Casinos Get Your Money with Clever Designs

Casinos around the world are designed by experts on both decor and fashion. In addition, a great deal of psychology is now used when deciding exactly where everything goes. Foot patterns though the layout of slots and table games are studied and changes are made to take advantage of the most popular pathways.

When the first tiny casinos opened in the United States they took advantage of every inch of floor space to hawk their games. No two casinos looked alike because each was designed by a different owner, and each had their own games of chance. Many of the illegal gambling clubs did have one thing in common, the cashier's cage was placed away from the tables so when there was a raid by the authorities, the owners and cashiers had a chance to scoop the cash up and get it out of the club quickly. Sometimes it worked, sometimes it didn't.

Part of the reason the cage is back against a wall is because there are offices around the cage that are used by the cashiers, the credit department, and sometimes the facilities for hard count (coins) and soft count (cash) are right there. Having the cage in the back also deters would-be thieves because they would have to get back through the casino after a robbery.

However, casino owners have also learned that by placing the cage far away from the table games will keep players in action longer. If you win a quick $500 and stand up from your table and see the cage right next to you, you're much more likely to get cash for your chips right then and there. If you have a long way to walk you are more likely to hold your chips until you are ready to go home.

Hotel registration is almost right by the valet area or where the parking lot is most likely to bring guests. So how come the hotel is always way off to the side somewhere? Somewhere past all the table, and the slots, and....that's right, you have to walk past all those games every time you go to or leave your room. Can you resist?

Atlantic City and Las Vegas have casinos that are huge, with every amenity you can imagine. Most have restaurants and gift shops located in areas where you have to travel through the casino to get to them. That's the idea.

If you love slot machines,, you may have already discovered that no two casinos have their slot machines in the same design. Higher denomination slots are usually placed in high-traffic areas. Busy foot-paths are often lined with $1 machines while lower denomination machines may have been relegated to the back of the casino. Managers hope you quit looking for those nickle slots and sit down at the quarter or $1 machines. Don't be afraid to ask!

Today's slot machines themselves are being designed with a sneaky feature that provides lots of incentive to keep playing: instant gratification. Most penny machines look like a lot of fun, and what's a few pennies, right? Unfortunately the machines are designed differently than those in the past. Old machines took one coin, paid on one line, and paid very specific amounts. Players were used to seeing coins drop only a couple times out of every ten pulls of the handle.

Now machines take multiple credits, often a minimum of 50, but they pay something back almost every pull, so players are excited to win but are actually losing. Obviously if you play 50 credits and win back 14, you are losing. Sure, the goal is still the same, to hit the jackpot, but that jackpot doesn't hit very often. The psychology of getting a constant reward (even if it is small) to reinforce continued play has never been so strong as with today's multi-line, multi-bet machines. They're fun - but expensive.

Table games like craps can be a lot of fun, but remember, the casino has a tiny edge on every bet you make. If you play blackjack and are dealt 60 hands per hour, the casino has that tiny edge on your bet 60 times. But if you play craps and have a pass line bet, plus a come bet, and all the hardways, and a place bet - every roll, you're going to get 60 rolls an hour with 7 bets each time for a total of 420 bets. Just remember the casino now has that tiny edge on you 420 times per hour. That doesn't make blackjack the better game, it just means you might want to cut-back on your total bets at craps or keep in mind that your bankroll is being whittled away quicker.