Tribal Casino Slot Machines: The Insider Scoop

"These slots are colder than a banker's heart!"
"Man! These slot machines are screwed down so tight, no one can win."
"I'm sick of losing my money to the Tribe. I won't be back."

These are just a sample of the dozens of complaints the Tribal casino slot host hears every single day - most are unsuitable for repeating in mixed company. Even in the less vocal slot players, the frustration is evident in the somber, frowning, or downright angry expressions on their faces. They slap or kick the machines, tear losing tickets to shreds, and unfairly mistreat the lowly casino staff, which for the most part understand and sympathize with their plight. Tribal slot hosts know what players only suspect - the payback percentage on Tribal casino slot machines is terrible, particularly when compared to gambling meccas like Vegas or Reno or Atlantic City.

How terrible is it? No one can say for sure. Few things get the casino boss' skin prickling the way talk of tight slots can and the hold percentage on their slot machines is a secret more closely guarded than the gold in Ft. Knox. Where state law and gaming agencies regulate the hold/payback percentages for casinos, the player can get a fairly good idea of what those percentages are regionally, although not for individual casinos. In one recent report, Reno casinos averaged 94.9 percent payback on slots and video poker while casinos on the Las Vegas Strip (the tightest in Nevada) were at 93.8 percent. Similar information is nearly impossible to ascertain for individual Tribal casinos because the sovereign nation status of the Tribes and minimal oversight by state gaming agencies protect their casinos from having to make disclosures. We can, however, make an educated guess.