Jean, I study, plan, and play but, with the ever changing “climate” I have trouble figuring out when a play is “good”. I know you’ve said you’re mathematically “challenged” in the past and I SO COMMISERATE! Have you found an easy formula for us number-challenged folks to use to figure out a “good” play?
This question is a common one, so that is why I have written four books about casino gambling! 🙂
Sorry I can’t give you a short answer. Nothing about gambling is easy – but you don’t have to be a rocket scientist either. You just have to be willing to study and do a lot of research. I’ve tried to help players with these requirements by putting a lot information in one place. My last book, Frugal Video Poker, is a good place for specific and concentrated information on how to figure a good play, adding all the “extras” to the base game. But More Frugal Gambling is also a good source to learn about using the comp system, which is a key part to choosing a “good play.”
There has been a lot of good information put forth in the comments lately on the subject of the changing VP scene. I encourage you to read these comments and see if any of them might help you adjust better. However, I must caution that many of these people who are writing comments often are limited by “tunnel vision.” We all have a tendency to see things only in the light of our own experiences.
I’d like to remind everyone that there are many kinds of “good” video poker plays. Some are good for locals; some are good for tourists. I often hear from out-of-town friends that they are getting free play offers in the 4 figures while we are lucky to get $50. I start to get jealous, but then I remember they envy some of the local offers we get. There are still some very good EV quarter plays around in Vegas for those with smaller bankrolls; there are still good plays at the higher denominations for those with bigger bankrolls. Don’t waste your time moaning about the plays you can’t afford to do; scout harder for the ones that do fit your bankroll. I know players at all levels who are finding good plays and making money playing video poker, but they are all working harder than they ever have had to do before.
I have been called out because I don’t read the riot act on specific casinos who are cutting their paytables and/or their extra benefits. I have always said to never marry a casino, just expect to have temporary affairs. A casino is a business and doesn’t plan to be a non-profit one. Casinos do not have an obligation to run a program that makes it easy for their customers to negatively impact their bottom line. I will rail against a casino if they use false or misleading advertising. I will publically complain when they change a program or policy without giving their customers fair notice so they can collect benefits before they expire. But although I am personally sad when a casino takes out my favorite machine or stops a promotion I have really liked or decreases my mailer free play amounts, you will never hear me say that this casino is greedy. I will have to accept that this was a business decision they felt necessary.
We skilled players are constantly looking for ways to overcome the casino edge. But when we can no longer do so, we either change our goals or we walk away to look for greener pastures. It does no good at all to sit around and complain. What does work is to look for new possibilities – or see if some old ones might have improved since you last checked them out. Go over the vpFREE2 database and search thoroughly. That casino that has just one or two “good” machines- sometimes it has been one of our valuable long-term plays. Maybe a little out-of-the-way casino will be a surprise opportunity. Maybe we will have to drive a little further, but the extra rewards will pay for our time and effort.
Back to the same drum I have been pounding on: Be flexible. Change your goal, your denomination, your game, your casino, your location – or maybe even choose another hobby or job!
Steve It was a nice gesture but being cynical expect MGM to tighten the slots and charge u for using the bathroom.
Jean,
I agree that casinos are “pinching” their payouts but everyonce in a while, they show their generousity. Today at MGM Detroit a suspicious package was found in the parking structure. Reacting quickly, no one was allowed to enter or exit while the bomb squad was called.
No announcements where made over the PA, rather security just quietly told anyone that tried to exit, to have a free lunch buffet. This buffet is awesome and usually costs $24 per person. A couple of hours later the package was deemed harmless and everyone could come and go as they please.
I’m sure this free lunch cost MGM a lot, but it showed me what a class operation they are!
Jean you are correct in advising players to be flexible in choosing the best casino and game;or even to look for a different hobby ! What bothers me is the more frequent postings of people on VP internet sites who are playing poor paytables because that’s the best that is offered at the casino THEY want to play in ! All they’re doing is reinforcing the casinos’ downgrading policies !
A guideline for resort fees can be found at http://www.lasvegasdirect.com/las-vegas-hotel-resort-fees.html. It also has a list of resorts that do not charge a fee. For accurate updates you would have to double check before booking. Good Luck!
It would be very helpful if you would post a table of what various casino-hotels provide for their resort fees. The Palms, I discovered recently, wants $16/day, but does not include wifi, newspaper, or use of the gym. They will, however, give you coupons for drinks on the main floor, passes to elevators that will take you up to the even more expensive bars, and free valet parking! They will also allow you to upgrade a free room for thirty dollars. When I asked what the more expensive room had to offer, I was told it had larger beds and a flat screen TV instead of the “old-fashioned” kind. I declined paying $46+ for my free room.
Jean, as an out-of-towner, and a Caesar’s Diamond card holder, I use my host, reel rewards, coupons, free shows, Diamond Room, and other perks to at least recover some of my losses and actually come home occasionally with more than I took with me. I also check out the VP and free play/free meals at Terribles, the great comps at Casino Royale (and not bad VP schedule), the rebate at the Westin, and others to pad my pocket. Coupons from the Las Vegas Advisor and from other sources are also used when the situation is right. I may not always play the best machines, but I feel that I do everything I can otherwise to win and/or enjoy myself.
So, the combination of reading your books, savy play over the past 30 years (began at Lake Tahoe in 1980), and simply using my noggin despite worsening VP schedules, still allows me to have fund and occasionally win. I also have my favorite slots I play as well and have been lucky enough to win at these even more than at VP.
The definition of “good” is in itself flexible, and depends on whether you are a local, a frequent visitor, an infrequent visitor, etc. It also depends on whether you intend to maximize EV, maximize profit, or maximize enjoyment. It further depends on what your monetary goals, limitations, and psychological outlook are. There are plays that offer a significant profit but dictate highly accurate play, a large bankroll, and significant risk tolerance. There are plays that offer a steady, small profit with minimal risk. There are plays that depend on high-variance results for their “good” qualities (such as earning tickets for a +EV drawing). And then there are plays that are only worthwhile for visitors, such as -EV play that generates room offers worth substantially more than the expected loss. So when someone asks for a “good play,” I’d have to ask them what their situation and objectives are. In a VP weekend, person can have a whale of a time with a $100 bankroll, can throw in $5000 coin-in and generate room offers, or can hit some +EV $1-and-up opportunities and realize a theo of +$2000 or more. It all depends on what a person wants out of his/her VP experience, and (significantly!) how much effort he/she wants to devote to being one of the tiny, tiny minority of people who win.