RCCI Slot Payouts Percentage?

[EngIceDave]

Danzur is correct. Slots are based on a RNG, a Random Number Generator, which is essentially a chip inside the machine and installed by the game manufacturer.

While it is possible to change the RNG, it is not easy and is time consuming, not to mention people would obviously see it going on with all the machines open and guys swapping chips and memory boards.

Some machines can have a 5% hold ("Hold" means what the machine keeps over its lifetime of play) and some can have as much as a 10-12% hold. Again, as stated above, that is a lifetime average, so one day the machine may seem "looser" and then "tighter" another day....they can also seem different just hours apart.

The things to keep in mind is that all the machines are not typically set for the same hold percentage, so there is some hunting involved to find a machine that has the lower hold, and once you find it, it may seem to tighten later...all on it's own....all because of averages and the RNG

 

Machines are not "due to hit" because someone put money in it for a long time

Most of all the stuff "someone told you" is bogus wives tales.

Slots are computers, period.

The second you hit the button, the outcome is determined at that milli-second, because you stopped the RNG from spinning through the millions of number combinations that determines the outcome....the spinning of the reels and their stopping is solely for your entertainment...the outcome was decided before the reels even started spinning, at the second you hit the button.

 

As for any 99% signs, they usually say (in small print) "Up to" meaning up to 99% payout, not that all payout that, but that some can pay out UP TO that percentage. As stated earlier, that doesn't mean all the machines have that payout in that bank or that casino, but one does.

 

It's all mind games to mess with your head

[danzur]

And most people don't realize how poor that return is. If you are used to playing a full pay Video Poker machine with a 99.6% return, you might be lucky to find a machine with a 95% return on a cruise ship. So what does that mean?

 

If the house edge goes from 0.4% to 5%, that is more than 10 time greater. That machine on the cruise ship should expect to make over 10 times more money than a full pay machine in a Las Vegas Casino. And the people who play that machine should expect to lose 10 times more money. But usually, a person wouldn't lose 10 times more money, only because the cash they allocated for gambling would be depleted quicker, and that would be that.

 

Yep...and even saying this...if you were playing a 95% rtp machine on a cruise ship you would likley be playing the best odds on the ship :). 95% RTP is pretty good just about anywhere any more. Video poker is (if the paytable is remotely sufficient) usually the best odds as far as slots go (outside of high limit machines $25, $100 stuff) in most casinos. Finding a 99.5% machine anywhere anymore is not that easy....and that RTP% requires "perfect" play. I don't think anyone is capable of "perfect" play anyway (although some get closer than others).

[sas80]

Does anyone know what the payout percentage is on casino slots on RCCI cruises? I know most land based casino's pay out anywhere from 80 percent of their takings up to the high 90's.

 

 

Hello, hello, hello

 

Okay so, I am a software engineer by day

(I wont divulge my night activities ;))

 

My last position was working for Bally Gaming in Las Vegas on Bermuda Road. In my position I put together video slots. From a software perspective, the reel spinning part was pretty easy because all games have that. My engineering skills really came into play with running the second screen bonus features. Bally produced all sorts of slot types - video slots, hybrid machines (real reels coupled with a video terminal for second screen bonus round features) and straight real reel spinners with mechanical light toppers.

 

That's my background. Now to address the original question.

 

In Vegas it is pretty typical that the higher denomination slots had the higher payback percentage. $1 slots usually paid between 98 and 99%. Quarter slots were around 90-92%. Nickel slots were around 89% and penny slots tended to be around 87-88%. Casinos tend to want to reward players that are willing to wager more as it encourages them to keep betting big.

 

When you approach gaming from a statistical standpoint, it makes sense that (and the reality is that), the more higher-paying symbols on a single reel strip (more 7's than cherries) the more that game is going to pay out. So it is that situation that creates the weighted average and determines the payback percentage.

 

HOWEVER - these game configurations (98-99% payback, 90-92% payback, etc) are NOT denomination specific. It is the rule of gaming that gaming companies do not restrict vendors (casinos) to assign a particular denomination to a particular payback percentage. that is left to the discretion of the individual casino.

 

Considered from a marketing perspective, it IS in the casino's best interest to be fair to the player, if they want the player to come back and play more.

 

In terms of gaming law - Ships (by nature of registry) fall into the "international gaming regulation" situation (as opposed to Nevada's very strict gaming regulations) Again, this doesnt mean that a casino is bound to associating a payback percentage to any particular denomination. International gaming regulations are lax when compared to NGC (Nevada Gaming Control) regulations. The good news is that the games are typically created to play in Nevada and, as such, are designed and tested to pass NGC Board testing.

 

Perhaps you have seen Captain Jackpot? Luau Party? Those are on the Voyager. My games! :D I also did an iteration of blazing 7's, a Ray Charles game called What'd I pay, and a few others.

 

Moral of the story is that you just never know which machine is set to pay out at what percentage. If they advertise over a bank of machines that there is a 99% payback I would imagine that at least one of those machines would pay back at 99%. Again tho, I doubt that the cruiselines are going to try and screw you in the casino. the odds are always in the houses favor so there is no real reason for them to overtly try and swindle you.

 

But do consider staying away from the one arm bandits and playing craps. better odds.

Edited April 15, 2010 by sas80

[enjoymylife1]

My advice: Play a few rolls of quarters, maybe a few rolls of dollars, maybe you will come out ahead, but quit after that. If you pay for hours and hours, there is no way you can overcome the casino odds.

 

so important - after I hit the 2500.00 - they came over - counted it out to me - and I said "thank you and goodnight".... and never walked back in there !!!! it was sooooo tempting to just throw a 20.00 in the machine.... but I already knew the luck was hit! :D just always remember "waw".....

walk after winning....otherwise you'll be saying "waw waw" (crying.....lol!) . i had read that years ago on cruise critic - and it stuck!

 

 

just always remember "waw".....

walk after winning....otherwise you'll be saying "waw waw" (crying.....lol!)

 

priceless!!! lol

[JTJ]

So for video poker the rtp is based solely on the published payouts on the machine face for the different winning hands and not any chip magic hidden in the computer?

[EngIceDave]

So for video poker the rtp is based solely on the published payouts on the machine face for the different winning hands and not any chip magic hidden in the computer?

 

Correct.

A deck of cards is required to play like a real deck of cards. It is not dependent upon a RNG or anything other than dealing a deck of cards by computer.

 

Payout percentage is given to you up front by way of the paytable. You can find two of the same machine with different paytables.

 

Both will deal cards similarly, difference is paytable.

[24butterfly]

Does anyone know what the payout percentage is on casino slots on RCCI cruises? I know most land based casino's pay out anywhere from 80 percent of their takings up to the high 90's.

 

Because it is in International waters, there ae no regulations, as in Vegas...I LOVE the slots, but I know that on cruise ships they're stingy. I have found that on the first 2 nights to lure you in, the slots are paying out, then it's tightened, and especially on the last night--forget about it!

[sas80]

Correct.

A deck of cards is required to play like a real deck of cards. It is not dependent upon a RNG or anything other than dealing a deck of cards by computer.

 

Payout percentage is given to you up front by way of the paytable. You can find two of the same machine with different paytables.

 

Both will deal cards similarly, difference is paytable.

 

You just don't know how many decks of cards the machine is dealing from at any one time and, even if it is only one deck, you dont know if that deck is replensihed and reshuffled before each deal.

 

For example, just because you saw no aces in your last hand, you do not know if the new deal is coming from a 50 card deck (52 - 2 jokers) or a 45 card deck (52 - 2 jokers - 5 cards from the last hand) (honestly I don't know how many cards are in a deck, but you get my math, and point)

 

I didn't do any video poker machines so I cant comment on their innerds.

[danzur]

Because it is in International waters, there ae no regulations, as in Vegas...I LOVE the slots, but I know that on cruise ships they're stingy. I have found that on the first 2 nights to lure you in, the slots are paying out, then it's tightened, and especially on the last night--forget about it!

 

Completely innacurate. It is physically possible to do this, but the amount of time and effort required would not be worth it. The casino does not need to do anything like this....the RTP% is the RTP%. Basic laws of math dictate the casino will win in the long run. No gimmicks...LOL

[octagonmike]

RCI Slots actually pay out? :eek:

 

 

 

;)

 

Eric

 

 

A lady won over $ 3000 from a slot on the last night of our cruise on Liberty last May.

[klingoncruiser]

As a rule of thumb on RCL, I only play the slots the first two days. After that, seems they do not pay anywhere near what they did those first two days.

[EngIceDave]

The reason people THINK payout is better early in the trip and worse later is volume.

The more people playing, the more it seems people are winning. More bells, whistles and clanking

When overall play is lower, it seems (feels like) less people are winning.

You can tell the difference in a land based casino and even Las Vegas. Go play in the morning about 9am, and it seems like the machines are tighter and no one is winning, go same casino about 9pm, and it seems like everyone is winning.

 

It's mind games

 

As stated earlier, it is in the casinos best interest to keep the payouts up (and the hold lower) to keep players playing, because in the long run, they will eventually win.

This is why if you want to be comp'd anything in a casino, like a meal or a room, they want to see HOURS on your players card, not dollars....HOURS....like 4 hours minimum. You can walk in a casino, drop a grand in $25 slots in 20 minutes, lose all of it, and the casino won't comp you jack...they want to see TIME not dollars.

 

Because the longer you play, the better their advantage

 

and that applies to ALL the casino games, even table games...time turns the advantage to the house.

 

A "Hot table" or a "Hot thrower" isn't hot forever, and the house knows it

Edited April 15, 2010 by EngIceDave
typo

[cruzincurt]

You just don't know how many decks of cards the machine is dealing from at any one time and, even if it is only one deck, you dont know if that deck is replensihed and reshuffled before each deal.

 

For example, just because you saw no aces in your last hand, you do not know if the new deal is coming from a 50 card deck (52 - 2 jokers) or a 45 card deck (52 - 2 jokers - 5 cards from the last hand) (honestly I don't know how many cards are in a deck, but you get my math, and point)

 

I didn't do any video poker machines so I cant comment on their innerds.

As far as I have researched and read about video poker games, each deal (game) is a new shuffled deck.

[mjldvlks]

Because it is in International waters, there ae no regulations, as in Vegas...I LOVE the slots, but I know that on cruise ships they're stingy. I have found that on the first 2 nights to lure you in, the slots are paying out, then it's tightened, and especially on the last night--forget about it!

I think I read somewhere that they have to compy with Bahamas regulations because of ship's registry. Could be wrong though.

[CptSticky]

Payout percentages really don't mean anything. In Vegas there are machines that are advertised as 99.9% payback. I have played them a few times and each time I did 20 plays and never hit for even 1 credit.

 

For all of the zillion losers there will be a winner, the lotto is a good example.

 

The cruise ships have to have some winners otherwise no one would play.

They get a fresh group of suckers everytrip.

[jty1220]

Are you saying that VP has some of the worst pay outs on a cruise casino?

[CptSticky]

One last thing. On most cruises, I've seen a small sign that says "we reserve the right to reset progressive jackpots at the end of the cruise. This really messes with the odds. If a machine has a 98% chance of hitting it's progressive jackpot over it's livetime, what do you think happens to the odds when they reset it every cruise?

[sas80]

As far as I have researched and read about video poker games, each deal (game) is a new shuffled deck.

 

I cant really speak to it because I never developed on the games but the first question that comes to my mind is which regulatory board were you reading about? Indian gaming regulations? Nevada Gaming Regulations? International Gaming Regulations?

[sas80]

Completely innacurate. It is physically possible to do this, but the amount of time and effort required would not be worth it. The casino does not need to do anything like this....the RTP% is the RTP%. Basic laws of math dictate the casino will win in the long run. No gimmicks...LOL

 

Not completely inaccurate. The ships are bound to the gaming regulations for their registry. If their registry is the Bahamas then Bahamian Gaming Regulations apply.

 

As far as RTP%, it is VERY easy for any casino to go in and change the denomination of their video machines. As far as the machine is concerned, a credit is a credit. All pay's mare made in terms of a credit. Nickel, quarter, whatever, it's all considered a credit to the machine.

 

What this means is that, if a nickel machine was set to 95% payback on one night the casino could change that nickel machine to be either a quarter or dollar slot for the next night. (they do it while the casino is closed) If the actual stickers on the game say 5 cents this is harder to do. But, if the denomination is ALL video based this is ver easy to do. the customer would notice that their high paying nickel machine is now a quarter or dollar machine tho.

[audrey2580]

Stupid question but our cruise starts in Rome (Navigator), are the slots still 25 cents or is it euros? Also same question for when we buy into the slot tournament - dollars or euros?

[sas80]

One last thing. On most cruises, I've seen a small sign that says "we reserve the right to reset progressive jackpots at the end of the cruise. This really messes with the odds. If a machine has a 98% chance of hitting it's progressive jackpot over it's livetime, what do you think happens to the odds when they reset it every cruise?

 

Resetting the jackpot has nothing to do with the reel strip layout or the odds/statistics of hitting the progressive jackpot.

 

Here is how progressives work...

 

Upon configuration of the game the company (casino, ship, etc) is able to identify what percentage of credits will be applied to the progressive jackpot each time that handle is pulled, and a base amount to start the progressive at.

 

For example, if the machine is set up to contribute 30% of the wager to the progressive jackpot each time the handle is pulled, and the player wagers 100 credit, 30 credits will go into the progressive jackpot.

 

How much $ is that? It is 30 credits times the denomination of the game.

 

As well, upon progressive configuration the casino will select a base jackpot to start from, usually something like $1500 or $2500 - Because why would you play a progressive that only has a $50 present payout? With each pull of the handle more credits are added to the jackpot.

 

Resetting the jackpot has zero to do with the number of high paying symbols on the reel strip and/or the statistical odds that you are going to hit the magical reelstrip combination.

[yogimax]

Of course, the odds are against you with the slots.

 

My guess, however, is that you will do much better playing slots than bingo.

 

If the slots are returning 90%, I'd speculate that bingo is returning 40%. That's based on observations of how many people are playing bingo, the cost and the payout. It sure seems that the payouts are quite small compared to the amount of money taken in.

[yogimax]

Stupid question but our cruise starts in Rome (Navigator), are the slots still 25 cents or is it euros? Also same question for when we buy into the slot tournament - dollars or euros?

 

The dollar is king!

[CptSticky]

Not completely inaccurate. The ships are bound to the gaming regulations for their registry. If their registry is the Bahamas then Bahamian Gaming Regulations apply.

 

As far as RTP%, it is VERY easy for any casino to go in and change the denomination of their video machines. As far as the machine is concerned, a credit is a credit. All pay's mare made in terms of a credit. Nickel, quarter, whatever, it's all considered a credit to the machine.

 

What this means is that, if a nickel machine was set to 95% payback on one night the casino could change that nickel machine to be either a quarter or dollar slot for the next night. (they do it while the casino is closed) If the actual stickers on the game say 5 cents this is harder to do. But, if the denomination is ALL video based this is ver easy to do. the customer would notice that their high paying nickel machine is now a quarter or dollar machine tho.

My DW once found a machine that had been set wrong. For every dollar that you put in the reader, it gave 4 credits. It thought it was a 25Cent machine, but they had it set for dollars. That was the only machine that I ever saw that was truely more than 100% payback:D

[CptSticky]

Resetting the jackpot has nothing to do with the reel strip layout or the odds/statistics of hitting the progressive jackpot.

 

Here is how progressives work...

 

Upon configuration of the game the company (casino, ship, etc) is able to identify what percentage of credits will be applied to the progressive jackpot each time that handle is pulled, and a base amount to start the progressive at.

 

For example, if the machine is set up to contribute 30% of the wager to the progressive jackpot each time the handle is pulled, and the player wagers 100 credit, 30 credits will go into the progressive jackpot.

 

How much $ is that? It is 30 credits times the denomination of the game.

 

As well, upon progressive configuration the casino will select a base jackpot to start from, usually something like $1500 or $2500 - Because why would you play a progressive that only has a $50 present payout? With each pull of the handle more credits are added to the jackpot.

 

Resetting the jackpot has zero to do with the number of high paying symbols on the reel strip and/or the statistical odds that you are going to hit the magical reelstrip combination.

Darn, I knew I should have explained better. You are correct, it has nothing to do with the odds of hitting the progressive, however when the machine says so many percent payback it's figuring in the odds of winning back the money assigned to the progressive. So, if they take that money back from time to time? Does this not mean that as you play, you have less of a chance of getting more than what you play than if they allowed the progressive to continue to rise as they do in LV? Surely, as the house takes more money out of the machines, this means that there is less for people to win.