As I understand it, a 'slot-pull' is a privately organized event with cruisers who agree to chip in a set amount of money each and each get a set number of slot pulls. The total amount won will be divided among the players. I haven't participated in one yet, but am signed up for one on an up-coming cruise. Royal Caribbean Cruise Line Adds Vegan Menu to Main Dining Room Options; Summer Cruise Deals 2019; Virgin Voyages to Launch Craft Beer on New Cruise Ship (and You Can Vote to Name It) Norwegian Cruise Line Showcases New Culinary & Beverage Offerings on Soon-to-Launch Cruise Ship, Norwegian Encore; 5 Caribbean Cruise Deals Under $55/Night.
QUESTION: You've stated that casinos are regulated to make sure that slot machines are random and honest. Who regulates the casino slot machines on cruise ships? — Phillip W.
ANSWER: Cruise ship gambling came about with the 1991 Cruise Ship Competitiveness Act, which gave U.S. ships the opportunity to offer games once they hit international waters.
The gambling laws for land-based casinos are clear. It is far more difficult to know who is setting and enforcing the laws at sea. There is an organization called the International Council of Cruise Lines that offers some regulatory control. Unfortunately, it's nowhere near the level of the control exercised over U.S. land-based casinos. Cruise ships operate in international waters and are not bound by land-based casino regulations.
If you happen to have a dispute, you won't likely find an ICCL agent on board. Your alternative is to speak to the casino manager, or, if you're still not satisfied, bring your concern to the attention of the hotel manager. Those are pretty much your resolution options.
Regulations or not, lack of competition gives casinos little reason to cheat the captive masses. Competition is what raises slot payoffs. On the open water, cruise ships have no competition, just a confined audience. The casino knows you're a one-timer on a holiday and that your pockets are full of cash. It isn't looking for repeat business because you're probably never coming back.
As a one-time player, you can plan on a bruising when cruising when it comes to paybacks on slot machines. The payback percentages, at best, are awful.
I would recommend avoiding playing slot machines aboard cruise ships. There are plenty of other activities to enjoy besides pulling handles. Come to think of it, the yanking motion required to use the elliptical trainers aboard most ships is similar to playing a one-armed bandit.
Q: Does a slot machine know the amount of money deposited at the start of play? If so, does that have any bearing on the payout? — Bev G.
A: Yes, Bev, a software program that runs on a slot machine knows exactly how much money you have put in. It needs to know how many credits you have involved on the next spin in order to light the Bet Max button and any of the other options the machine has.
As for your final results, the amount of money deposited has no effect on the random number generator, and the machine doesn't care how many credits you have remaining, have played or are playing on the next spin. Many gaming jurisdictions have specific regulations stating that the random number generator can have no influence whatsoever on the number of coins played.
Cruise Ship Slot Machine Odds
Mark Pilarski is a contributing editor for numerous gambling publications. E-mail questions to pilarski@markpilarski.com.