Taken from another forum....I think this makes it all very clear.
I work in the industry, just a couple of things:
- if they reduce the max stake per go to £2, around half of the retail bookies in the UK would close. Hence why so many are crapping themselves. As someone mentions above, they are the only reason for the existence of so many retail units. There's occurrences of shops being a distance apart you could spit across. And yet the biggest bookie in the UK is b****5 and it hasn't got one shop at all. Hence why everyone is pushing towards mobile now.
- the machines have to be random and have to be thoroughly tested over an astronomical amount of spins to prove they have a certain RTP to the customer. On many, many games the RTP % is increased the higher your stake value is. It's normally done in segments with the absolute max stake being 95%+.
- The machines uses many of the psychological triggers that occur in basic games like Tetris that make literally each line exciting. I've read research on it but actually believe also that the thrill of an extremely near miss is the adrenaline rush that has players going back for more. Yes a win is overwhelming but the people who repeatably gamble are the ones that 'just hit the post'.
- if you have voluntarily self excluded from a bookies, or across multiple bookies, and they willingly let you gamble, the bookies will get absolutely hammered for it. You could argue it's all for face but all the bookies have to promote deposit limits, credit checks, VSE, time outs etc.
- More worryingly, I feel, are a lot of these casual games that you see on facebook that are built on all the same fundamental mechanics of slots. However, instead of gambling to win money, you're paying to get to the next phase. Or an expansion pack. Or downloadable content. These are completely unregulated, have no responsible purchase content in place and open to under 18s. Anyone here been absolutely stung by his or her child spending a fortune on **** packs? For me, these are obscene and are leading children right in
Finally, FOBTs are a cancer and lives will have been ruined by them. No different than being addicted to any other substance. It's and illness it's just that with these, you're less likely to spend 3k in an hour in a boozer by yourself at lunch than you are in a friday lunch break.
interesting read. my child often asks to buy packs in games and has on occasion been allowed, they do not understand they are a waste of money. I would hate for them to be trapped in the same cycle as myself
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