Slot Machine Addicts

Slot machines have a long and illustrious relationship with casinos. They have always made money for the casinos, but in 1984 they started to make more money for the casinos based on the way the machines were now made. Not only did the slot machines start making more money, but they also made more addicts.

The original slot machines were not all that addictive. People would play them, but not to the excess that they do today. The first slot machine was invented in the late 1800’s by Charles Fey and people enjoyed playing it. However, once Inge Telnaes got his hands on the machine people started viewing it differently than they did before.

The new slot machines gave players the illusion that they stood a better chance of winning than they did before, as well as the illusion that they could win more than they lost. Both things were obviously not true. However, the new slot machines were “perceived to present greater chances of payoff” than they really gave.

What this did was make the casinos a lot more money as people put in more money, but it also created slot machine addicts. Therapists have found that slot machine addicts, for the most part, do not fit the picture of your traditional addicts. They did not stem from a mental defect, they stemmed from the slot machines.

In thinking that they can beat the game, they end up beating themselves. They cannot beat the game – and with slot machines bringing in 80% of the casinos’ revenues, they aren’t about to change that any time soon.

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