During a discussion recently, a slot player said that it seemed like another player sitting next to them was getting more bonuses by rapid firing. They wondered if you somehow got more bonuses for rapid firing.
STATUS: You will get more bonuses. You’ll get more of everything. But it doesn’t mean you’ll win more over time, and you’ll get more losing spins along the way too.
Rapid firing, like any initiation of spins, is all governed by the random number generator, presuming we’re talking Vegas-style slots. You can’t beat the random number generator, so over time, over millions of spins, the game will approach the expected payback because that’s how the math works.
That said, rapid firing is the quick resolution of a spin. Instead of waiting the few seconds for the game to render the outcome, the player pushes the button again to immediately show the results so they can get on to the next spin. Small wins or losses get pushed away immediately to move on to the next outcome, chasing that big win or bonus.
If you rapid fire, you increase the number of spins per hour. So you’ll accelerate through lots of smaller wins and losses and eventually reach a bonus. You’ll probably do it again and again.
That doesn’t mean you’re winning more. Players who see this happening wonder if they’re somehow unlocking some special scenario that is the key to winning more at casinos. Remember all those fast spins? Those were bets. So more money is being pushed through the game and exposed to the casino math and house edge.
It can be a fun way to approach a slot machine, betting lower but rapid firing. It can get you to the bonus a bit quicker if the machine’s being cooperative, or it can make those lack of wins much more painful if you are rapid firing. But it doesn’t somehow make you a bigger winner or avoid the losses on a slot – the same math happens no matter how fast you spin.
So even if your neighbor is seeing bonuses come up a lot, remember it doesn’t change the long-term outcome.
