Casinos do not need a lot of help in convincing people to play slots. They make the most of their revenue from gamblers spinning these reels.
Casinos are also helped by the fact that there are a substantial variety of slots, games and themes. Anybody can easily find a slot machine that suits their preference.
Nevertheless, casinos do use several tricks to encourage people to play these games longer. After all, more play means more substantial profits for casinos. Unfortunately, some of these tricks make it difficult for the players to quit.
The best way to prevent falling for these tricks is to know and understand them. Some of the biggest slots tricks that keep players glued to the reels are.
- Being Stupefied by the Lights and Sounds of Slot Machines– The primary reason why slot developers use attractive graphics and sound effects is to make their games more engaging. These lights, graphics and sounds capture your attention and keep you immersed in the experience.
- Falling for Losses Disguised as Wins– Slot machines have come a long way since they were single-line machines with mechanical arms. Modern slots are computerized and feature anywhere from 20-300 pay lines. Numerous lines make for the possibility of forming multiple wins in any round. Furthermore, you feel like a winner more often when you land a payout on at least one pay line. Unfortunately, this has a negative effect in convincing you that you are winning when you are in reality, losing. Casinos and slots commonly use losses disguised as wins (LDWs) to trick gamblers. It is prevalent to win a prize on one or more pay lines and still lose money overall.
- Near Wins Convincing You to Keep Playing– Another type of slot machine trick is near wins. A near-win is a result that comes just short of a huge payout or any prize in general. Studies show that near wins are similar to LDWs as they feel like true wins. Furthermore, they also encourage you to keep playing.
- Giving In to Gambling Dopamine– Dopamine is a neurotransmitter that the brain releases during pleasurable activities. It spikes even further when there is a potential reward waiting at the end of a pleasurable activity. Therefore, slot machines can cause an increase in dopamine. You have a probability of winning a big reward every time you spin the reels.
- Being Fooled by Skill-Based Slot Machines– Land-based casinos have been testing out skill-based slot machines since the mid-2010s. These games typically play like regular slots, except featuring a skill-based bonus round. The reason why casinos offer skill-based slots is that they want games to appeal more to millennials.
- Chasing Slots Comps– Both land-based and online casinos offer comps as a method to reward frequent players. And many gamblers love getting cashback and other rewards. Obviously, there is no problem with wanting to earn rewards based on your play. But this becomes a problem when you start chasing comps. Chasing rewards means gambling for the sole purpose of obtaining more comps.
- Believing That Bonuses Are “Free Money”– Online casinos commonly give out deposit bonuses as a way to draw new customers and retain current ones. However, the playthrough is usually set high enough to where casinos are guaranteed to make money off the average player, even if they do earn their deposit reward.