vpFREE2 Forums

"Play it Off"

#1

Why do some, but not all, slot attendants request that you "play it off"-meaning your winning hand on the screen, after you have received a hand pay?

Have any of you refused to do so? Any repercussions?

Sometimes, after I have hit a progressive, it is not worthwhile to put any more $ through the machine. Or I want to cash out because I need a restroom break or am tired and want to go home. It is not because "the machine is now cold" – although many slot attendants are crazy superstitious and, I suspect, would accept that as an explanation.

I am thinking that this isn't any sort of gaming regulation, or even consistent policy within a company, as I sometimes have had different experiences at the same casino. Certainly, this can't be to prove that the machine is malfunctioning- I'd already been paid.

BTW, I'm grateful to need to ask about this "problem"!

#2

tikithecat wrote:

Why do some, but not all, slot attendants request that you "play it off"-meaning your winning hand on the screen, after you have received a hand pay?

Have any of you refused to do so? Any repercussions?

Sometimes, after I have hit a progressive, it is not worthwhile to put any more $ through the machine. Or I want to cash out because I need a restroom break or am tired and want to go home. It is not because "the machine is now cold" – although many slot attendants are crazy superstitious and, I suspect, would accept that as an explanation.

I am thinking that this isn't any sort of gaming regulation, or even consistent policy within a company, as I sometimes have had different experiences at the same casino. Certainly, this can't be to prove that the machine is malfunctioning- I'd already been paid.

BTW, I'm grateful to need to ask about this "problem"!

Many progressive meters won't display the current jackpot amount until
past jackpots have been played off and, when it's a hand that pays
something without locking up the machine, such as, say, a promotion on
a 4 of a kind, they want to avoid the possibility of someone else
trying to claim it. I've seen casino personnel playing off jackpots,
so some players either refuse to or aren't asked. I've never refused.

#3

If I don't want to play that machine anymore I just tell the slot attendent no. Once the slot attendent tried to insist I play it off, I told them no, you can't make me make another bet. Then he just took his key and reset the screen. no problem. I remember many years ago in Vegas Stardust and a few others would put the coins in the machine out of the hopper and then ask you to play it off on their money. Those were the days.

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----- Original Message ----- From: "tikithecat73lakeworth" <fjc73@cox.net>
To: <vpFREE@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Sunday, October 02, 2011 11:06 AM
Subject: [vpFREE] "Play it Off"

Why do some, but not all, slot attendants request that you "play it off"-meaning your winning hand on the screen, after you have received a hand pay?

Have any of you refused to do so? Any repercussions?

Sometimes, after I have hit a progressive, it is not worthwhile to put any more $ through the machine. Or I want to cash out because I need a restroom break or am tired and want to go home. It is not because "the machine is now cold" - although many slot attendants are crazy superstitious and, I suspect, would accept that as an explanation.

I am thinking that this isn't any sort of gaming regulation, or even consistent policy within a company, as I sometimes have had different experiences at the same casino. Certainly, this can't be to prove that the machine is malfunctioning- I'd already been paid.

BTW, I'm grateful to need to ask about this "problem"!

------------------------------------

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#4

Many progressive meters won't display the current jackpot amount until
past jackpots have been played off

Huh, where have you seen this? Any time I've seen a progressive hit, if
there is a meter displayed above the bank, that resets immediately
(sometimes/always? it flashes between something like "$4821.39 #3" and
"$4000.01" for example). The meter on other players' machines reset
pretty much immediately too (as soon as they complete the hand they're in
the middle of when it hits, I would think).

It would seem to be to be such a weird and trivially fixed bug that they
would have changed it a long time ago, plus, I've been asked to "play it
off" on non-progressive machines too, so I'm a bit skeptical that's the
reason.

and, when it's a hand that pays something without locking up the
machine, such as, say, a promotion on a 4 of a kind, they want to avoid
the possibility of someone else trying to claim it.

Could be, but it's really simple for them to key in and pull up the last
few hands that have been played, and I know of at least one casino whose
slot personnel do this maybe 60-70% of the time when paying off a quad
bonus.

I've seen casino personnel playing off jackpots, so some players either
refuse to or aren't asked. I've never refused.

Something I witnessed once: on a non-progressive $5 bank they paid a
player who didn't want to play it off, so the slot attendants opened up
the hopper and put in a single coin to play it off, except they kept
hitting winning hands :slight_smile: I think it took them like 7-8 plays to get rid
of it. I always wondered what internal paperwork would have been incurred
had they hit a $1250 royal...

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On Sun, Oct 2, 2011 at 10:19 AM, 007 <007@embarqmail.com> wrote:

#5

I always wonder why player DON'T play it off? Is that some superstitious thing? One more hand would not break the player who just won a jackpot.

···

--- In vpFREE@yahoogroups.com, "tikithecat73lakeworth" <fjc73@...> wrote:

Why do some, but not all, slot attendants request that you "play it off"-meaning your winning hand on the screen, after you have received a hand pay?

Have any of you refused to do so? Any repercussions?

Sometimes, after I have hit a progressive, it is not worthwhile to put any more $ through the machine. Or I want to cash out because I need a restroom break or am tired and want to go home. It is not because "the machine is now cold" – although many slot attendants are crazy superstitious and, I suspect, would accept that as an explanation.

I am thinking that this isn't any sort of gaming regulation, or even consistent policy within a company, as I sometimes have had different experiences at the same casino. Certainly, this can't be to prove that the machine is malfunctioning- I'd already been paid.

BTW, I'm grateful to need to ask about this "problem"!

#6

Well at our local casino, handpays start at 120$, and the attendants get confused whether they've paid you, so that's one reason to play it off (happened to me when I was playing penny slots [I know, I know, negative expectation]--got one hand pay then another two spins later, the attendant thought she had paid me off, and I said no she didn't because I HAD to play off the other one) Negative expectations still came to pass of course, but it's 3,000 miles to Vegas!!!

···

--- In vpFREE@yahoogroups.com, "tikithecat73lakeworth" <fjc73@...> wrote:

Why do some, but not all, slot attendants request that you "play it off"-meaning your winning hand on the screen, after you have received a hand pay?

Have any of you refused to do so? Any repercussions?

Sometimes, after I have hit a progressive, it is not worthwhile to put any more $ through the machine. Or I want to cash out because I need a restroom break or am tired and want to go home. It is not because "the machine is now cold" – although many slot attendants are crazy superstitious and, I suspect, would accept that as an explanation.

I am thinking that this isn't any sort of gaming regulation, or even consistent policy within a company, as I sometimes have had different experiences at the same casino. Certainly, this can't be to prove that the machine is malfunctioning- I'd already been paid.

BTW, I'm grateful to need to ask about this "problem"!

#7

Peter wrote:

Many progressive meters won't display the current jackpot amount until
past jackpots have been played off

Huh, where have you seen this? Any time I've seen a progressive hit, if
there is a meter displayed above the bank, that resets immediately
(sometimes/always? it flashes between something like "$4821.39 #3" and
"$4000.01" for example). The meter on other players' machines reset
pretty much immediately too (as soon as they complete the hand they're in
the middle of when it hits, I would think).

There's a lot of variation regarding this. Many are as you describe,
in which case I assume management wouldn't want the jackpot to flash
along with the current meter longer than it takes to pay the jackpot.
The current meter not being displayed at all until the jackpot has
been played off is a minority. I think, on the $1 multi-meter
progressive at Terrible's, only jackpots, and not the current meter,
flash on the screen above the machines until they're played off. I've
had to look on a machine to see the current meter there.

It would seem to be to be such a weird and trivially fixed bug that they
would have changed it a long time ago, plus, I've been asked to "play it
off" on non-progressive machines too, so I'm a bit skeptical that's the
reason.

and, when it's a hand that pays something without locking up the
machine, such as, say, a promotion on a 4 of a kind, they want to avoid
the possibility of someone else trying to claim it.

Could be, but it's really simple for them to key in and pull up the last
few hands that have been played, and I know of at least one casino whose
slot personnel do this maybe 60-70% of the time when paying off a quad
bonus.

I've seen casino personnel playing off jackpots, so some players either
refuse to or aren't asked. I've never refused.

Something I witnessed once: on a non-progressive $5 bank they paid a
player who didn't want to play it off, so the slot attendants opened up
the hopper and put in a single coin to play it off, except they kept
hitting winning hands :slight_smile: I think it took them like 7-8 plays to get rid
of it. I always wondered what internal paperwork would have been incurred
had they hit a $1250 royal...

I heard of a technician in Atlantic City who was working on a machine
and, with max coins played, was dealt 4 to a royal. For the thrill, I
assume, he drew to it and hit it, which, considering the greater
strictness there than in Nevada, was probably quite an administrative
mess.

···

On Sun, Oct 2, 2011 at 10:19 AM, 007 <007@embarqmail.com> wrote:

#8

My father worked security at the Isle of Capri in Black Hawk, Co. He told me that the reason for playing it off was that if you had tampered with the machine, it may not work correctly on the hand following the hand pay. Playing the next hand gives the cameras something to tape in case there are issues with the machine. At the Isle, it was a requirement to play it off after any hand pay.

···

Why do some, but not all, slot attendants request that you "play it off"-meaning your winning hand on the screen, after you have received a hand pay?

#9

I really can't see how they can force to you spend more money, especially
once they have already hand paid you.

My father worked security at the Isle of Capri in Black Hawk, Co. He told me
that the reason for playing it off was that if you had tampered with the
machine, it may not work correctly on the hand following the hand pay.
Playing the next hand gives the cameras something to tape in case there are
issues with the machine. At the Isle, it was a requirement to play it off
after any hand pay.

Why do some, but not all, slot attendants request that you "play it

off"-meaning your winning hand on the screen, after you have received a hand
pay?

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

#10

The third paragraph of my original post states my reasons for not wanting to play it off.

···

--- In vpFREE@yahoogroups.com, "pumsparky" <dianalnagy@...> wrote:

  I always wonder why player DON'T play it off? Is that some superstitious thing? One more hand would not break the player who just won a jackpot.

--- In vpFREE@yahoogroups.com, "tikithecat73lakeworth" <fjc73@> wrote:
>
>
>
> Why do some, but not all, slot attendants request that you "play it off"-meaning your winning hand on the screen, after you have received a hand pay?
>
> Have any of you refused to do so? Any repercussions?
>
> Sometimes, after I have hit a progressive, it is not worthwhile to put any more $ through the machine. Or I want to cash out because I need a restroom break or am tired and want to go home. It is not because "the machine is now cold" – although many slot attendants are crazy superstitious and, I suspect, would accept that as an explanation.
>
> I am thinking that this isn't any sort of gaming regulation, or even consistent policy within a company, as I sometimes have had different experiences at the same casino. Certainly, this can't be to prove that the machine is malfunctioning- I'd already been paid.
>
> BTW, I'm grateful to need to ask about this "problem"!
>

#11

I understand that is your reason. I am asking everyone who does not play it off.

···

--- In vpFREE@yahoogroups.com, "tikithecat73lakeworth" <fjc73@...> wrote:

The third paragraph of my original post states my reasons for not wanting to play it off.

--- In vpFREE@yahoogroups.com, "pumsparky" <dianalnagy@> wrote:
>
> I always wonder why player DON'T play it off? Is that some superstitious thing? One more hand would not break the player who just won a jackpot.
>

#12

Once in AC I insisted that I was NOT going to play an additional hand after a handpay.

Eventually they sent a slot tech with a $1 voucher to "play it off".

Funny thing was...... he kept winning..... he wanted to burn the credit up so he wouldn't have to cash out and cancel the credits.
After he got up to about $5 I finally suggested holding all 5 cards of a dealt losing hand.......

Eventually he got down to $2 and just cashed out in frustration saying "Now I have to do the paperwork to cancel these $2"....
"I don't know why they even bother with this "play it off" policy as it was obsolete over 10 years ago."

···

--- In vpFREE@yahoogroups.com, "Lisa" <viajo1964@...> wrote:

I really can't see how they can force to you spend more money, especially
once they have already hand paid you.

My father worked security at the Isle of Capri in Black Hawk, Co. He told me
that the reason for playing it off was that if you had tampered with the
machine, it may not work correctly on the hand following the hand pay.
Playing the next hand gives the cameras something to tape in case there are
issues with the machine. At the Isle, it was a requirement to play it off
after any hand pay.

> Why do some, but not all, slot attendants request that you "play it
off"-meaning your winning hand on the screen, after you have received a hand
pay?
>

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]