So many questions, so little time

[stew]

hopefully, this should just about cover all the questions those new to AWP's want to know:


What is the "Cancel" Cheat?
The "cancel" cheat was first used on JPM's in 1990. Basically, you can hold the button down to slow things down - such as "Random" selections and so on. The first mainstream game to use the cancel cheat was Indiana Jones in 1995. All other companies have since used the cancel cheat in one way or another.

In addition to the "Cancel" cheat, you can often hold down reel buttons on "respin". This will hold the reel where it is - and in the case of the reel having a bonus, number or feature symbol on it - will hold it for the next spin.

These 'cheats' have been incorporated within many other machines from different manufacturers. Some companies let you know when you can use the cancel button, or even have a dedicated button with the company logo or similar.



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How do I win on Fruit Machines?
Sadly there is no easy way of winning money on these machines. They say that to win the most money, you shouldn't play them at all.. but of course, where is the fun in that?!

It isn't a case of how to play but generally when to play. You will have heard all sorts of things from friends who claim to have found ways to beat machines but most of it is just rubbish.

The basic rule is that these machines are fixed and there is usually no real skill to playing them (with a few notable exceptions as you will see in the individual guides).

When you have to select a bonus or take a chance, the machine nearly always operates on pseudo skill. This is when a player perceives a feature as genuine skill even when it is not. Repeat chances also work on this principle, so trying to time a repeat is not going to do anything more than pressing the button with your eyes closed!

Only when a machine offers you "true skill", sometimes when you're invited to hold down a button at the same time, can you actually have any control over the bonus, chance, win or repeat. Incidentally on machines that give a true skill repeat on the jackpot, the machine has already chosen to give the repeat. It is therefore doing nothing but giving you a "skill" chance of losing, when you couldn't before.

Sometimes, because of the fixed nature of the gameplay, a machine will give you wins even if you try to lose or don't know what you are doing. This is why complete novices can often win as wins literally spin in, or the machine goes invincible (and usually makes it quite obvious by saying something on the display!).

Many machines now have hidden features and little tricks that can make a regular player feel that they can win more often than someone who doesn't know anything about the machine. In many cases this is true because you might be offered easy wins in a short period of time that a casual player wouldn't notice. For example, you may know a particular feature is a guaranteed JP, while a casual player will gamble on and lose.

The problem arises when, by knowing all of the tricks, you play the machine more. The average punter that puts in a few quid and wins a tenner is satisfied and walks away happy. Meanwhile, the regular player keeps playing looking for more bonuses and cheats. The result is that the "experienced" player can potentially lose a lot more when the machine doesn't play exactly as expected!

JPM once claimed that a machine (Big 50) had a staggering 48 hidden features. Just imagine how much money a serious addict would pump in to try to discover (and master) all of these tricks, especially as there weren't any fruit machine web sites to help out back then!!!

Finally, a lot of machines are designed to streak and pay big lumps of money in one go. Suffice to say, this means it will play badly at most times in order to collect.

An industry insider explained it as follows;

"Over a given number of plays (usually around 1000) the machine will take a certain percentage of money (usually 1% of each play) and put it in a stabiliser, or a rave bank as my mate the programmer says. Anyway, a flag is set in the software to say "when I've got this much in my bank, go raving (i.e. a win streak)" and the money is paid out until the stabiliser is empty and the process starts again..."



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How does the payout percentage work?
By law, each fruit machine has to pay out a certain amount of money. The minimum percentage, by law, in the UK for AWP's is 70% (68% on cross channel ferries). This means for every £1000 it collects, £700 is paid back to the players - leaving £300 profit. Well, in theory anyway!!

The payout is averaged over a series of plays but this is not set at a particular amount. The machine can go over and under this amount and the design of the software can make a big difference.

The percentage is also less significant as more and more money is put in, so a variation of a few hundred pounds will only show as 1 or 2% over or under at any given time. Bear this in mind when playing!

The problem some people have is that they get carried away when a machine goes into a good mood, without realising that it's short lived.

One regular player once tested how long it would be from one streak to the next on "The Italian Job" from Maygay (£15 jackpot, 30p play). He was a little surprised that it took nearly £150 (without ANY wins being taken and wins forced on him being recycled) before it paid back another £60. Simple logic shows that forcing streak with that much money is pointless.

£15 UPDATE: ALL major brewers have now converted to £15 jackpot at 30p play and 78% payout. The exceptions are; Whitbread that are at 20p play, 80% payout and Scottish & Newcastle which are 25p play with 78% payout.

£25 UPDATE (Jan 1st 2002): It appears that breweries have decided to stick with 25p or 30p stake for the £25 jackpot machines. Those sites operating at 20p will change to 25p or 30p.

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What are Barcodes?
Barcodes were first introduced by BFM (Bell Fruit Manufacturing) and are now used regularly by other companies too.

Basically by getting a THREE BAR symbol, TWO BAR symbol and ONE BAR symbol on the win line, you can obtain hidden features. You then select the feature by pressing a single hold button (1, 2 or 3) for a feature or entering a code (e.g. 132) for a feature.

Some machines also give features for a reverse (i.e. ONE BAR, TWO BAR, THREE BAR) barcode.

In the late 1990's, most machines hid the barcodes and it was considered yet another trick to gain an advantage over casual players. Now machines generally advertise the barcodes on the glass!

If there are barcodes on a machine featured in our guides, we will usually try to give all of the necessary button combinations and an explanation of the features offered.



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What are Flash Holds/Holds After Nudges/3 Holds?
When you are offered nudges, the machine will often give you one less nudge than you need to get a win (surprise surprise!). If this happens, always attempt to bring at least two matching fruits on the line. If the machine then offers holds straight after, let them all spin to get the win.

Most new machines will now tell you what to do anyway, so this is pretty self explanatory. Believe it or not, back in the early 1990's this was a trick people would have wanted kept quiet. Like every little trick (see barcodes above), it's now pretty much common knowledge among novices and players alike.

Another "common knowledge" trick is getting three holds in a row when two like symbols are on the display (e.g. holding two jackpot symbols). On the third hold, you'll get the matching fruit for the win. Surprisingly, there are still a few machines out there where three holds DON'T work but these are rare!



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What is invincibility?
Invincibility is when you cannot lose (unsurprisingly!). Basically, the machine will pay you the jackpot or top feature without killing you along the way.

Invincible modes are usually quite obvious;

Logo changes colour. Traditionally the logo went red, hence the common use of the term "red mode" to signify a no-lose board/feature.
Display says "Go for it" or something signifying you're invincible.
Audio sample at feature entry is different from normal and the board flashes in a different way.
You keep landing on "add cash" or "skill stop" making it possible to get a JP very quickly.
It is however possible to get a "hidden" invincible mode. Some machines will do the same as if they are "red" but give no obvious sign. Even old Barcrest machines from the mid 1990's have invincible modes - but they give no signs whatsoever!

Maygay started this but now every company does it. Even club machines with £1000 jackpots are giving "no lose" boards!!



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Does playing with different coins affect the payout?
Most modern fruit machines will pay out just pound coins. Some will also pay 20p's too (including old machines and modern machines with £5 jackpots that don't round up to the nearest pound).

It goes without saying that a machine that pays out only pound coins will need to have a sufficient amount of coins inside to actually pay you when you win.

If you play with different coins, such as 5p, 10p, 50p and £2, you will still be giving the machine money and the payout percentage will still adjust as normal. The game software is only looking at the monetary value, not the coins being used - so it will not help you win money, nor will it make you lose money. It is therefore technically possible to get the machine to pay empty (i.e. you empty it of all the pound coins) if you haven't been using pound coins yourself and they've all run out. Nearly all machines hold at least £125 in pound coins when full, so the chances of this happening are rather slim.

There is no benefit to doing this either. It just means you have to make a claim for the lost money, which can be difficult in some arcades and pubs. Making a claim in a motorway service station can be a disaster as most claims are never paid out (regardless of what they might say at the time of you putting in a claim).

If you are playing a machine that pays out pound coins, it is really best to put them in to keep the tubes or hoppers full and able to pay out. Don't think it makes any difference to the way the machine plays though!



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Do machines that round up count the rounded up money as a "free win"?
Because most machines are fitted with hoppers that pay out just £1 coins, machines with wins in-between (e.g. £1.20 or £1.60) are automatically rounded up when transferred to the bank.

Some people have suggested that this rounding up is "free" and is a great way to empty a machine. Sadly, it is not true. The machine counts the money put into the bank, so when it's rounded up and stored in the bank - that is what the machine counts. It's as simple as that.

There is no real advantage in collecting a £1.20 over a £2.00 win, except when you might be on a dodgy number and would gain nothing by winning the gamble.



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Does it affect the play if I collect the money in the bank?
Another urban myth is that fruit machines do not check their balances until you pay the money out. Sadly, there are two sets of payout information logged by the machine. The internal logs are what the game code looks at for the payout percentage. This is updated in real time, so the money in the bank is already counted whether it is paid out straight away, or kept in the bank until it reaches the bank limit (up to 5 times the jackpot value - £75 for a £15 machine).

The payout meter/s (usually on the inside of the machine, next to the cash boxes at the base of the cabinet) are updated as and when the coins are paid out. This enables machine owners to check the balances accordingly. The mechanical meters cannot be reset and are like the odometer on a car, while the "local" meters on the machine can be reset by an engineer.

Details from some machines can be sent to an engineers terminal without opening the machine (and this is where the "reset code" rumours started from, see above).



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What is an emptier and how do I get them?


"A fruit emptier is a method of playing the machine in such a way that it allows you to manipulate the percentage payout setting.

Generally an oversight in the firmware testing, otherwise known as leaving a bug in the software. These genuine emptiers could have indeed been left/put in intentionally by the software coders as some people prefer to believe!

The chances of it happening are very slim because of the increased publicity of previous emptiers. The software coders will no doubt have been severely warned to be extra careful. They still happen though.

There is still a chance of one or two bugs/problems slipping through since the best software testing is done by us the players. Many more hours of varying game play are conducted by the punter than any manufacturer can do.

Implications if a new one appears: If one becomes public knowledge i.e more than one person knows about it, this is found out almost immediately (possibly as quick as the first time its used!) as the data packs on the machine will show a discrepancy between the amount of plays against cash in the machine.

The manufacturers simply release a firmware upgrade to rectify it and that's the end of it."



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Is the Hi/Lo gamble True Skill?
Sort of. But it is dependent on when you are gambling. For most of the time, it may as well only be a heads or tails gamble. Sometimes, it makes NO difference as it will lose regardless of the number you're on (obviously excluding 1's and 12's or whatever!).

When you play some machines, the first "hi/lo gamble" to continue the feature is fixed so you always win. Try it on a Maygay for example - gamble against the number if you like. Shock horror - you (should) win!

Barcrest machines always fix the first hi/lo gamble on a trail entry climb so you win. You can then use this to get a better number for the next gamble.

On a JPM and others during "normal" play, the hi/lo gamble for much of the time doesn't really matter what number it is on. If the machine doesn't want to give those extra nudges because it makes a £1.00 win become a £7.00 win - you'll lose unless it's a 1 or 12. It's not uncommon to see a high gamble on a 2 spin in the 1 (or low on an 11 to get a 12). It looks silly but the manufacturers still keep on doing it time and time again.

Some machines will "help" you by telling you which way to gamble - or say that you can't lose. If you get a no-lose gamble, go against the number to get a better one next time (the no-lose is just for that move). If you have an extra-life, gamble as you would normally to try and save the life for later.

Don't be surprised to find a machine loses twice.. Say you have an extra life on a 3. You go high, it spins in a 2 and you lose the life. You go high again and in comes a 1. It's pretty pathetic, but it happens all the time when you're talking about an important gamble.

Bear in mind that on features where you need to hi/lo to win more money, you can NEVER get into the situation where you have a 1 or 12 for a gamble that goes over the maximum jackpot value.

This is known as the credit break and the law states you can have no more than a 50:50 chance of winning - so the machine can't be on a 1 or you would have a 100% chance of winning it!




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What's the different between arcade and pub mode?
If you have ever seen the back of a fruit machine, you may well have noticed that the machine can have different game modes. These modes can affect the way a machine plays, although over time the payout should remain unaffected.

The configurations can vary from machine to machine and the example below is for a JPM machine.

In arcade mode, the machine is more geared towards a player who is more knowledgeable and is also likely to invest more to win. Skill related features will be offered more frequently and the machine allows the payout to vary greatly. In other words, a skilful player may be able to win more in a shorter time if he can play all of the features well enough.

Pub mode will try and control the percentage more rigorously and you will probably find jackpots repeat less frequently. However, the machine is likely to compensate by giving frequent good prizes during "normal" play. This is more commonly known as a "flat profile".

In other words, even "Joe Public" can win on these machine as it will compensate and give wins to even the dumbest player!

Bear in mind that the payout percentage can also make a big difference to both types of machine (so a 72% machine in an arcade will still probably play terrible even if it does streak from time to time).




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What is Backing?
When coins drop to the cashbox, this is known as "backing" or "going over the back".

Machines start backing if the tubes are full (extra coins overflow to the cashboxes), or the hopper is registered as full in software.

Hoppers don't actually fill up literally. The software keeps track of the balance by counting coins in and out. When it knows the hopper has £xxx in it (usually £125 or £250 for a £5-£25 machine), it diverts all new coins to the cashbox. Therefore the hopper could actually hold a lot more but doesn't for operational reasons.

For this to work the person filling the machine must ensure they correctly fill it, or the machine may have more or less coins than it thinks. However this does not affect gameplay, so you will probably never need to worry about it unless the hopper is actually completely empty.

A machine that has been filled up, but isn't configured correctly may well have the "C.L." (Cash/Coins Low) light on. This doesn't mean the machine has been emptied!

Other coins (5p, 10p, 20p, 50p & £2) will always go "down the back" regardless, as these coins are not required for payout. Some £5 machines might pay out 20p coins.




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Why is a full machine not always the one to play?
It may not always be worth playing the "full" machine because it may have recently streaked without you knowing it, or was refilled that morning.

As a machine requires lots of money before a large payout, a lot of the money put in will be during the time that the machine is "backing". So even while the money is going down the back, it might still take a lot of money (and there is no guarantee that you'll get a streak either - it may just pay one Jackpot and die).

A machine that has just paid out a Jackpot may be worth playing for a bit to see if it is streaking. Obviously you don't know without trying. It wouldn't be full but it could pay out money almost immediately! A lot of people are more than happy to win a jackpot and run, so you may want to see if there is more money to be had.

The only way to really know though is to watch a machine being played and not just jump on and assume it's going to streak purely because you can hear coins dropping to the floor!



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What is the clicking sound when coins are paid in/out?
The clicking sound you often hear are the "hardware" meters counting the money paid in and out.

Modern machines use electronic meters with LCD displays, which are completely silent.




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Are repeat chances true skill?
No, but by law they do have to be random.

However, before you get too excited, the 'chance' element is increased based on how desperate the machine is to pay.

If a machine is at the payout percentage target, it could offer a tiny chance of a repeat. However, if it hasn't paid out much and needs to in order to reach the target, you may find it has a 50:50 chance (the maximum permitted by law). Even if it doesn't repeat, you may get another big win (or jackpot) very quickly after!

The actual repeat is chosen by the machine in advance, so the actual pressing of the button is purely pseudo skill. A machine that doesn't repeat may therefore still pay out later simply because you were unlucky that time. Machines that offer a "true skill" repeat are only doing so after it has already decided, at random, to award a repeat. It might look good, but you've actually now got a chance to lose that you didn't before!




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Refill keys - are they legal?
While it legal to use a refill key, many people frown upon their usage. As you can imagine, many people don't appreciate you using one as it can potentially give you an advantage over other players (but not the machine, which is why you're not breaking the law).

Keys are more useful to check if a machine has just paid out a lot of money, not to see whether it is actually full. If it is full you still need to use your own judgement to see if it is worth playing a machine (see above). However, finding a half-empty machine is obviously one to steer clear of so a key could prove invaluable and save you a lot of money that would otherwise fill up a machine that isn't going to pay out![color=#][/color][color=#][/color][color=#][/color][color=#][/color]

[Zorro Jnr]

So little time!!!!

Did you do that for an essay?

[stew]

There's alot of cut n copy in that one :wink:

just know i'll get a "could do better" report though!!

[cfdu]

looks like some cma stuff in there!!!

[stew]

Nah, looks 'aint what they perceive to be !!

[James Russell Edens]

any one out there know how to fiddle the machines id like to throw up jackpots and walk the wheels that was an art please be somthing id love to give them my best again

[addict26]

I was aware of the holds/nudges stuff you mentioned, and distinctly remember a certain machine being able to be reset by pressing buttons in a certain order.

I'm a bit out of practice on the terminology. What do you mean by forcing? How much do you usually recommend to 'force' a machine?

[stew]

To "force" means not accepting any wins offered and playing only for the top feature. If a you have to take a win (due to collect of a ? etc) take the lowest possible one available thus not setting the % back too much

How much do you usually recommend to 'force' a machine?

.................depends on machine really, sure you can find some stories on the forum where it took £5-£10 or the nightmares on £50-£75 (even more with Bar x 10's etc)



Stew

[a1056688]

I have just realised that Zorro has had Bling King as his Avatar for an awfully long time. 6 months at least if I remember rightly.

Does this mean what I think it means?

[cfdu]

christ on a bike! if it does you retire off that amount of cash.