Marcus Richards
Would you like to know a secret to beating the slots consistently with minimal risk? Yeah, of course you would! Wouldn’t we all?
Google has tons
Unfortunately, there isn’t one. If there was, the entire casino industry would collapse pretty sharpish. Word would spread about the guaranteed profits and it wouldn’t take too many punters playing at an advantage to seriously hurt the casino’s bottom line.
That doesn’t stop people claiming there are fail-safe ways to beat slot machines. Entire books have been penned on the subject. So, are they worth your money?
As the title of this article suggests – definitely not!
Beating Slots Long Term? Forget About it!
Slot machines, both online and in real-world establishments are designed specifically to give at least a slight edge to the casino. It’s this edge that makes the business profitable for the casino operator.
Designers create their titles with what is known as a return-to-player rating. This represents how much players are expected to win on average for every $1 they pump into a machine.
For all intents and purposes, you will never see a slot machine with a return-to-player rating of more than 100 percent. Such a machine would be expected to lose money for the casino and that’s not why operators get into the business!
The slot machines with the highest return-to-player ratings come in at 99 or 98 percent. However, most are considerably lower than this – with some even offering woefully low RTPs of 85 percent of less. Some slot machines are definitely more lucrative than others, however, none are actually profitable long-term.
Of course, that doesn’t mean you can’t win on slot machines. The return-to-player rating is only an average. It’s quite possible that a player will take 100 spins on a slot and win back more than they bet. However, the more spins they take, the greater the likelihood of the realising the actual average return-to-player rating.
Why Would Anyone Sell a Book on Beating Slots Anyway!?
As mentioned, there are no shortage of books on beating slot machines over the long-term. Something that should immediately spring to mind is the motive behind writing such a book. The author is claiming to have worked out a system to successfully exploit slot machines for profit. However, they are also wanting to make money from selling their book to as many people as possible.
Now, if it were a rational human being that genuinely had worked out a way to take the casino to the cleaners every time they visited, would they share it? If they could make consistent profits just from playing slots, it would be in their interests to keep said strategies to themselves.
The more people exploiting a loophole, the more likely it is that the gambling service operator would wise up to it. They would remove the exploitable game or ban players attempting to play at an advantage. This would quickly render the system useless, spoiling both the ability of the author to profit and, therefore, destroying the value proposition of the book itself.
Increase Your Odds Without a Book!
We’re confident that there is no way to consistently beat slots. As explained, anyone attempting to profit from the sale of such a system is likely peddling the proverbial snake oil.
That said, there are some ways of ensuring you play against the minimum house edge. This will maximise your expected value, even if it doesn’t mean that you play with an edge yourself. We’ll share them with you for free too!
Choose Games Wisely
We’ve already established that different slot machines have different return-to-player ratings. The simplest way to decrease the house edge is to only play high RTP games. Get into the habit of checking the return-to-player rating of a game before you load it up.
The difference in expected value between a 99 percent RTP slot and a 97 percent is actually much bigger than most people realise. If you want to best position yourself to enjoy as many winning sessions as possible, always go for the highest RTP slot you can.
Take Any Advantage
Some casino bonuses can actually increase your expected value if used in conjunction with the right games. Pay attention to the rollover requirements of any bonus and which games you can use it on. You’re looking for bonuses that allow wagering on a high RTP slot and demand players bet winnings again a small number of times.
You can even use a slot EV calculator to determine the profitability of a bonus. Enter various details from the promotion’s terms and conditions and the calculator will tell you how much you’re expected to win or lose.
Some promotions will actually advantage the player and we strongly recommend players never overlook such an offer. Even if they don’t win every time, with the right bonus players will be expected to take more profits than losses over the long-term. Taking on every single proposition with a positive expected value will yield profits eventually.
Always Play Optimally
Slot machines might not have the same number of decisions to make as a game like blackjack but that doesn’t mean there isn’t an optimum way to play them. To achieve the maximum return-to-player rating of a slot, you must play with all possible win lines active. Also, you should avoid adding any side bets. Additional features that require extra cash be wagered almost always reduce the player’s overall expected value.
Manage Your Expectations
As you should now realise, there is no sure-fire way to beat slots over the long-term. Those who try the systems advocated in books dedicated to profiting from slots will surely be disappointed. Instead, just have fun and don’t expect that big win!
That said, with proper understanding of return-to-player ratings and house edge, players will be better positioned to set realistic expectations from their gaming. Online gambling is supposed to be an enjoyable pastime with a chance to win – not a guaranteed path to consistent profits. Have you ever heard of a professional slot machine player? No, neither have we!
