Is 3 minutes long enough?

Poll question: How long should the casino set machines before locking your card out of the reader?


Noticed the local casino now resets your card 3 minutes after you either put your card in or last gambled. Nothing changes the clock besides making a bet, a bonus round that takes longer than 3 minutes locks your card out( was 15 minutes). I suppose this is a response to a promotion with a random must hit jackpot, pretty much can be confident of that.

This is not the first casino which has done this, but I think it's not only stupid and unfair to the players, but stupid and unfair to the casino. Seems like if machines have bonus rounds that cannot be completed in 3 minutes, you need more time. Nobody can even read the rules in 3 minutes on the machines either. The pathetic thing is the machine doesn't even say "re-insert" card, the machine just reverts to a state it would be in if there wasn't even a card inside.

Seeing how the elderly and the slow are big portions of casino patronage, they will not receive any points nor free play offers, if they missed this transition and continue to play. Good people will not get comps, the casino wanted to give them, but due to a technicality, the casino will not see them as often as they would like. Are casinos not smart enough to realize, sometimes the best option is doing nothing? It's moronic, where the solution is worse than the problem. Mountaineer has been doing this ten years, quite intelligent copying what a casino on the edge of bankruptcy has been doing wrong for so long.

I don't understand why they would want to lock your card out at all. I think if the card is inserted, you should be getting points. End of story.

Of course, they obviously have their reasons.

That being the case, I think the time should probably be double whatever the maximum time on the bonus round is.

Bottom line, I would think that this has to be an unintentional situation. Therefore, perhaps what you need to do, is let the casino and/or slot manufacturer know about this.

I think the problem happens when cards get left in the machine. People get comp points off the next person if they don't realize.

Also, people coming after might think the machine is in use and not play, wasting time.

As to the OP, 3 minutes is plenty if they're really good minutes. ... (joke)

Actually, I agree, ONM. 10 minutes would be reasonable.

Bathroom and such. Long bonuses. I like to watch my coin in without a session reset.

If I'm understanding this correctly, after 3 minutes your card is locked out. If you then start to play the card remains locked out and will not earn points.

Some people go around leaving their cards in machines to earn points on other people's play. So if my understanding is correct then locking a card out would go some way to stopping this behaviour since unless someone begins playing within 3 minutes the perpetrator won't earn a thing.

According to my girlfriend, 3 minutes is not long enough.

delete

Quote: Aussie

If I'm understanding this correctly, after 3 minutes your card is locked out. If you then start to play the card remains locked out and will not earn points.

Some people go around leaving their cards in machines to earn points on other people's play. So if my understanding is correct then locking a card out would go some way to stopping this behaviour since unless someone begins playing within 3 minutes the perpetrator won't earn a thing.

The little boy who put his fingers in the dyke, found out there were more holes than fingers soon enough.

There's no reason the timeout can't take cash in/cash out into consideration. Casinos suck at operations.

Quote: MrV

delete

Ya, I know your evilness, what and who you were going to talk about.

Quote: gamerfreak

According to my girlfriend, 3 minutes is not long enough.

Swing and a miss on that one....

I think the reason why in this case doesn't actually have anything to do with leaving cards in the machines to collect points off of the play of others. ONM mentioned a Progressive, which is presumably a floor wide thing. As the announcement says, "All you have to do is have your card inserted in your favorite slot machine and be actively playing."

Thus, I think what they are trying to avoid is having people insert cards into the machine and, therefore, qualify for floor wide drawings or promotions. I recall one progressive type promotion where the first and second best results would pay the player x amount of cash, but everyone on the floor who happened to be playing at the time also got a certain amount of free play. The amount for everyone would automatically be loaded on the card, so one could theoretically just find an out of the way machine that most people don't play, pop the card in, and hopefully one of the top two jackpots pop. The person never actually had to be there.

I didn't go to the casino at that time for specifically that reason, and I certainly wouldn't make a trip there if I wasn't planning to gamble, but if either of those Progressives were close and I was done, I'd intentionally leave my card in the machine.

Also, it could be cards belonging to friends that would get popped in, so someone playing one machine might pop in a card on each side. I never did that one, but it could be done.

Quote: MrV

delete

You pulled up, man! I know you had something good there, you could've taken it. If it's true, it's fair.

Quote: Mission146

You pulled up, man! I know you had something good there, you could've taken it. If it's true, it's fair.

Any AP who says they never considered it is lying!

Quote: Aussie

If I'm understanding this correctly, after 3 minutes your card is locked out. If you then start to play the card remains locked out and will not earn points.

Some people go around leaving their cards in machines to earn points on other people's play. So if my understanding is correct then locking a card out would go some way to stopping this behaviour since unless someone begins playing within 3 minutes the perpetrator won't earn a thing.

The card would not be permanently locked. Im assuming he is saying the slot simply disengage any point collecting or reading of the card

Savvy ap who know this would just pull their card out and reinsert for a reset while ploppies engrossed in the gaming would get a bonus round longer than 3 minutes and not realize they are getting zero credit for further play

I know machines keep u logged in if u try to pull the card purposefully to minimize a record of your wins so there is no excuse the casino cannot apply that same software here... Except they get away with giving less comps while players think they are getting rated. Trust me if this worked against their favor they would have it figured out differently

Quote: RogerKint

Any AP who says they never considered it is lying!

I appreciate the support!!! Thanks!

Quote: AxelWolf

Ya, I know your evilness, what and who you were going to talk about.

LOL

I was going to say he misunderstood what she said, confusing "minutes" for "inches."

But I deleted it, as it was hitting below the belt.

This is why I usually only play machines at CET properties. No guessing. Why are they the only ones with the touch screen points display/ordering system?

A touch screen display in a slot machine does not sound like a protectible patent to me.

Quote: darkoz

The card would not be permanently locked. Im assuming he is saying the slot simply disengage any point collecting or reading of the card

Savvy ap who know this would just pull their card out and reinsert for a reset while ploppies engrossed in the gaming would get a bonus round longer than 3 minutes and not realize they are getting zero credit for further play

I know machines keep u logged in if u try to pull the card purposefully to minimize a record of your wins so there is no excuse the casino cannot apply that same software here... Except they get away with giving less comps while players think they are getting rated. Trust me if this worked against their favor they would have it figured out differently

Precisely. The card is locked out but not locked. At this casino, you cannot reinsert your card until the bonus round is over, however, so that will not work. Hitting the spin button during the bonus might restart the clock, have not been able to test it or observe it yet.

At this casino, the people I noticed just sitting there during the promotion, higher level cards, executive producers, producers. The measure is useless, just hurts ratings of people really playing, if those people stick to one machine, even more if not zealous about the card being read.

If the casino wants people not being comped, not fully eligible for future offers and tiers, not returning as much, then 3 minutes is long enough. Otherwise, the best solution is doing nothing, or using low tech solutions.

Thought this thread was about something else... Carry on.

FYI - my vote of 10 minutes works well in both cases, I suppose.

Quote: onenickelmiracle

Precisely. The card is locked out but not locked. At this casino, you cannot reinsert your card until the bonus round is over, however, so that will not work. Hitting the spin button during the bonus might restart the clock, have not been able to test it or observe it yet.

I doubt that will work. Most machines send a game start message to the player tracking system every time a new game starts. It will not be sending that message while the current game is still being played. That is generally the message used to determine if you are still an active player if it is received every x minutes.