I have had experience with slot machines for quite some time. In the following text I will report about them and explain if it makes sense to use this kind of gambling.

My slot machine career started at the age of 17, when I was in a small pub in the station quarter of my hometown. A few friends of mine who were already of age sat down at a Merkur slot machine and threw in a few small amounts. We then took turns sitting at the slot machine, each paying a maximum of five euros. From time to time there were smaller winnings, but nothing earth-shattering. I even ended up leaving the pub with a small plus of seven euros, so my passion for slot machines was awakened. Especially the games Fishing Frenzy, Ghost Slider and Hot Fruitastic were great because they gave me either free spins or a big instant win.

When I finally came of age, I used to go to game libraries in my spare time. First always with friends, even if only for a few minutes, to have a coffee with them and spend five euros. Sometimes I won, sometimes I lost. My stake was always ten, but a maximum of 20 cents per spin. Most of the time I played the popular Book of Ra or Faust on the NovoLine machines. Once I had free spins at Book of Ra and actually won over 100 Euro. But such high winnings remained the absolute exception. If I won, at most my stake doubled.

At some point, playing with friends was no longer enough for me and I started going to the arcade alone. It happened to me relatively quickly that I “superimposed” the machines, i.e. played with a significantly higher stake. But that doesn’t go well with a student’s salary for long, so that I quickly renounced playing at the machines, because I didn’t have any money left to go away with my friends at the weekend. Of course I also had winnings in this phase, but I noticed that I was rarely satisfied if I only got a small amount over the stake and reinvested everything immediately. In the end, I was often without a stake.

After several weeks, or even months, of not being on the road in toy libraries, the fever after free spins grabbed me again and I downloaded a free version of Lucky Ladies Charm onto my smartphone. But the appeal was limited, because you couldn’t win anything, of course, but only the pictures on the mobile phone display ran. Nevertheless, I had taken a liking to this kind of slot playing and signed up for an online casino. In the two months where I played there actively, I deposited about 150 euros, unfortunately I paid out none of it. Why did I only stay on the ball for two months? I found it somehow boring and frustrating in the long run that the pictures were only on the mobile display. If you sit in front of a real slot machine, you just get a completely different feeling and have a lot more fun. Not to mention that there were free drinks and sometimes free snacks at the arcade at that time.

So I started going to arcade again and again. With the difference that I had imposed rules on myself. I didn’t want to go to these establishments alone anymore. That’s why I only went to play in company. I also set myself limits. One limit per visit. That was always 20 Euro for me, on special occasions (for example: my birthday, after Christmas) sometimes 50 Euro. But I never exceeded these amounts, even if it was difficult for me. The other limit was related to the month. I allowed myself a maximum of 120 Euro per month. So I could play six times a month. In addition to these limits, I tried to stop and end the game session at a net profit (i.e. above the stake) of ten Euros. That was very hard for me, because the machine always laughs at you to increase your winnings again. But most of the time it doesn’t work and you end up gambling everything away.

I never had any favorite games. What always gave me the most fun was trying out new games. Thai Flower, Ghost Slider, Burning Heat and what they were all called. I’ve always been fascinated by the selection of Merkur slot machines and I’ve always been happy when a new game was available. Since the principles are always quite similar, there have never been any adjustment difficulties. There was also no game on novo machines that I haven’t tried. Joker Fruits, All American or X-Tra Hot. I associate memories with all these games. Some positive, some unfortunately negative.

When I started to study and the money became scarcer again, I went to play less often. But every now and then for distraction and variety it did me good. I also managed to resist the addictive factor as much as possible. Once I was there and had gambled away a small amount of money, it was enough for me and I did not enter a game library for days or weeks. In the past, I would have left the arcade in a dejected state and, disappointed, would have gone straight to the next one to make up for my loss. If that went in my pants and the loss got higher, I got really angry. That didn’t happen to me anymore.

Today I still like to go to the arcade. However, I play much more consciously than then. The addiction potential has finally disappeared. I see a visit to an amusement arcade as pure pleasure. So if you go to play without big expectations, you can’t be disappointed. All the more reason to be happy when suddenly there are free spins or full pictures. Then the tingling is there again, but controlled and not as absorbing as before.

If you set yourself limits and don’t play at the highest levels, slot machines are simply fun. But you can’t hope for the maximum win, because it’s similar to a lottery win: almost impossible.

 
Experience report written by Marcel Sch., 25, from Frankfurt am Main.