Slots Myths

One of the more intriguing aspects of the gambling industry is the myths and rumors surrounding it. With chance and uncertainty being cornerstone features, people often resort to logical fallacies to explain what they do not understand. As it happens, gamblers are a superstitious bunch, especially those who lack the knowledge of how the games function. Due to this, several myths have been perpetuated and are now considered to be established truths among the gambling community.

As you can imagine, the spread of false information does everyone a disservice and can potentially ruin an otherwise great experience for some people. Slots are the most popular casino genre, and the number of myths surrounding this game type is proportional to its popularity. While some of these are relatively harmless and are more akin to conspiracy theories, others might put you at a disadvantage and have a negative effect on your gambling experience. To help combat this, we have prepared a list of the most common slots misconceptions that you should avoid like the plague.

Myths in Slots Gambling

As we have mentioned above, the world of slots is rife with myths and misconceptions, probably more so than any other casino game genre. Their inherent randomness is the primary factor, and it has contributed much to the spread of rumors. The misconceptions come in varying forms and deal with different aspects of the slots experience. However, the one thing that they all have in common is that they are false. Below, you will find those we deem the most harmful and the explanations of why they are untrue.

Watch Video about Most Common Slots Myths

Cold and Hot Slots Fallacy

This is arguably the most common fallacy in the world of slots, applied to both online and physical games. The idea is that certain games will offer higher payouts at certain times because they are ‘hot’ and will cease to do so once they have gone ‘cold’. This fallacy implies that there is a tendency for a slot to pay out more, which players can follow and exploit. This is wrong for several reasons. First off, casino games are not built with ‘memory’ in mind, and previous spins do not have any effect on future ones. Furthermore, the Random Number Generation systems are designed to provide truly random results on each individual spin.

With this in mind, we can easily dismantle this myth. While there may be a series of highly profitable spins during your gaming session, this is not due to the game becoming ‘hot’. It is the product of pure chance, and you were lucky enough to score a significant win. Games are not programmed to pay out large sums in the short term, and if they were, chances are that this would be illegal under most jurisdictions’ gambling regulations. You should not expect a game to provide you with a payout simply because you have not scored any wins in a long time. It is all about luck, and sometimes it may fail you.

Time of Day Matters

This fallacy is more commonly observed in land-based casinos, though it does not take a huge leap in logic to apply it to online gambling websites as well. Basically, this myth states that slots and other games will pay more during certain times of the day when compared to others. The idea behind this is that casinos try to entice players with larger winning probabilities during non-busy times. This notion is undoubtedly absurd, and there is no evidence to suggest that this is the case.

If casinos were able to change the probabilities of winning or the payout ratios of their games, then those same games would no longer be random. This is considered tampering and is illegal in all serious jurisdictions. Not only that, no knowledgeable gambler would play machines that have been modified from their factory settings.

Slots are Rigged Against the Players

The house always wins, right? It is a common misconception that the casino has rigged its games to make sure that players always lose their bankroll to the house. This is not true for a variety of reasons. To begin with, people would not play at casinos at all if there were no chance to win something. After all, no one likes to wager their money for no return. The reality is that some players will win and some will lose, entirely depending on their luck. The casino has not rigged the games so that you lose every other spin. This is, as we have mentioned numerous times in this article, completely illegal, and no regulatory institution would stand for it.

While gambling establishments do not clean out players in the short term, they certainly make a profit in the long haul. This is where the Payback Percentage comes into effect. By this, we are referring to the money paid out as winnings compared to the money that is put into the game by players. The Payback Percentage, also known as RTP, is lower than the total turnover, and the difference is kept by the casino as profit.

Sticking to a Particular Game Will Increase Your Odds of Winning

Another popular fallacy in the world of slots gambling, this is one side of the Gambler’s Fallacy often observed by bettors. The idea behind this is that if you play for long enough, the odds of winning a significant sum will increase. The other side of this fallacy is that if you score a large win, you are unlikely to score another of the same magnitude. There is the presumption of the maturity of chances, which is false. In a random process, the results of each spin are random, the product of chance. Each spin is completely independent of the previous one and has no effect on the next. If anything, your chances of scoring a win or a loss are the same on every spin, and only your luck will determine the outcome.

This myth ties in with the ‘hot and cold’ slots fallacy that we described above. Similarly, if some gamblers do not experience a worthwhile win during their gaming session, they may assume that the machine had made a large payout shortly before they started the game. All such assumptions are wrong, and you should keep them out of your mind.

With a proper RNG system, there is no possibility of this happening as described. All spins come with the same probability of winning, and there is always the chance that you will have two large wins in a row, none throughout your session, or anything in between. In a game of chance, never make assumptions about the likelihood of an outcome based on previous outcomes.

Certain Days Are Better Than Others

There are those who profess that gambling is more profitable on certain days than on others. While it is true that you will have more success on some days, this is for completely different reasons. The implication of the myth is that the house makes it so that slots pay out more on predetermined days, and this could not be further from the truth. The house has no influence on how often, or on which days or hours, a slot game will pay out. There is a general idea of how much money the casino will make in the long run, but never over the course of a few hundred spins. If you go to a casino with the presupposition that you will make huge wins because that day the machines are set to pay out, odds are you will leave disappointed.

Location of the Slots

This myth only applies to land-based casinos, as physical limitations on the gaming hall are an actual factor. Believers of this myth are under the impression that certain games positioned at specific locations are set to pay out more frequently than games in other places. According to the myth, these tampered machines are placed strategically near the entrances so that people who enter, or are about to leave the casino, are tempted by the large wins to sit down at a nearby machine.

Of course, you should not be surprised at this point when we say that this is also absurd. As we have covered many times already in this article, tampering of any kind is illegal, and if this were true, regulators would have a field day handing out fines and removing the machines.

Pulling Down on the Lever Hard Produces Better Results

Of all the myths we have featured on this list, this one might be the worst yet. There are those who, for whatever reason, hold the belief that pulling down hard on the lever will produce a better outcome than if they were to pull it down gently. Another variation of this myth involves pulling down the lever instead of pressing the spin button for a better result.

Whereas some of the previous entries on this list could be construed as semi-legitimate, provided some large leaps in logic, this is completely nonsensical and utterly groundless. The levers of slot machines are a relic of days gone by. They were once essential for you to play slots in the era of mechanical fruit machines, but modern slots have done away with any mechanical elements altogether. Everything nowadays is powered by computer software; essentially, playing slots is no different from playing video games. The lever is kept in an attempt to capture the feel of the older games for the sake of nostalgia, not for any practical reason. Essentially, the lever is one giant ‘Spin’ button, seeing as how it serves the exact same purpose. Pulling it down hard can only result in you breaking it and possibly having to cover the cost of the damages, which is considered a loss in our books.

Using a Club Card Will Affect the Payout Ratio of a Slot

There are those who subscribe to the theory that slot games are affected by your usage of a club card. Some say that this increases your odds of winning, while others proclaim the opposite. In both cases, however, there is no truth to these statements. Machines are programmed to feature set odds, whether a club card is inserted or not. This has no influence on the gameplay, the odds, or the payout ratio. However, if you willingly choose not to insert a club card, you are likely missing out on the opportunity to acquire comp points and other rewards offered by the casino.

Other gamblers are worried that the usage of a club card might cause the casino to report their winnings to the tax authorities. Unlike the statement above, this is not unfounded. However, it is not by using a club card that the casino reports your winnings. Whenever you score a significant sum, odds are that the house will ask you to fill out paperwork, and you will only be able to cash in your money after completing the respective forms. Additionally, if you consistently use your club card, you may be able to prove gambling losses and pay less tax on any large winnings. Furthermore, you should always keep a clean slate with the taxman. It is just common sense to do so.

Conclusion

These are only some of the myths currently being spread in the gambling community. As you have seen for yourself, they are without merit and only serve to misinform prospective gamblers. Not only do they fail to contribute anything, but some can actually be harmful. As such, we recommend that you stay far away from these and only take into account proven and reliable information. On our website, we have detailed guides about slots and other casino games that will help you get into the gambling industry. We rely entirely on facts and logic, allowing you to have a worthwhile experience and do away with any superstitions. In fact, reading our guides will also allow you to recognize similar myths and help you make informed decisions about your gaming sessions. We cover everything from the basic rules to advanced strategies and aspects of the most popular game genres.