We’ve talked enough here about the randomness of slots that many seem to get the basics of the random number generator (RNG). But there’s additional questions that tend to come up periodically on the topic:
Are bonuses totally random or do they show up at predetermined times?
Dianne R.
Triggering a bonus is an outcome, and just like any of the outcomes that are possible, the random number generator will determine, based on the timing of you pressing spin and place a wager, which outcome will be delivered to you. So the triggering of a bonus would also be random for that reason.
The bonus itself may be a true bonus or predetermined. The major difference between the two is when you hit spin, getting the bonus is confirmed in both processes. The difference is that a true bonus’s outcome is yet to be confirmed, whereas a predetermined bonus already knows where you’re going to end up.
Some players are superstitious about predetermined bonuses and prefer to know their actions (or inactions) matter. Less often, but also possible, we get players who actually sweat when their picking matters and prefer a bonus where the pressure’s not theoretically on them.
The reality is the math for either type of bonus will basically work out similarly – there’s a distribution of prizes in the predetermined one, and there’s a range of outcomes in the true one. Regardless of bonus choice, the payback will still converge similarly to where it’s expected to be over time.
And when you have control, we never know what the alternative outcomes would have been until the bonus is over (a picking bonus) or at all (when it comes to the timing of free spins). As such, we don’t really have true control over anything – it’s just perceived control.
Hopefully that helps though – there isn’t a cycle to spins or something of that nature that would lead to the machine already working towards a bonus. The chance of a bonus on any spin is the same, and is all about timing.
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