Casino is an immersive space that’s designed to make you feel good. It’s the kind of place where a single round of roulette or a hand of blackjack can cost you hundreds or even thousands of dollars—but you keep gambling anyway because you feel happy and important, like you’re losing money while having fun.
To create this feeling, casinos use all sorts of tricks. Labyrinthine floor plans, with no straight paths to the exit, are meant to encourage you to linger at table games or slot machines, avoiding the temptation to stop and head for the door when you’re tired. The smell of fresh-baked bread wafts through the air, and bright lights and joyful music blare, creating a manufactured sense of euphoria that keeps you playing. Then, when someone wins at a game, the crowd goes wild, encouraging you to continue betting.
Finally, many casinos offer complimentary meals and even free hotel stays if you spend enough money. These perks prevent you from leaving the casino to meet your basic human needs—and they ensure that the next time you go to gamble, you’ll be back for more.
To maximize their profits, casino managers analyze the house edge and variance of each game they offer. These calculations are based on the mathematically optimal strategy for each game, and they’re often outsourced to gaming mathematicians or programmers. This information helps casinos know what sort of bets to place, how much money they should invest in a game, and how long they should run a promotion.
