What is Random about a Slot Machine?

Most people are aware that the way a slot machine operates is truly by the randomness of how the symbols line up on the pay line. There is no way of knowing when the slot machine will hit, but you can be assured that eventually it will because it has to pay out at some point. However, when casinos are announcing how much they keep from a particular slot machine, it can get confusing.

Some want to know how a casino would know how much they are keeping from a slot machine if it is all random – after all, wouldn’t the number change daily? Well, yes and no, because it is truly random. The casino knows the probabilities of each slot machine as in when it will hit, what combinations will hit, etc. which help it determine their final numbers. They know that on average their slot machine has to pay out a certain amount of money, or they are in trouble with the state gaming board.

So the casino estimates how much each slot machine will actually give them, and how much it will pay out. They figure out the probabilities and the values of all winning combinations, and they come up with an amount that seems to make sense over the course of time. They can calculate how much has been won and figure out how much a specific slot machine will pay out on average on any given day.

So, no they don’t know the exact amount on say, Monday, that the slot machine will pay out, but they can tell you on average what that machine will pay out any day of the week.

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