This year we decided to spend Christmas in Vegas (with our two grown kids). So, we made a long weekend of it, spending 4 days and three nights.
We had a couple of rooms at Harrahs, so that's where we started off playing on arrival. Nothing but lousy games (8/5JB, 7/5JB, 7/5 Bonus, 6/5 Bonus, 8/5 DDB, etc.), as you would expect for a Strip casino, but we really weren't up for going anywhere else after the flight and dealing with the airport and car rental. They have two lone Multistrike games, where 8/5JB is as good as it gets. Still, we played those out of convenience. And lost, as one might expect. We ate a late dinner at the cafe in Harrahs and the food was okay but the service sucked; our waitress was Nurse Ratchett and the Soup Nazi all rolled into one.
The next day began with a visit to the Forum shops at Caesars, with an hour or more wasted trying to get our party reconnected in the ridiculously huge casino. More lousy games; clearly, it was time to get away from the Strip. A quick vote had us riding down to Fremont Street for a stop at 4 Queens -- you can find a few decent games at 4 Queens, although there are some bad ones, too. We managed to spend the entire afternoon at 4 Queens, losing a little -- but the games were pretty good; we just didn't hit anything to speak of.
That night, the high point of the trip came, when we went to see the 10pm "Love" performance at Mirage. All I can say is if you're heading to Vegas, you don't want to miss it; everyone will enjoy it regardless of age. It was fabulous in every respect, and I think I could see it a couple more times without an ounce of boredom creeping in.
Early the next morning it was decided we wouldn't spend any time in Strip casinos, and headed out to Green Valley Ranch. There, you find plenty of excellent video poker in a really nice facility. Tons of 8/5 Bonus, a bank of 8 excellent paying Multistrike games, and some 10/6 DDB PROGRESSIVEs, which my wife really likes to play. GVR is a really good place for video poker players -- it is nice, very well-kept, and has plenty of good games. We were comped to the buffet mid-afternoon and found it to be surprisingly good, with an excellent selection of good stuff to eat.
Still, none of us had hit anything big, although there had been a couple of premium 4s on the 10/6 DDB games. We decided to move on, as we had wanted to check out the Rio, having never been there before. Well, never before, and probably never again.
The Rio was really one of the low points in our visit. For openers, the show was dark. To add insult to injury, the games were horrible. I suppose we stayed no more than an hour, and it was pretty much a waste. I don't think any of us would really want to go there again.
Finally, we decided to check out Gold Coast Casino, down the street, a place we'd not been to before. What a great place to play!
If you're going to play video poker in Vegas, Gold Coast is where you want to be. Tons of video poker, and tons of great games. Banks of FPDW, 10/7 DB, 10/8 DDB, and my personal favorites, Multistrike with 9/6 JB. My daughter was lucky enough to hit a 3rd line Royal (25c) for $4,000, while my wife hit several (5, 6?) sets of premium 4s on the dollar DDB (9/6 -- the 100% plus games are limited to quarters). Combined with other miscellaneous wins (including a $700 hit on on the Wheel of Fortune), we left Gold Coast ahead for the trip. No, it isn't as nice as Strip casinos or GVR, but it is clean, the machines are in good condition, the cocktail waitresses are accessible, and you cannot find better games.
Before leaving for the airport the next morning, we spent a little time playing at Harrahs where I played some 8/5 JB ($5) for a while, and managed to get out $700 ahead, which probably covered what everyone else lost that morning. Since we had enough play to eat free, we decided to eat at Harrahs buffet for lunch. It was packed, the the food was lousy.
Harrahs was a bit of a disappointment. I knew the games would be mediocre, but I do expect reasonably good service at the food establishments, and that just didn't happen. I will say the comped rooms were decent, one a very nice suite -- but the food service was one big disappointment.
Overall, the trip was great. The Beatles show was fabulous. And GVR and Gold Coast were lots of fun. At this point I find I have very little desire to visit Strip casinos in the future. Clearly, you aren't going to get a good game -- of any kind -- there. At some point you get tired of looking at the big, gitzy, crowded casinos and just want to find a good game of video poker.
Thursday, December 27, 2007
Friday, December 14, 2007
Losing at "The Track"
It has been over a year now since the two Arkansas racetracks (Oaklawn Park in Hot Springs, and Southland in West Memphis) were given a chance at survival, when they received the right to host "games of skill" in what is otherwise a casino-free zone.
Right after approval, Oaklawn installed a couple hundred video poker machines and "Lock & Roll" slots (as distinguished from regular slots by the fact you have to "lock" the reels and spin for a second time before collecting your winnings).
The games are bad, particularly quarters and 50c -- the dollar games all pay a little better (e.g., 9/5 JB, 9/5 DDB), but they'll still break you in a hurry. Recently, they've added a few computerized blackjack tables (real dealers to make change, but the cards are dealt by the machines). The blackjack tables deal a decent game, presently the best games in the house -- it seems like 6 decks with about 2-3 decks cut-off, though -- for those who care about such things. At least it pays 3:2 on blackjacks, which is more than a lot of real casinos do these days.
Over the past year, Oaklawn has attracted a pretty good crowd of "regulars" -- people playing the bad video poker or the even-worse "Instant Racing" machines (90-92%). But one doesn't get the sense that anyone views it as a "destination", in the sense that a casino is a destination. The fact that you see the same faces on a routine basis really makes one wonder whether the low-quality games are just a trap for locals who don't want to watch too much TV.
Reportedly, Oaklawn will be building a large, new facility at the south end of the racetrack after the upcoming live racing season ends, which will house hundreds of new game machines. When they have these new games available, and nobody to play them, will there be a new spirit of competition? Will the returns on these games be improved in order to attract customers? Does it even matter?
It amazes me that the video poker playing public chooses to ignore the returns of the games they play. You can walk in almost any casino and find players who are willing to play 6/5 Bonus or 8/5 DDB when there is 9/6 JB one machine over. It takes about 800,000 hands of 9/6 JB (25c) to pay for a video poker machine -- about 2,000 hours of play. At 8/5, the same game pays for itself in 150,000 hands, or about 400 hours of play.
Playing bad games only encourages the proliferation of bad games. We should all stop it.
Right after approval, Oaklawn installed a couple hundred video poker machines and "Lock & Roll" slots (as distinguished from regular slots by the fact you have to "lock" the reels and spin for a second time before collecting your winnings).
The games are bad, particularly quarters and 50c -- the dollar games all pay a little better (e.g., 9/5 JB, 9/5 DDB), but they'll still break you in a hurry. Recently, they've added a few computerized blackjack tables (real dealers to make change, but the cards are dealt by the machines). The blackjack tables deal a decent game, presently the best games in the house -- it seems like 6 decks with about 2-3 decks cut-off, though -- for those who care about such things. At least it pays 3:2 on blackjacks, which is more than a lot of real casinos do these days.
Over the past year, Oaklawn has attracted a pretty good crowd of "regulars" -- people playing the bad video poker or the even-worse "Instant Racing" machines (90-92%). But one doesn't get the sense that anyone views it as a "destination", in the sense that a casino is a destination. The fact that you see the same faces on a routine basis really makes one wonder whether the low-quality games are just a trap for locals who don't want to watch too much TV.
Reportedly, Oaklawn will be building a large, new facility at the south end of the racetrack after the upcoming live racing season ends, which will house hundreds of new game machines. When they have these new games available, and nobody to play them, will there be a new spirit of competition? Will the returns on these games be improved in order to attract customers? Does it even matter?
It amazes me that the video poker playing public chooses to ignore the returns of the games they play. You can walk in almost any casino and find players who are willing to play 6/5 Bonus or 8/5 DDB when there is 9/6 JB one machine over. It takes about 800,000 hands of 9/6 JB (25c) to pay for a video poker machine -- about 2,000 hours of play. At 8/5, the same game pays for itself in 150,000 hands, or about 400 hours of play.
Playing bad games only encourages the proliferation of bad games. We should all stop it.
Sunday, December 9, 2007
Tunica 08-December-2007
Not having been to Tunica for a while, we decided on a quick trip over and back.
We usually spend a lot of time at Sheridan, so we got a room for Friday night -- Sheridan's standard rooms are among the nicest in the area. Sheridan has a great cafe called "Reno's" where you can get some really fantastic Quesadillas. Or, at least, you could. While checking in, we noticed Reno's was closed for renovation. Damn.
Sheridan has, all-round, the best video poker in Tunica. No other casino in the area comes close. Sheridan's machines are mostly configured alike -- multi-denominational, with all pretty good games -- 9/6 JB, 9/6 DDB, 8/5 Bonus, and excellent renditions of numerous other games. I also like the fact that I can play quarters or $5 or anywhere in between on most of these games, as it suits my style of play.
So, surely you have to give something up for all these good games, right?
I'll say. Apparently, air-conditioning was the first to go. Since they moved the video poker upstairs (so they could put the Total Rewards center in the old video poker area), it rates as one of the least comfortable in the business. Cocktail service, particularly during off-hours, can be next to nonexistent. But this weekend, the music did me in. Blaring rap played through distorted speakers to the point of nearly forcing me to run for cover. With the Sheridan, Harrahs has simultaneously given us the best video poker in Tunica and the worst playing environment imaginable. One gets the sense that Harrah's is looking for a way out of the Sheridan, since it owns the Horseshoe Cash Cow, next door.
The Horseshoe. Still, easily some of the worst video poker in the South. You don't expect it from a Harrah's property, but they do need to recover their $1.5 Billion purchase price, after all. Although none of the Casino Center properties was busy on Friday night, the Horseshoe, as usual, was busier than the others.
GoldStrike recently contacted me with an extensive survey -- it took about 15 minutes to complete. The upshot was, "If we turn this into a Vegas-strip-styled Mega-resort, will you come and pay for rooms and food rather than expect to be comped, and how important are "good games" compared with a nice building?"
Apparently, eliminating any decent video poker was part of this process. For the last couple years, GoldStrike has had some decent video poker at its two bars. But the corner bar has now entered the race for lousy games, and is running neck-and-neck with Horseshoe. Another waste of time.
We hadn't been to Sams Town in a while so we decided to drop by there. They have eliminated the older sit-down games in favor of the upright models -- and Jacks or Better players will find plenty of 9/6 JB there.
Tunica is definitely on a downhill swing, but if you're going to play video poker, Sheridan is still the rather obvious choice.
We usually spend a lot of time at Sheridan, so we got a room for Friday night -- Sheridan's standard rooms are among the nicest in the area. Sheridan has a great cafe called "Reno's" where you can get some really fantastic Quesadillas. Or, at least, you could. While checking in, we noticed Reno's was closed for renovation. Damn.
Sheridan has, all-round, the best video poker in Tunica. No other casino in the area comes close. Sheridan's machines are mostly configured alike -- multi-denominational, with all pretty good games -- 9/6 JB, 9/6 DDB, 8/5 Bonus, and excellent renditions of numerous other games. I also like the fact that I can play quarters or $5 or anywhere in between on most of these games, as it suits my style of play.
So, surely you have to give something up for all these good games, right?
I'll say. Apparently, air-conditioning was the first to go. Since they moved the video poker upstairs (so they could put the Total Rewards center in the old video poker area), it rates as one of the least comfortable in the business. Cocktail service, particularly during off-hours, can be next to nonexistent. But this weekend, the music did me in. Blaring rap played through distorted speakers to the point of nearly forcing me to run for cover. With the Sheridan, Harrahs has simultaneously given us the best video poker in Tunica and the worst playing environment imaginable. One gets the sense that Harrah's is looking for a way out of the Sheridan, since it owns the Horseshoe Cash Cow, next door.
The Horseshoe. Still, easily some of the worst video poker in the South. You don't expect it from a Harrah's property, but they do need to recover their $1.5 Billion purchase price, after all. Although none of the Casino Center properties was busy on Friday night, the Horseshoe, as usual, was busier than the others.
GoldStrike recently contacted me with an extensive survey -- it took about 15 minutes to complete. The upshot was, "If we turn this into a Vegas-strip-styled Mega-resort, will you come and pay for rooms and food rather than expect to be comped, and how important are "good games" compared with a nice building?"
Apparently, eliminating any decent video poker was part of this process. For the last couple years, GoldStrike has had some decent video poker at its two bars. But the corner bar has now entered the race for lousy games, and is running neck-and-neck with Horseshoe. Another waste of time.
We hadn't been to Sams Town in a while so we decided to drop by there. They have eliminated the older sit-down games in favor of the upright models -- and Jacks or Better players will find plenty of 9/6 JB there.
Tunica is definitely on a downhill swing, but if you're going to play video poker, Sheridan is still the rather obvious choice.
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