If you love slots, you’ve probably tried your luck in plenty of bricks-and-mortar games arcades over the years, maybe you’ve had a few trips to live casinos too. If so, you might (on occasion) have had some fun stalking loose slots out? Maybe stalking is not the right phrase these days, but that’s what it takes, and lots of people do it. They loiter around looking for weaknesses and try to calculate the probability of when a machine’s about to drop – how loose it is. If there’s any confusion about what it means, just think of the opposite, a tight machine. Something or someone classed as tight isn’t usually much fun and doesn’t like to part with anything often, do they?
If you’re new to all this, it goes something like this: the stalkers watch a guy who’s sat at the same machine for hours, sweating, getting paler; he’s about to run out of cash. But he knows the machine’s about to pay out, it’s so loose he can visualise cash spilling out all over the floor, just like in the movies. He knows this because he’s also stalked it out and knows the 98% payback promise needs fulfilling – he’d bet his life it’s about to drop. And it will. But, who pockets the jackpot?
Well, it depends.
Loose slot machines: fact or fiction
Let’s start straight off the bat by saying theoretically they do exist, and so loose slots are not some fictitious ploy invented by casinos to drain your wallet or purse. But we’re talking about casinos, nothing’s ever as simple as it sounds, they don’t just hand out wads of money because they’re feeling generous. Not unless you’re a high roller, but that’s another topic, and you can check out our archives to see if you fit the high roller category. So let’s re-frame the question:
Are loose slots BS?
No. they’re fair game, an age-old marketing trick to create hype and get punters to feed on the frenzy and then empty their wallets and purses in other machines. Loose slots are always positioned for maximum impact where most people will witness the euphoric screams of the jackpot winner. All in the name of entertainment, of course. There’s nothing dodgy about it. UK online casinos are so tightly governed it’s safe to say they operate as they advertise and are legally required to, and if one of their online casino games says it has a 98% payback promise, then it will. But how does that play out, exactly?
That’s the thing, it could be over hundreds or thousands of spins. And if there’s no indicator when it last dropped, your chances of winning the jackpot will come down to the beautiful four letter word which keeps the entire industry running: luck. But there are a few things which can help swing Lady Luck your way.
1. Hone your loose slot stalking abilities
You may be curious how that works online? Well, some might say it’s a lot more fun. The huge advantage over stalking machines and their players in land-based casinos is that you don’t look like a stalker and make people feel uncomfortable. You get to put on your invisible cloak and get to work.
Every site has a feedback section, if not, another website will have information and tips about it. These are virtual thought bubbles. Imagine if people left thought bubbles above the slots they’d played, or the slot’s honest history was scrolling for all to see? Online it is, you just need to go on a casino-jolly, look for clues and sniff out the loose machines. More often than not, most winning slot machines are advertised by the casino itself, displaying flashy words telling you a game is hot and ready to drop. Follow the hype.
2. Cycles
All games pay out in cycles. Tight ones have lengthy cycles, loose ones have shorter cycles. So even a tight game will pay out, eventually. Slot machines online are no different.
3. Multiple payouts: don’t walk away when a game is about to peak
You don’t win every day, so when things start to go your way, don’t be so quick to walk away. Most gaming machines throw a tit-bit first, then they give a little more, enough to get your attention, and then they’ll guide you to the money, often finishing with the grand finale, the jackpot. Yes! And don’t forget, you can stalk the best slot games at most UK online casinos and play with free spins.
