometimes the same game and sometimes a different one, and when the tournament concludes, the casino shifts them back into real money mode and it’s back to business.
The same thing is likely happening here – the slot is in a demo mode for the purposes of recording a commercial. Just because a machine has a feature to allow for specific purposes doesn’t mean a casino can, or does, control every spin 24/7.
The regulations that certify games that are placed on casino floors don’t allow this. The third party labs that test machines confirm their fairness. The companies that design the games are purposeful that the prizes that are on display can be won on any spin. The gaming commissions audit things to make sure it happens.
When mistakes do happen, they’re caught and corrected swiftly. It can even happen online – DraftKings launched a game in Connecticut that turned out to have a bug that led to no winning spins. Players reported the issue and regulators were aware of the issue within days. DraftKings refunded all of the wagers made during that period (malfunctions void all plays, even when no pays).
Casinos can set what they want a machine to pay back in the long run. They can’t decide an individual spin. Even when the machine is in demo mode, they’re not specifically choosing the outcome. It’s set up to do a specific job in a specific mode. Casinos themselves can’t control any specific spin outcomes.
So yes, a slot can be put into a mode for non-real money purposes, such as a tournament or for a demo. Once it’s placed in a mode to actively accept bets, it must run with the parameters approved by the gaming commission, and as tested and validated by third party providers. Just because both modes exist doesn’t mean a casino can control the outcome when you’re playing, because there’s a lot of regulations and guard rails that prevent a casino from doing just that.
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