Return to Player

Return to Player (RTP) is a term used in gambling and online games to refer to the percentage or prizes that will be returned to a player depending on funds deposited during the game initially. Return to Player is one of the ways to attract players.

In Australia and the UK, information about the game cost often includes Return to Player values (for example, the average payout percentage or the percentage of money stakes saved) in order to protect players. ^[1]

The UK Gambling Commission allows customers to be informed about the risks in the form of Return to Player or house-edge percentages. For example, a casino may inform the player about a payout percentage of 90%, which means that for $100 bet $90 is going to be returned. The same is for "house-edge percentage" meaning that the casino is having $10 for every $100 spent on the game. Both variants are identical, however in accordance with the so-called framing effect, there is a certain influence on players due to different ways of perception. ^[2]

According to the results of a study made by the UK Gambling Commission in 2014, it was discovered that a number of players not specializing in the industry do not understand the mechanism of Return to Player. Thus, the complex terms, the usage of mathematical concepts and formulations, the information in English, are mentioned among factors of misunderstanding, which worsens the comprehension of the rules for non-native English speakers. ^[3]

All the slot machines at Crown Perth in Australia have a 90% minimum Return to Player percentage. ^[4] In 2018, The Federal Court of Australia enacted in a lawsuit against a large casino in Melbourne that information about the nature of Return to Player is misleading for players, since it indicates the percentage of winnings for a long-term game, which is not true for a short-term one. ^{[5] [6]}

Some software developers choose to publish the RTP of their slot machines, while others do not. ^[7] Despite various RTP theories, almost any outcome is possible in the short term perspective. ^[8]

See also

• Slot machine
• Gambling mathematics
• Progressive jackpot
• Fixed odds betting terminal

References

1. Philip W.S. Newall, Lukasz Walasek, Elliot A. Ludvig, Matthew J. Rockloff. House-edge information yields lower subjective chances of winning than equivalent return-to-player percentages: New evidence from support forum participants
2. Philip W. S. Newall, Lukasz Walasek, Elliot A. Ludvig. Equivalent gambling warning labels are perceived differently Archived 2021-12-24 at the Wayback Machine
3. Debbie Collins, Sophie Green, Jo d’Ardenne , Heather Wardle & Shauna-Kaye Williams. Understanding of Return to Player messages: Findings from user testing (October 2014)
4. Electronic gaming machines – return to player (RTP) policy Archived 2022-03-25 at the Wayback Machine // Department of Local Government, Sport and Cultural Industries, Government of Western Australia
5. Newall, P.W.S., Byrne, C.A., Russell, A.M.T., & Rockloff, M.J. House-edge information and a volatility warning lead to reduced gambling expenditure: Potential improvements to return-to-player percentages
6. Olha Lammer. Are Highest RTP Slots More Popular? Archived 2022-02-18 at the Wayback Machine
7. "Return to Player (RTP) and Hit Frequency: What Do These Mean?". Archived from the original on 2022-05-26. Retrieved 2022-07-23.
8. Online slots Return to Player (RTP) explained: Make sense of it and get the best value

External links

• Kate Beresford, Alexander Blaszczynski (2020-03-01). "Return-to-Player Percentage in Gaming Machines: Impact of Informative Materials on Player Understanding". Journal of Gambling Studies. 1 (1): 51–67. doi:10.1007/s10899-019-09854-z. ISSN   1573-3602. PMID   31020442. S2CID   129945785.
• Ramon Sancibrian. Slot Machine RTP Optimization Using Variable Neighborhood Search
• How to calculate return to player (RTP)
• Weighing in on the slots controversy