Tag: Gambling
View All TagsVegas Trivia / Slot Machines / Gambling / → All Tags
Amaze Your Friends With Useless Info About Slot Machines
Knowledge is power. Knowing about the games we play at the casino will only help us lower the edge the casino has. Sometimes, on the way to finding useful information, we come across tidbits that may not be as useful but that is certainly interesting.
A major part of the appeal of slot machines is that they're brainless fun in the casino. Unlike blackjack, there's no real strategy that will improve our edge against the casino. Besides playing the highest denomination, we can afford playing with enough credits to get a bonus and that is about all we can do to limit the house advantage. But, now you can dazzle your friends with random facts we just learned about one of our favorite games in the casino.
Gambling / Poker / Survival Strategies / Tips / Vegas Rants / → All Tags
Don't Be That Guy (Or Gal) At The Poker Table
Poker used to be like golf. It was a gentleman’s game, set around tradition and honor. A game to share with friends over a stiff drink and a cigar. It was an excuse to forget the dullness of the 9 to 5, to get away for a few hours to turn cards and laugh over dirty jokes.
As televised poker gained popularity, the game started to change. We watched Mike Matusow talk about his “cojones,” we saw Shaun Sheikhan act like a jerk. With cries of “AUSSIE AUSSIE AUSSIE,” (Salty) Joe Hachem’s fans inappropriately (this Chatter'er feels, anyway) brought the energy of a soccer (football) game to the televised final table at the 2005 WSOP. From kitchen table to card room, people started to emulate the behavior of these “famous” poker players. If everyone could just cut it out, we could get back to the awesome game that we all love. In response to all the bad behavior, here are the five most obnoxious things people do at the poker table that grate on us most. Don’t be this guy or gal.
Video Poker / Royal Flush / Gambling / → All Tags
The Fascinating Probability Of Getting A Royal Flush
Ahhhh….The Royal Flush. Everyone that plays video poker wants it, but it's the most difficult hand to get.
The Royal Flush is also the hand that pays the most money -- by a lot. While every hand increases incrementally when you increase your play, the Royal Flush quadruples when you play max credits. The possibility of getting a Royal Flush is what makes video poker returns so good and it's why people chase it like Moby Dick chased the white whale.
One of the fun things about playing video poker is that there is an explanation for everything, whether we understand the math or not. The odds and probability of getting a Royal Flush are fascinating.
Gambling / Slot Machines / Video Poker / Vegas Observations / Which Would You Rather / → All Tags
Which Do You Rather: Slant Top or Upright?
Who ya got -- Slant Top video poker and slot machines or Upright?
This battle can be seen on casino floors throughout Las Vegas, but everyone has different opinions on which type of games they play. If casinos choose their video poker and slot machines based on player preference, we think we know who wins this battle but we really have no preference. Let's look at each type of machine.
Slant Top
A slant top machine is generally lower to the ground with seating that's at normal chair height. The display is below eye level and slanted between flat (like a bar top) and horizontal (like an upright) display. Drinks are placed on the console so you can easily alternate between drinking and hitting buttons. Since the games are below eye level, it's easy to see your surroundings.
Vegas for Girls / Gambling / Craps / Tips / → All Tags
5 Reasons Why Craps is the Perfect Game for Show-Offs
While we may be prisses, we are not prudes! We love Vegas for being a place where no one judges you for your lewd behavior. No matter how risque, you never have to be apologetic about it. Why? Because, it’s Vegas, baby!
So, if you’ve gone clubbing, shopping, spa-ing, there’s only one more thing to do -- make money in the casino! If you’re the type of gal that likes to let it all hang out (and, yes, this is another one for the ladies), craps is the game for you. It looks difficult, but like us, it only looks intimidating. In actuality, it’s really quite, ahem, easy.
Gambling / Poker / Venetian / The Mirage / Treasure Island / → All Tags
Rating Poker Tournaments For Every Bankroll
After reading about 2004 World Series of Poker Champion Greg Raymer’s prostitution bust earlier this week, we were reminded of the explosion of poker that he helped herald in. During the period after everymen Raymer and Chris Moneymaker took home WSOP bracelets after winning seats in online poker satellites, every Vegas casino jumped to get poker rooms in place.
A decade later, thanks to the current illegality of online poker, interest in the game has waned. It is impossible for US players to win seats into bigger tournaments online. Poker rooms have begun to close around town. With less players, less of a rake is generated. There is little reason for many casinos to keep funding a room that merely breaks even, when they could just fill the area with slot machines.
Gambling / The Cosmopolitan / Identity / Players Clubs / Marriott / Hard Rock / Loyalty Rewards / → All Tags
Cosmo Partners With Hard Rock Biloxi... Say Whaaa?!
The Cosmopolitan is like no other casino in the world. They're an independently owned casino and, unlike many of the Vegas Strip casinos, they don't have partner gaming properties in or out of Las Vegas. Well, that's about to change in a very strange way. The Cosmo and Hard Rock Hotel Casino in Biloxi have announced a partnership for gamblers.
Cosmopolitan already has an agreement with Marriott, but it is specifically for the hotel portion of the property. This team-up with Biloxi's Hard Rock is strictly for gamblers. While the press release says this union is "formalized" there is no information about it on either website. There's also no mention on Cosmopolitan's Identity players club or anywhere on the resort's website. And, it's not on the Hard Rock Biloxi website, either. (Warning: Autoplay is set to YES when you visit.)
March Madness / Sportsbooks / Gambling / NCAA / Basketball / → All Tags
March Madness Is (Finally) Here
We've been preparing for this week since before the Super Bowl. Finally, the madness begins! The NCAA Basketball Tournament begins tomorrow, March 19 with a couple of play-in games, but March Madness begins Thursday around 9 a.m. These play-in games are still new to the NCAA Tournament and have yet to bring much madness to the event so the chaos still begins later in the week. The sportsbooks will be packed all weekend and there will be March Madness viewing parties anywhere you can squeeze a TV.
To understand how chaotic March Madness is in Las Vegas, just imagine the crowds for the Big Game spread over 12 hours a day for 4 consecutive days coinciding with the beginning of spring on Wednesday and the kick off of pool season. Here are a few links to get you ready for the action:
Vegas For Girls / Prissy Girls / Gambling / Slot Machines / → All Tags
10 Slot Machines For Prissy Girls
The thought of rubbing elbows with the rowdy cavemen at the craps table just doesn’t tickle your fancy. And, card games? Bor-ing! But, slot machines? Big, beautiful, colorful slot machines? Yes, please!
According to ancient Las Vegas history, slot machines were originally invented for prissy girls while their men shot bear (or dice) whilst chugging beers at the tables. Back then, slots were bulky, monochromatic jukebox-looking things. Today, there are more gender-neutral slots and, thanks to modern technology and the color pink, slot machines are more trendy and prissy girl friendly than ever.
The next time you’re on a casino floor, unleash your inner priss and don’t be afraid to let out a giddy squeal and an “Ermagherd!” when you see one of the following girly slot machines:
Gambling / Blackjack / Roulette / Baccarat / Craps / Vegas Observations / → All Tags
There's A Lot Less Blackjack Happening In Vegas
The saying "everything old is new again" doesn't always hold true… especially in Las Vegas. Our Vegas Strip is constantly changing and downtown Vegas is being rebuilt from being its Old Vegas beginnings. And, gaming is no different.
Back in 1985, 77% of table games on the casino floor were blackjack. In 2012, that number has changed drastically with only 51% of table games on the casino floor being blackjack. Blackjack was once the darling of the casino, but it's taken a backseat to baccarat recently. Since 2009, not only has the amount played at baccarat increased, but the amount of money lost by players has incrementally increased as well.
Venetian / Baccarat / Gambling / → All Tags
Multi-Player Baccarat Machines Make It To Venetian
In the past year, slot machines have been leaving the casino floor making way for bigger and better (?) machines. The Venetian has been leading the way by introducing new multi-player, table-style games from Aruze Gaming to the casino floor, one at a time. They've actually carved out a portion of the slot floor for these huge gaming machines between the table games and the Bourbon Room.
One of the newer additions is the baccarat game pictured above. It joins an area that's already home to bubble craps and the big wheel.
Station Casinos / Red Rock Resort / Video Poker / Gambling / → All Tags
Station Casinos Downgrades Some Of Their Best Video Poker
The headline in Vegas Inc. is strong, "Station Casinos eliminates many of its highest-paying video poker machines." But, it's really just a spin-off of a press release by WMS Gaming on their new video poker games called My Poker Machines. The machines are pretty cool. They allow you to design the look and feel for each game to your specifications. But we digress, back to the headline.
Station Casinos has removed some of the best paying video poker machines for these new bright and shiny games. But, they haven't removed them all. Some of the 100%+ returning games, however, are gone.
