Finally walked into Imperial Casino last night
I've only just started venturing into real venues (mostly pubs with a couple of pokies so far), so this thread is genuinely useful to me 😅
That lopsided floor thing sounds weird though, half the pokies section roped off with chairs stacked on the machines? Was anyone saying why? Part of me wonders if it's some maintenance or compliance thing, but it'd put me off a bit walking in and seeing half the slots dead. The tables being packed while your side's empty does change the whole vibe of a place.
Keen to hear if the rest of it made up for it, did anyone cash out at the cage, was that hassle-free? 🙏
Learning to clear wagering, go easy 🙏
No one ever gives you a straight answer in there, that's the first thing to learn. Half the pokies section roped off with chairs stacked on the machines usually means machines getting serviced, swapped, or quietly pulled - nobody announces it. The packed tables tell you where the house makes its money anyway. I'd want to know if those cordoned ones were the old low-RTP units before judging the floor.
Hype isn't a payout.
FreespinLord, Paul's read is pretty standard, and it matters more than it looks: when half the pokies floor is dead you're left playing whatever's left standing, usually the machines nobody else wanted, and your session variance goes sideways in a way you can't judge. I'd rather have a smaller but humming bank of machines than a packed table side doing all the work. On a small visit like one night, though, you won't really know if the joint pays until you've spun there a few times.
I keep my own spin/hit spreadsheet 📊
Agree with NeonMaster, though honestly I'd rather play the leftovers than fight a packed table side. My variance sheet says dead pokies floor beats crowded tables for session sanity anyway. 📊
RTP is a long-run number.
This might sound dumb but when you guys say variance goes sideways, do you mean the machines just pay unevenly? 😅 Total noob here, still learning
Nah not a dumb question at all, everyone starts somewhere 😅
Variance just means how much your money swings up and down in a session. High variance = long dry spells then maybe one decent hit, low variance = smaller drips and drabs. So when NeonMaster says it "goes sideways", he means you can't judge whether the machines you're left with are paying hot or cold, your night gets lumpier for no reason you can see.
And honestly that Imperial floor you walked into is the perfect example, mate. Half the pokies roped off with chairs stacked on them, so everyone's crammed onto whatever's left, and the table side packed. You spin through your NZ$20 quikcer than planned, wonder if the machines are busted, and walk out none the wiser. But did they even let anyone withdraw at the cage last night, or was that side of the floor "closed" too 🤡💸
The house always wins.
SlotQueenWins nailed the variance explainer, though I'd add one wrinkle: variance swings session to session, RTP is the long-run average, and a dead pokies floor with chairs stacked everywhere makes the swings feel worse because you're spinning half-heartedly on leftovers. Went through something similar at a venue down my way, ended up cashing out at the cage after twenty minutes because the atmosphere was so lopsided.
I keep my own spin/hit spreadsheet 📊
Chairs on machines mid-evening with the tables heaving is a strange look, agreed. When I wandered through a while back the pokies side was fully open, so something's changed there. Personally I'd hold off calling it worth a visit until someone posts a cage cashout photo. Lucky sessions happen, but long-run the machines owe you nothing either way.
RTP doesn't lie, win screenshots do.
Agree with Sam here, chairs on machines usually means maintenance, and I've seen a floor get pulled back together overnight. But if the table side was heaving while half the pokies were dead, that's a rough session for a spinner like me, hard to keep a rhythm spinning on the leftovers. I'd give it another look on a quieter week before judging the cage. 😭
Cashing out in time is half the battle.
Chairs stacked mid-evening while the cage side stays busy? My read is some machines got pulled for refits and they've left the dead corner open till new stock lands. Still want a cashout photo before I drive down.
Cashout screenshot or it didn't happen.
That refit theory makes sense to me, chairs on machines overnight then back open the next day happens in the pubs here too 😅 I was only in there once but the pokies corner did feel dead, hard to find a machine you actually wanted. Did anyone check if it was back to normal by the weekend?
New here, soaking it up.
That refit theory makes sense to me, chairs on machines overnight then back open the next day happens in the pubs here too 😅 I was only in there once but the pokies corner did feel dead, hard to find a machine you actual…
@Numbers_Value yeah the pub refit trick is a classic, they've been doing it for years 🤫 word is a couple of the better machines on that floor are running warmer now since the chairs came off, someone I know had a decent hit Saturday night. Won't say which ones, you know the rest 😏
@Numbers_Value yeah the pub refit trick is a classic, they've been doing it for years 🤫 word is a couple of the better machines on that floor are running warmer now since the chairs came off, someone I know had a decent …
@LuckyStreak_Spin warmer machines after a refit? now that's my kind of gossip 😏 might have to swing past Imperial this weekend and see for myself 🔰🎰
Backing my slot to the last spin.
That chair mountain disappearing by Saturday is a good sign at least 😅 Might give it a go next payday and see if the pokies corner feels less dead, thanks for the update LeeJandal 🙏
@Lee_Otago go for it mate, worst case you lose your payday budget and get a night out for it 😄 I've busted more banks than you've deposited over the years and I still say a live floor beats anything on a screen. Just set yourself a hard number before you walk in and treat it as the price of the evening.
Funny thing about dead corners though, they're often where the money sits. Turned 50 into 5k once off a neglected machine in a pub in Oamaru, everyone else was crowded round the new ones. Some of those older games had a fairer RTP too, back when the pay tables weren't so tight. Ah well, we grind on 😉
It's all hit and busted before, folks.
@Lee_Otago go for it mate, worst case you lose your payday budget and get a night out for it 😄 I've busted more banks than you've deposited over the years and I still say a live floor beats anything on a screen. Just set…
@WageringReq_FC hard agree on the live floor, nothing beats hearing a machine actually pay someone two seats over. Set myself a hard number last month, NZ$200 for the arvo, cleared it off one hit and walked. Cashing out in time is everything, that's the whole game 😄
Bankroll discipline wins 💸
@Jandal_Mate that's the dream right there, one hit and out the door with the cash in hand 🤑 NZ$200 budget and walked up, respect. That sound of a machine going off two seats over gets me every time, half the reason I go tbh. I spin every evening online but nothing matches the floor when someone nearby lands a big one, whole row of strangers suddenly mates for a minute 😂 Might see you at Imperial this weekend, hearing about these warmer machines since the refit... my favourite pokie better be one of them 🔥🎰
The hit is close, I can feel it.