Key takeaways
- Marc from Gamble Smart busts four common casino myths, from hot and cold slots to whether max betting really works
- Our full interview with Marc is available on the SlotsFan YouTube channel
Have you ever heard something about slots gambling that sounds too good to be true? We chatted with Marc from the popular YouTube channel Gamble Smart – which currently sits at number 37 in our SlotsFan streamer rankings – to separate the truth from fiction.
We talked about everything from “hot” slot machines to game volatility, and we even challenged Marc to a rapid-fire round of 20 questions. Check out our full interview to learn about all the myths he busted during our conversation.
Here are some of the most interesting casino myths that Marc discussed with us:
Myth #1) Raising your max bet improves your chances
Marc was quick to bust this myth, which he says he gets asked by viewers every week. He attributes this common myth to the tendency for players to see patterns in their gameplay.
“Technically speaking, your odds are better the higher the denomination you play. Most casinos set it up that way, but the caveat to that is you won’t notice it in the short term,” he told SlotsFan. “You’re not going to notice some sudden jump going from a dollar to $5 or even $10.”
In other words, if you win big right after maxing out your bet, just chalk it up to coincidence.
Marc points out that this popular myth is an example of confirmation bias from the player.
“We’re just built that way,” he says. “We’re built to look for patterns, especially with things that we don’t understand.”
Myth #2) If a slot hasn’t hit in a long time, it’s overdue
“That’s where people break down and start chasing because they see a maxed out on Dragon Link,” Marc explains. “It’s got to hit soon, right? Because it’s been sitting there at 5,000 for the last week and nobody’s hit it.”
Marc was quick to debunk this myth by reminding us of how probability works for slot games.
“A lot of people think it’s weighted towards the ends, but not on most of them,” he says. “Progressives have a fixed odds probability on every single spin. It doesn’t matter if it’s maxed out or not.”
He again warns that perception is different from reality, so players should be careful not to trick themselves into seeing what’s not there.
”That’s not gambling smart. That’s not learning the game. It’s not going through the game rules and understanding how the mechanics work.”
Myth #3) Is there such a thing as hot and cold slot machines?
This was a hard question for Marc to answer! He confirmed for us that slot machines are not designed to be hot and cold, but the phenomenon is still very real.
“Hot and cold is something you feel, but it’s not something that’s programmed into the game design,” he says. “In randomness there has to be swings. If you didn’t have swings of hot and cold, then I would question if it was actually random or not.”
To put things into perspective for us, Marc used the example of flipping a coin.
“We all know that flipping a coin is 50% heads or 50% tails. So, how do you explain flipping a coin five times and you get heads every single time? Is that a hot quarter? No, the odds have not changed. It’s still always 50/50.”
Myth #4) Casinos can turn game bonuses on and off
According to Marc, this is one myth that never goes away, but there’s no truth to it. He shared this story with us about a Gamble Smart viewer:
“We got somebody the other day who said, ‘I’m convinced that casinos can change the payback percentage and cause more bonuses at any time whenever there’s a certain number of people there.’ … Unfortunately they can’t. Well, fortunately for us, they can’t do that, right? That’s not something that’s allowed. They don’t have that kind of fine level controls where they can say, ‘Oh, time to turn the bonuses on in the progressives and then time to turn them off.’ It doesn’t work that way.”
When discussing these gambling myths, Marc stressed that he’s always open to hearing what his viewers have to say and having a discussion with them.
“It’s very important that we all are open and transparent and talk about this. Even if you believe against what we’re saying so strongly, make your point and we will offer an alternative view on it,” Marc shared.
