Beating the Bandit - A Simple Layman's How-to Guide to Winning Video Slots

Winning at anything that has to do with gambling is, by far, one of the most difficult tasks to do. Professional poker and blackjack players have their bad days as well. Just like any other average joe that thinks that they can make a killing in the industry by some secret means or plan. The main difference for the average person is that they do not have thousands of dollars to spend and if they lose those thousands, they end up penniless and with no way to go back to their way of life.

I am going to teach you how to be what I term as a 'smart gambler'. A smart gambler knows exactly how to spend his money to get the win that he wants, and in the same respect, be smart enough to walk away when the money starts getting good. For myself, the most that I have won at video slots as any given time was $900, and that was on a good night when the machines were feeling especially gratuitous. Even then, you are still taking a great risk of losing.

The first rule of thumb that I tell anyone before they begin into this area of recreational entertainment is simply this: to remember that it is the house's job to win, not yours. In any gambling casino, their sole purpose is to make money, just like any other business such as movie theaters, grocery stores, or even gas stations. Where it is different is that casinos have to entice people to play, and they are willing to do anything to get their hands on your hard-earned dollars. If you go in expecting nothing, you will expect nothing. If you go in instantly expecting something, then there is a surefire bet that your money will be gone in less than an hour. This I can guarantee!

The next rule is to make sure that you are having fun with what you are doing. If what you are doing is not giving you some sort of pleasure, then there is no point doing it. A bad mistake that some people make is that they sometimes play when their mood is off. I am not exactly sure why this is, but for some unexplained reason, if you are in a bad mood when you play, it can affect how you play. It can cause you to make unconscious decisions, such as raising the ante or running to the cash machine to pull out more money. If you've had a bad day at work or fought with a friend or anything else that can be of a negative context, leave the machines alone! Wait a few days and see if your mood changes. There may be a greater opportunity at hand if you are wise enough to grasp it while you are feeling good.

The third rule is the most important: Never spend more than you have. If you have a set amount of money set aside for the imminent venture, stick to it. Leave your debit or credit card at home, as if you have it on you, it is so easy to deplete your bank account and send it into the negative because you are so set on making that pay-out. Also, take a friend or spouse with you to monitor you, as the gambling bug can be a very fickle mistress if not monitored. Gambling is just like drinking. If you do it too much, it can ruin your life forever!

The fourth rule: Stay away from tourist traps like Vegas and Reno! These places will break a person in nothing flat as they play for higher stakes. They will offer you anything to make sure that they keep your patronage from comps all they way to a free night's stay. Look and see if there is somewhere locally, such as a gambling house or maybe a reservation casino. These establishments allow for more of the fun factor, and they tend to be slightly more lenient on pay-outs than larger enterprises.

The fifth rule: If you find a good place, try to stick to it. If you don't stick to it and decide to experiment a little in other places that have video slots or poker, try them a few times with maybe only twenty to sixty dollars on hand. Usually, if you have not had a good hit after sixty dollars, that means that the house has decided to cut back on pay-outs that night.

The sixth rule: Gamblers have a code of honor of sorts that they keep specifically among those that run in their circles. You don't steal another person's pay-out or machine if it still has credits. You don't borrow money from them, and you don't associate with them. If they ask you if 'the machines are playing or are the machines playing you?', answer them honestly. Most of the time, they will thank you for it.

Now that I have set the ground rules, let us now look to the bandit and see if there is a way to beat him. The real truth is, bandits are electronically controlled and the computers determine how the pay-outs go, dependent on how often the machine has had what I call a 'strike'. If the machine has been 'stricken' a lot in that month, there is a good chance that you will not see any of the action. But, if it has been medium to light, that usually means that it is ready to strike or it may simply just not strike at all. Again, playing slots is like paying Russian roulette. It just depends on which chamber the bullet is in.

Another thing you will want to remember is that if you put in a twenty and you double or triple your money in that same set...cash it out! You will want to play more, but there is a good chance that what you will do is called 'bleed the machine'. When a machine is bled, it automatically resets and begins a whole new cycle for itself and then it could be a few minutes to a few days to a few months before there is another good strike. Also, if the attendant asks to empty your machine for their till, that means that they are trying to make sure that the machine does not give too many more pay-outs before the end of the shift. I have witnessed more times than not when a player has made quite a substantial amount of money, such as $1000, where they played it down even after the machine has been emptied. By then, the money is all gone and they have nothing to show for it. This is what I call the 'ignorant gambler's curse'. This curse once it has you, has a hard time letting go, and it could be a long time and after much therapy before you will feel like yourself again.

I hope that this guide has been helpful. Before I close, I would just like to say that gambling can become a major illness, and it has destroyed more lives than it has saved. If you decide to gamble, make sure that when you do, it is done for fun, not just to make that ever-almighty dollar. Even if you win small, you have still won, and that can feel like a great accomplishment!