The online pokies segment of the online gambling industry has come a long way from being one of the most overlooked ones, as pokies in brick and mortar casinos were created to entertain the spouses of the table games gamblers. One might say that this segment benefited the most from the technology revolution in gambling, being transformed into one of the most sought-after segments of the gambling industry. Therefore, online pokies were propellered in the top of the Australian players’ preferences and it is not at all surprising, given our history of betting and gambling.
The technology infuses and the increasing popularity made online pokies one of the top choices for gamblers worldwide as well, showering down riches on a few lucky gamblers and online casinos that no one could have ever expected. Over 20 years ago, fruit machines were being accounted for approximately 30% of the casinos’ profits. Today, pokies are accounted for 70% of the profits!
You now have the possibility to play pokies and online pokies with little or no knowledge in terms of gambling and even so have the opportunity to win life-changing amount from those progressive jackpots. On the other hand, the fact that you need less or even no knowledge to play pokies or online pokies has created room for lots and lots of myths and misconceptions about these games. Most players fail to understand the inner mechanisms of pokies or online pokies and interpret their systems, rewards and results as they like, passing this false knowledge from one to another and perpetuating the myths around pokies. All this false information can create frustration among players and it’s a shame because we started gambling for fun and fun it should stay!
Myths and legends surround every entertainment area, but when it comes to gambling, these seem to have the deepest roots and it is quite normal, as superstitions and money have gone hand in hand since forever. Players also tend to be suspicious on casinos and online casinos, believing that the house is always going to pun on efforts in order to make it harder for them to win. It’s like the famous phrase ‘the house always wins’.
As gambling aficionados ourselves, we have come across lots of myths regarding online pokies. While there are some tips and tricks you could use to increase your chances to win big, when it comes to pokies there is no way of telling what you may get. It is known that these work on random number generators so, no matter how much you plan and strategize, it will always come down to pure luck. In comparison, table games like poker or blackjack involve a fair amount of knowledge and experience in order to become a good player, one who will also have his fair share of wins.
The myths and misconceptions surrounding pokies and online pokies were also increased and spread through the help of the internet. Some of these were published by people who do not have the right information, some by people interested only in making some profit on their websites by offering allegedly useful information about gambling, which is in high demand among players.
We want you to enjoy your gambling activities, no matter what those are, and not be fooled by all that misleading information out there. You started gambling because it’s fun and we would like you to continue for the same reason and sure if there will be winning involved even better. But if not, do not get frustrated or angry as it does not exist a certain and guaranteed way to win at pokies or online pokies.
Therefore, we have created a list of the most common myths about pokies out there and came up with the explanations based on facts!
Most common myths about pokies
Times of the day or the night which are better than others
There is no time of the day or night which is better than others, as there are no days during the week better than others. Some people even say that special occasion or holidays are better when it comes to offering bigger wins. All this information is clearly not true, as casinos cannot change the payout percentages that easily. Pokies and online pokies have random number generators which are installed when they are developed by their software providers and a return to player percentage set at a certain value, which does not chance during their use by players.
Land-based pokies offer more chances to win than online pokies
The only difference in terms of gameplay between land-based pokies and online pokies is the fact that it might take you longer to pull the lever than clicking the spin button. This might also decrease the amount of money you might spend in an hour, but the difference is too small to actually matter. Let’s take an example, you might play 400 spins in an hour by clicking the spin button and only 350 by pulling the lever, during the same hour. If you also have some wins during this hour and observe that you had better return on your money on the land-based pokies is only because you have played fewer spins and your wins or loses are related to the number of spins. When you play the same number of spins on slots and on online pokies, you will notice that the results will be the same, it only depends on your luck.
Do not use your club card to play as it decreases your winning chances
Some people think that when you use your club card the casinos will know and try to recoup the amounts of money you have already won or are winning on the pokies. In reality, the amount of money the casino is offering as your win is negligible so no one really bothers to do so. In addition, the random number generators which are installed in the pokies software cannot recognize if you play with your club card or not.
Casino staff know the loose pokies and can help you
Some people tend to think that employees of the brick and mortar casinos, especially the low-level ones such as bartenders or waitresses know which pokies have the best winning odds and where they are located. And, if you offer to give them a share of your wins, they will share the information with you. Totally not true. You can play pokies based on the criteria the software developer created for them, like the RTP or progressive jackpots, but these are the only true and valuable information you will have about a pokie. Even if the casino’s employees would have such information, as these are negative expectation games, you couldn’t make your living acting on that anyways.
You cannot improve your winning chances
Even if this myth is different than the others before, it is still a misconception. You can choose what online pokie to play according to its features, such as its return to player percentage, whether it has or not a progressive or a fixed jackpot etc. You can also choose the online pokie which offers the most features to help you create winning combination, the casinos which offer bonuses or promotions etc. There are lots of things to take into consideration if you want to improve your winning chances, even though these still do not guarantee you will win.
Pokie coins have to have a certain temperature
Even though coins are not really used in pokies anymore, some people still believe that their temperature matters. But this idea is ludicrous, do you really think that a warm coin has better results in terms of wins than a cold one? On the same idea, it does not matter if you use coins or bills, your odds are and will always remain the same.
The time passed from the last jackpot win matters
Have you ever heard of a slot going ‘hot’ or ‘cold’? Some people believe that there are times which are better to play a pokie, according to the time has passed since the last jackpot was won. The truth is that each spin is an individual event and the pokies do not have a certain number of spins or wins, after which they start paying jackpots. Each spin has its own outcome, independent from the outcomes before or after it. Therefore, you could hit a jackpot and then another after that, or you could not hit anything.
The loose pokies are put in certain areas of the land-based casinos
We’ve heard this one a lot, people believe that loose pokies are set on the aisles of a land-based casino in order to attract more players. This is not true, or at least it isn’t true anymore, as the casinos have to say in the wins of the players and cannot change their odds, no matter where the pokie is set.
Counting the icons on each wheel can tell you the odds
Even if you don’t see them, there can actually be hundreds of virtual symbols stops on each wheel. Here is where the RNG intervenes and randomly generates a number for each spin. This is also the reason why pokies are able to offer those huge payouts we are all dreaming about because millions of combinations can be generated.
Casinos can influence your odds in pokies with the flip of a switch
Pokies actually have settings in their software which determine the payback percentage, but these are set in the beginning by the software developers as part of their system. Casinos cannot change this setting as it is not only time-consuming and expensive but also against the law in most jurisdictions. It is generally more cost-effective for the casinos to leave their pokies as preset from the software developer company.
Pokies can be hacked
Perhaps the biggest myth about land-based and online pokies is the one according to which they can be hacked. People have tried to cheat land-based pokies with weighted coins, magnets or by inserting an electronic card and other kinds of devices. Things did not turn for the better for those who tried these hacks. You must know that there is no software you can download to hack the pokies, it’s just not realistic and investing in such ways will turn up to be more expensive than actually playing the games. The software development companies which create pokies are large companies with the time and resources to invest in creating hack-free software so its no use trying to cheat. Save yourself the time, effort and money and just have fun!
Pokies will only pay out a certain percentage of the bets
The belief that after a jackpot is won on a pokie game the machine will tighten in order to get back in the balance is not true. It is the same as the belief that is the jackpot has not been won for a long time, the pokie is overdue and will likely offer more chances to win. As each spin is actually independent of the ones before and after it, your odds are always the same.