$11 Million slot malfunction in Colorado

[knagl]

Looks to me like someone mis-programmed the Mikohn controller and had a base (reset) value of $11,000,600.00 instead of (I'm guessing) $1,100.  Regardless, it wouldn't have displayed that until after they hit, and would have shown that as the current (future) jackpot amount -- not the amount that was won.

http://www.kwgn.com/news/kdvr-gaming-malfunction-txt,0,4963692.story

[SigmaSlot]

That's just to funny well unless it happened to me..

[stayouttadabunker]

I don't think it's funny at all.
No one wins in this situation.
The casino and the commission get really bad publicity.
The "Winners" are pissed off and everybody becomes suspicious of the casino industry in general.
It's just not good for the industry for these
kinds of mistakes to hit the airwaves.

I think that the company responsible for programming the progressive meter
should be required by the Gaming Commission to pay up at
least half of the prize money displayed on the progressive meter.
That will cure these kinds of mistakes in a jiffy...and everybody will be happy.
The casinos and gamoing commissions will have a better face for the cameras
and make more money due to good publicity.
They should have offered to pay at least a million bucks!!!
C'mon! That's a drop in the bucket for the state that's raking it all in...bloody greedy-AS-ED BAS--RDS.
 

[SigmaSlot]

I agree they should compensate the winners but I stick with my original comment I find humor in somebody thinking they are a multiple millionaire to then find out it's only a couple of grand. Hope they didn't quit their job ..Never count your chickens before they hatch. If it was me that this happened to I would laugh after some time had past, great story to tell..

[staz]

i wouldnt pay them they didnt win 11 mill if the machine showed 1600 how the hell would it jump to 11 mill.... to many details missing was there a 11 mil actual progressive prize? and what combo they got on the machine? was it a bally or igt? to many unanswered ?????????/'s.... they dont have a prayer to get the money even with a lawyer.....

[brichter]

I'll bet they knew they hit the $1600 progressive.

Then it reset to $11M and the $$$$ started flashing in their eyes and they got greedy. 

Hey, $11M is $11M. I might even be tempted for a second to raise a stink. that's a lotta fracking money... but my conscience would get the better of me.

I could never get away with it though, I'm too damn honest.

[TZtech]

If you follow gamingfloor.com malfunctions seem to be happening fairly regularly these days - I agree with SB that its bad for the industry. However in this case it does look like its a case of people getting greedy and trying to take advantage of an error. The Casino should pay them the progressive amount. The issue here is that some techie on a crappy wage who did not recieve proper training is now probably out of a job while the Casino that did not have the proper controls and procedures in place or the manufacturers who sell mediocre and poorly tested technology at vastly inflated prices continue to rake in the money
Never count your chickens before they hatch - So true. We recently had a case here in South Africa where the local newspaper printed the National Lottery winning numbers incorrectly. So this guy thinks he's a winner and phones up his boss and quits his job - When he took the ticket in he was told its not a winning number. Fortunately his boss was understanding and gave him his job back.

[brichter]

Never count your chickens before they hatch - So true. We recently had a case here in South Africa where the local newspaper printed the National Lottery winning numbers incorrectly. So this guy thinks he's a winner and phones up his boss and quits his job - When he took the ticket in he was told its not a winning number. Fortunately his boss was understanding and gave him his job back.

Here in the US, they would have offered to hire him back at 60% of his previous salary (unless he was a God at what he did, in which case they would have offered him 10% more).

[IFFV68]

It's happened twice in Colorado.

Central City & Cripple Creek.
Third times a charm, & heads will roll.

[theDotster]

This machine would have been showing the $1600 total all the time they were playing the machine, they defo know they won $1600.

When you win the jackpot, doesn't it cycle between the two amounts; showing first the won amount and then the reset value?

In either case, if it had shown what we think the correct reset value was of $1100 they would be jumping up and down about how they remember it showing $1600 before they hit!

[knagl]

This machine would have been showing the $1600 total all the time they were playing the machine, they defo know they won $1600.

When you win the jackpot, doesn't it cycle between the two amounts; showing first the won amount and then the reset value?

Yes, it would have shown, "Jackpot!" "$1627.82" "Current:" "$11,000,600.00".  It was real convenient in the news story that while they had video on their cell phone of what the meter was showing, they paused it only on the $11 Million frame.  I hope they don't get a red cent above the true jackpot amount, and I hope they're banned from the casino for causing a lot of legal trouble over something they knew they weren't entitled to.

[rotornaut]

http://www.colorado.gov/cs/Satellite?blobcol=urldata&blobheader=application/pdf&blobkey=id&blobtable=MungoBlobs&blobwhere=1251630935941&ssbinary=true

Up the street from me. LOL the prize was actually less than 25 bux. Kinda a long read. Funny.



NEWS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Don Burmania
May 19, 2010 Phone: (303) 205-1334
LAKEWOOD—The Colorado Division of Gaming has determined that a Thornton woman would have
been awarded $20.18 had the penny slot machine she was playing at a Central City casino on March 26
not displayed an erroneous $42.9 million jackpot award.
The Division made the determination based upon a forensic investigation performed by independent testing
laboratory, Gaming Laboratories International (GLI), based in Lakewood, New Jersey. The investigation
confirmed that Louise Chavez of Thornton placed a 40-cent wager shortly before 11:00 p.m. on March 26
on a “Price is Right� themed penny slot machine at Fortune Valley Hotel & Casino in Central City. As a result
of the wager, the slot machine should have awarded 80 credits (80 cents) for four “Fabulous Trip� symbols
displayed on the game’s five reels, 700 credits ($7.00) for a “Grand Game� bonus round triggered by the
base game award, 426 credits ($4.26) for a “Showcase Showdown� community bonus game, and 812
credits ($8.12) for a second “Showcase Showdown� community bonus game.
A review of the game history screens on the slot machine on the night of the incident revealed all of the awards,
except for the $7.00 Grand Game award. As a result, the casino offered Ms. Chavez an award of $23.43
that night ($13.18 for the other three awards and $10.25 for the credits remaining on the credit meter after
making the 40-cent wager). The Division has instructed the slot machine manufacturer and operator of the
wide-area progressive system on which the slot machine resided, WMS Gaming Inc., headquartered in
Waukegan, Ill., to pay the additional $7.00.
– more –
Colorado Department of Revenue • Division of Gaming
1881 Pierce St., Ste. 112, Lakewood, CO 80214-1496 • (303) 205-1355 • fax (303) 205-1342
GAMING 2-2-2-2
The forensic investigation isolated the error as being the result of the two Showcase Showdown awards
occurring quickly after each other while the Grand Game bonus feature was already in play, thus creating
an error in mathematical calculations built into the game software.
The top award on the slot machine at the time was $251,183.16. However, a maximum wager of 400 credits
($4.00) was required to be made to be eligible for the award. Ms. Chavez’s 40-cent minimum wager would
have made her eligible for 20,000 credits ($200) had the game’s five reels revealed the five “Progressive�
symbols needed to win the top award.
Ms. Chavez was informed of the Division’s determination in a letter sent to her by Division Director Ron
Kammerzell last week.
– 30 –

[StatFreak]

Now that's funny... I wonder how much the investigation cost?  Ah, who cares! What's a few thousand dollars here or there -- what's important is that the lady got her seven bucks.

The forensic investigation isolated the error as being the result of the two Showcase Showdown awards
occurring quickly after each other while the Grand Game bonus feature was already in play, thus creating
an error in mathematical calculations built into the game software.

I think that Wms should at least pay for the cost of the investigation, and should also be required to pay punitive damages for their error -- perhaps to the customer. The only way to get the manufacturers to be more careful is if there are serious consequences for these programmer errors.

[uniman]

WMS???   
Is not The Price is Right an IGT machine?

[rotornaut]

Nope wms bb2.

[jay]

This is the first time I have actually heard of a real malfunction.

Most of the stories relate to someone having programmed the progressive wrong. To me this kind of thing is human error and the casino should be liable just like if a grocery store posts the wrong price.

In my limited experience with progresives and jackpots I have not found an easy way to trigger a jackpot to make sure the electrical signaling is working correctly.
Sure I can short out a couple of wires to trigger the progressive but its not the same as generating a top award to make sure the signiling from the machine is working correctly.

[uniman]

Nope wms bb2.

You are correct. First time I've seen a TV game show licensed to two different slot manufactures!
Both IGT and WMS have The Price is Right. The WMS is a Community Bonus style game.

[StatFreak]

This is the first time I have actually heard of a real malfunction.

Most of the stories relate to someone having programmed the progressive wrong. To me this kind of thing is human error and the casino should be liable just like if a grocery store posts the wrong price.
...

I agree, but the error was WMS, not the casinos. No casino would ever trust a manufacturer again if they had to be held liable for major programming design flaws that got past the testing process and the approval process. I don't think that a reasonable person or court would hold WMS to $43 million, but I believe that they should have to pay damages, if only as a warning to be more careful in the future.

[jay]

I would not think that this is a casino error either. As noted this is the first real malfunction I have read about.
The manufacturer should pay the person for having found the flaw that their other paid testers never did.
The manufacturer should also pay a nominal sum to offset the stress of the win and then obvious disappointment.
If I had thought I had won 42mil - I would be buying drinks, and chasing tail like there is no tomorrow....imagine the hangover when you realized that the win was $42.00
This is not a casino liability. its all on the manufacturer

With respect to the other I was talking about the $8.00/hr casino tech (dolt) that programs up a 100,000 penny jackpot ($1000) as $100,000.00 with no oversite by anyone in the casino.
Calling this a malfunction is the travesty and the casino should be liable for the human error.

[StatFreak]

...

With respect to the other I was talking about the $8.00/hr casino tech (dolt) that programs up a 100,000 penny jackpot ($1000) as $100,000.00 with no oversite by anyone in the casino.
Calling this a malfunction is the travesty and the casino should be liable for the human error.

Agreed. Again, the only way to stop these sloppy mistakes is to hit them where it hurts: their wallets.