Advantage Play Slots: The Insider's Guide to Boosting Your Odds

Robert Lauria
Written byRobert Lauria
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Robert Lauria

Advantage Play Slots Gambler
  • Full time Advantage Slots Player in Vegas with an active Youtube Account and TikTok;
  • Part of a Pro AP Slots team using math to maximize the house edge;
  • Author of two guides on advantage slot play, with two more in the pipeline.
  • Strategic thinker with a track record of developing innovative solutions for business growth and online content creation.
Vlad Mihalache
Editorial review byVlad Mihalache
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Vlad Mihalache

Online Gambling and Slots Specialist
  • Linkedin icon
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  • Accomplished content strategist and editor with over 6 years of experience in the iGaming industry;
  • Specializes in blackjack strategies, slots, and gambling addiction;
  • Online gambling expert with 2500+ articles written and reviewed;
  • Strong advocate for responsible gambling with comprehensive knowledge of gambling trends and addiction.
Expert
   
icon-thumb-up92%icon-clock-grey7 min
icon-calendarUpdated on Nov 9, 2023

Advantage Play slots has been around in many forms for the past 10+ years. Slots today have settings in that can help you find times when the edge is in the favor of the player over the house. 

In this guide, we will explore insights collected from advantage slots player Bob Lauria, including:

Let’s get started!

Author’s Note

Unlike counting cards and such we are actually play the slot machine exactly how it is just when the numbers are in our favor. I have been solely playing advantage slots for income now for 5 years I was a former professional poker player turned slot pro. 

Sure there is still lots of variance on slot play but its more enjoyable for me as it provides a day of walking through casinos checking slot machines for plays and enjoying peace with myself verse sitting at a table of 8 sweaty old men trying to take their money.

What Exactly Are Advantage Play Slot Machines?

advantage play slots

Since the inception of the slot machine in 1894, the popularity and lore of the “one-armed bandit” has never diminished. 

Slot machines remain the biggest overall money-maker for casinos worldwide - and by a considerable margin

Over time, technology increasingly improved, and manufacturers implemented more complex and creative features than weren’t available in old-school slot machines. 

As time continued, slot machine makers began introducing games that had a persistent state feature associated with the bonus games.

In short, “progressive state” simply means that as the base game is played, there is something banked or retained unto a certain point in which the game triggers the bonus. 

Why Do These Games Even Exist?

These games were initially introduced to keep the player entertained for a longer time and therefore, coining in more money to reach the desired result of achieving the bonus game feature. 

This would leave the player chasing progressives, free spins or wild symbols that had accumulated over a set amount of time and became quite popular on casino gaming floors. 

As time passed, slot-savvy casino guests realized something. 

If you play these games in a state in which the symbols, dollar amounts, or spins have already been accumulated by previous players, then they can, at a certain point, gain a mathematical edge (+EV) over the house.

This insight caused an influx of guests that would walk around the casino and look for machines that were abandoned by ordinary slot players which had already accumulated over time and were “due” to bonus quicker than if they were begin playing it from scratch.

What Does Advantage Play Mean in Slots?

Most simply, Advantage Play means taking a slot machine at the point in which the odds are in the player’s favor over the house. 

This is similar to when the house has a huge edge in most casino game, you can still win. So this holds true for advantage slots as well. 

The odds may be in your favor, but in the short term you may have losing sessions. 

Like any form of professional gambling, it’s a game of swings. Still, over the long run, advantage slots will be very lucrative for the savvy player. 

Most Popular Advantage Slots

Early advantage games such as: WMS Piggy Bankin’, Bally S&H Green Stamps, and Golden Monkey gained popularity amongst many advantage players.

As years passed, slot machine manufacturers continued to introduce new games which could often be found in an advantageous state. 

Games such as IGT’s Scarab introduced a 10-spin cycle feature. During this cycle, symbols are collected during spins 1-9. On the 10th spin, these accumulated symbols turn wild. 

This cycle then repeats, making it a popular feature in many slot machines.

Casino gaming floors are now laden with machines offering these features, and new machines are released year after year with new and exciting persistent state features.

Key Features in Advantage Slots

advantage slots play features

Here are some of the most exciting features you will encounter:

Legend of the 3x 2x Phoenix: Progressive Free Games by IGT contains a “must-hit by” 15 free games meter. 

Games with “must-hit by” progressives such as Konami’ G+, G+ Deluxe or Ainsworth’s a640 cabinet have an obligation of hitting a progressive within a certain threshold. 

The progressive jackpot number increases incrementally based on the player’s bet size. 

Many players, understanding these features, would simply do basic math to generally understand how many spins would be needed to achieve the win. 

Generally, the closer the progressive is to the “must-hit by” number the easier it will become to have a profitable session. 

Remember

One important factor as an advantage slot player is determining when the machine is no longer in a state in which the mathematical edge is no longer present. 

When Advantage Play Stops Working

Being able to know when the “play” is over is an integral part of being successful when hunting for Advantage Play slots. 

One common mistake that is made by would-be advantage players is developing or falling back into gambling habits when there is nothing worthwhile to play. 

Walking around a casino aimlessly for hours and not finding any +EV plays can be quite disheartening and quite boring for many slot players, which can lead to players taking numbers or playing machines that they normally wouldn’t. 

Tips for Advantage Slot Players 

tips for advantage slot players

The market for slots is always changing. You must research and study new games, as they come out to determine if they have any advantageous features. 

Practicing and learning new games is an integral part of being an astute Advantage player.  

I have a team and together we study and exchange information on a daily basis. This helps us learn exactly at what point each game becomes positive. 

Bankroll management is one of the most important aspects in any gambling. It’s important for many advantage slot players to track.

With any professional gambling a player should stick to tight bankroll management. One should never play above their means due to the fact of the risk of ruin gets much higher. 

You should always play with your head, and never take plays that can cost you financial hardship if they go wrong. 

Always stay ahead of the game and research new games as they hit the casino floor. 

Remember

Once you become a veteran slot pro it will be easy for you to see what can and cannot be an advantageous slot. 

Conclusion 

Advantage Play slots can be a very lucrative avenue for you to make money. There are games ranging from the smallest bankrolls to 100s of thousands of dollars. 

As you grow your bankroll, you can move up to higher plays and bigger bets, flourishing in the glory of making money from the one-arm bandits. 

In some of these slots, you can have as much as a 15-30% house edge over the casino when the numbers are right. 

As playing builds up, the edge of the machine leans in the favor of the player by awarding larger jackpots and better payouts. 

Games that have features such as “must hit by X number” can easily be mathematically figured out and determine when the game odds will actually be in your favor. 

With these tools, you can spot these plays and come out a winner almost every time, but make sure you stay informed about slots and make the right choices.

Advantage Play Slots Frequently Asked Questions

 What slot machine is most likely to pay out?

Well we can never determine what slot will pay out. Slot machines are run off a random number generator. All we can do is put us in a position to have a favorable pay out in out in our end.

You have to be aware of factors like must hit bonus by certain numbers along with accumulated potential free game in which the # of free games is in our favor as we chase that bonus.

Should I put $100 in a slot machine? 

Well again slot machines are a form of gambling even with the best odds in our favor the outcome may not always be profit.

Over time taking slot machines over 100% pay back we will come out a winner, but variance always exists. Even the best hands in poker can be beat. But if we keep getting it in with the best of it our bankrolls will grow and we will continue to profit.

 What is the luckiest slot machine to play? 
Well I am not a lucky person I never have been. I have played poker for 20 years professional and in advantage play we are taking the best edges for us to win. If you keep getting it in with the best of it over the long run you will come out a winner.
Do High Dollar slot machines pay out more?

This is a very interesting question. In general the more you bet the more you can win, but also goes the more you can lose. Some casinos do set higher denominations at better RTP (return to player) giving their higher roller players a better chance to have their money last before losing it.

Its very very hard to determine RTP on a slot without actually seeing the control board and the data inside so just research your states laws on what casinos can set the RTP to and always figure its at the worse of the scale when approaching any machine.

Is it better to put small bills in a machine? 

Slots are just one big computer program. They have no idea if you insert Singles or hundreds the RNG is always spinning and the outcome is only determined the moment you press the play button or pull the lever. The amount of money or size of money or if your using a TITO ticket (ticket in ticket out) the machine has no idea what is in it other than the fact it has enough to take the spin. This goes for using a player’s card as well. ALWAYS and I mean always use a card when you play.

The casino will issue you comps for your play in rewards such as free play, dinners and room offers. There is no difference if you play with or without a players card so always use one to gain more money back from the casino.

Is it better to play one slot machine or move around?

In Advantage slots you will be doing lots of moving around. You will play the game till its no longer in an advantageous state. Once that happens you will be on your quest to find another machine that the odds will be in your favor. Over time every machine will pay exactly what the machines RTP is.

So if the casino has its RTP set at 87% every dollar you spend you will lose 13 cents per spin over time. Id like to thank you for taking the time to read this article and hopefully peaked your interest on advantage slot machines. Going forward hopefully we can work on specific games and techniques you too can use to win against these money sucking machines.

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Robert Lauria

Robert Lauria

Advantage Play Slots Gambler

About Robert Lauria

  • Full time Advantage Slots Player in Vegas with an active Youtube Account and TikTok;
  • Part of a Pro AP Slots team using math to maximize the house edge;
  • Author of two guides on advantage slot play, with two more in the pipeline.
  • Strategic thinker with a track record of developing innovative solutions for business growth and online content creation.
Read Full Bio
Vlad Mihalache

Vlad Mihalache

Online Gambling and Slots Specialist

  • linkedin
  • facebook
  • email

About Vlad Mihalache

  • Accomplished content strategist and editor with over 6 years of experience in the iGaming industry;
  • Specializes in blackjack strategies, slots, and gambling addiction;
  • Online gambling expert with 2500+ articles written and reviewed;
  • Strong advocate for responsible gambling with comprehensive knowledge of gambling trends and addiction.
Read Full Bio
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