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Are IL Slots Players Being Shafted?

A frequent question to gambling fan sites on the World Wide Web having to do with Illinois slot machines has been this: are the slots paying out less than before? There has been a persistent rumor that slot games in the Prairie State are paying out less than before, while casinos make even more money off them. This is actually one situation where the rumor-mongers are correct. Illinois’s slot machines ARE paying out less than before… but don’t start writing that angry letter to your local casino, just yet.

Simply put, decreased slot machine payout in Illinois has everything to do with the gambling preferences of the playing public. The frequency of slot game payouts has gone down because slots enthusiasts are showing a marked preference for the cheaper games. The epic popularity of penny and nickel slots is the reason behind this trend. Gamblers would rather splash out on penny slots, even if they pay out less open. Penny slot players are more likely to play repeatedly than those who gamble on the expensive (fifty cent or one dollar) slot game titles.

Dollar games pay out the highest percentage of all slots, with every cheaper increment being tied to a lower chance of pay outs. If the dollar slot machines came roaring back into vogue all of the sudden, it’s a safe bet that the pay out percentages would start rising dramatically. The lower payout percentages have everything to do with statistics – it’s not as if the casinos are tinkering with the machines in any way. It’s all about player demand, really!

Back to September 2008 Archive.