Flashing Lights and Accelerated Music: The Smoke and Mirrors of Slot Machines

The online gambling industry has seen a huge rise in popularity, with the likes of this brand has seen huge success operating in the slots market. As by a large majority, the most popular way of playing online is using online slot machines, like those found at slotscanada.ca. They made up 48% of online casino players in 2014, and no doubt, with the development of more and more advanced slot games, this has increased. This will come as no surprise, therefore, that it is these games that providers put the most thought and effort into. Slots are easy to use and fun to play with, with modern technology allowing you to deposit and play seamlessly. However, there is some important factor to consider if you want to avoid turning those 20c Spins into several maxed-out credit cards and get the most out of your gameplay.

A New Dynamic

Slot games have come a long way from the dusty machines found in the back of pubs or bars that older generations would be accustomed to. The biggest change is how you can win on them. In yesteryear, there was one way to win, straight down the middle. Missing that mark would see you lose your money, and it doesn’t take long for that to get tiresome. Now, there are countless ways to win on the reels of some games, with the option to alter pay lines as you see fit. Giving you the option to win more frequently, or so it seems. The research found that you are likely to spend more on these games than on the traditional format, even if it seems you are constantly winning, as the higher the number of lines in play, the lower the payout will be for you. Furthermore, on the game they used, they found when using 15 lines, they found players won 14.2% of the time, lost 67.4% of the time, and the remaining 18.4%, were losses disguised as wins in some format. These losses disguised as wins are implemented via the use of the game’s design. Extra features such as “Wild” symbols that give you free spins will accelerate music or the use of flashing lights, which makes you feel like you have won when really it is likely to extend your playtime. Ultimately, fewer reels are better for the player in the long run.

The Mental Factor

Even without the game designer or casino’s input, it seems that players’ brains will deem a near miss as good as a win mentally, which makes it hard to walk away. Dixon and Schreiber’s study showed that slot machine players are more likely to pause after a win than a loss, in a phenomenon known as “post-reinforcement pause.” Essentially, getting close to a win will make you want to play more than winning. Players are wired to want to pay more if they lose. Particularly if, say, the player was just one symbol away from a big pay-out. If neither winning nor losing will make a player stop, when combined with game designers’ craftwork, it’s no surprise that players always want just one more spin. Always be wary of this to ensure you don’t get carried away.

Should I Play?

This is not to say playing slots is necessarily bad as it can enjoy and can still see you earn some quick cash. However, it is definitely worth thinking more about what game you are playing and how you are using it if you really want to reap the rewards.

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