Do you consider yourself to be superstitious? Do you avoid walking under ladders? Do you cringe at the prospect of 7 years bad luck after breaking a mirror? Do you keep your umbrella firmly closed indoors? Well if you visit a casino, you will find plenty more superstitions in action.
You see, gamblers can be a pretty superstitious group. No more so than slots players. There are plenty of widely held superstitions when it comes to slot machines. In this article, we’ll have a look at the most common ones and determine whether there is any merit to the practices, or whether they are simply myths.
HOT AND COLD COINS
There is a belief held by many slots players that you increase your chances of winning by playing with hot coins. As such, you may see people rubbing their coins before inserting them into a one-armed bandit. There are others however who think the trick to cracking a slot is by inserting cold coins. Either way, it is fair to say that this is purely a myth. Each spin of the slot machine is random and is not influenced in any way by the temperature of the coins.
STANDING UP
Whilst you will usually find seats in front of slot machines in a casino, there is a commonly held belief that you are more likely to win if you remain standing. The reason for this? Some players believe that the slot machine knows if you are comfortable, and is less likely to pay out. They figure that if you are comfortable, the machine will give you a losing streak, as you are less likely to get up and move to another machine. Now before you online slots players start standing to attention in front of your PCs, lets take a minute to query this belief. The truth is, again, that each spin of the slot machine is a random event, and as such, it matters not whether you are sitting, standing or even lying down. Your chances of winning remain the same whatever position you choose to play in.
LOCATION IS KEY
Many players swear by playing slot machines located near the entrance to the casino. Such players believe that machines with looser payouts are generally placed here, rather than in the middle or the back of the casino. Now this is one superstition that may actually warrant some merit. It is logical that casino operators would place machines with looser payouts near the entrance to create an exciting atmosphere for players walking through the doors and to entice other gamblers.
NEW SLOTS IMPROVE YOUR CHANCES OF WINNING
A very common slot machine superstition is that new games provide better payouts. Many think that casinos allow higher payouts on new games to encourage players to try them out. In fairness, this is a myth which is encouraged by casinos as it draws more players to spend their money. The truth however is that no slots are rigged. They are subject to strict standards and the 1st spin has the same odds of winning as the 10,000th spin. When it comes to online casinos, playing new slots can have its advantages however. Whilst the games are 100% legitimate, random and fair, operators may offer generous bonuses and promos to play new games. By taking advantage of free spins and other such offers, you can get more play time for your money.
AVOID USING YOUR PLAYER CLUB CARD
Using your player club card at a casino can bring you many benefits, such as discounts, bonuses and other such perks. Yet there are plenty of slots players that believe the player card can reduce your chances of winning. They rationalise that casino operators can track how much you are winning, and if they deem that you are winning too much, they will make the machine stop paying out. This is complete bunkum! Whilst it is true that the operator can see how much you are winning, they have no power to adjust the payouts of machines. Each spin of the machine is random, and the casino cannot fix the machine to stop you from winning.
TOUCHING THE SCREEN
Stand around the slot machines in a casino, and you will no doubt see some players methodically tapping and rubbing the screen. The theory is that by touching certain symbols, such as wilds, they are more likely to land on the next spin and provide you with big payouts. Alternatively, if the bonus symbols have landed on reels 1 and 2, by rubbing the next reels, you increase the likelihood of another landing to trigger the bonus round. Any logical person will tell you that this is a pointless exercise. In fact, the only impact this will have on the game is to leave smears across the screen!
IF A SLOT HAS NOT PAID OUT FOR A WHILE, EXPECT A PAYOUT SOON
A widely held superstition is that when you play a slot which has not paid out for a while, you are due a payout. In a similar way, it is believed that if the jackpot has been paid out recently, then it will not pay out again for ages. The downfall in this argument is that each and every spin on a slot machine is a single, random event. The outcome of the spin is determined by a random number generator, and is not influenced in any way by the previous spins. The random nature of slot machines means that at no point does the machine owe you. Having a losing streak does not mean that you are due a winning streak anytime soon.