Untitled topic • Hacker News Board

Re: undefined

#171

Post by viraptor » Thu, Nov 17, 2016, 2:18 AM UTC

ddorian43 wrote: post #147

viraptor wrote: post #138

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think these are two different things that should be separated. Ranked games with matchmaking and hats/achievements. One can exist without the other and they pull in people for different reasons. For example most of newgrounds has achievements / hats / whatever, but no multiplayer at all. On the other hand hearthstone has ranked games but very little to do with hats (there are paid and collecting elements, but they…

Really dota 2 has stuff that you buy with $ that affect the gameplay ?

Badly worded, can't edit now. I meant both the ranked play and the useless tokens/hats.

Re: undefined

#172

Post by oska » Thu, Nov 17, 2016, 2:47 AM UTC

Tistel wrote: post #149

My first job out of Uni was making "games" for slot machines. My soul is forever damaged (not joking). I have horror stories over how much thought goes into the "design." In a given jurisdiction (State/Province/County) there will be rules about the payout percentage. Anywhere from 90 to 98%. So lets assume 95% percent payout. In the long run, you give me a dollar, I give you back $0.95. Most of the time its zero, som…

> They should be banned.

I would instead suggest mandating a payout percentage of 100%, i.e. the machines make no profit for the owner. Venues might still buy them as ‘entertainment’ but not as profit centres. Instead they would be a customer attraction cost (purchase price plus electricity) for venues like bars and clubs, just like hiring live entertainment.

Gamblers will still gamble on them, thinking they'll be the lucky ones to get the jackpot (and beat the odds) but there would be far less of them around because they wouldn't be profitable to own in themselves. And there would be no motive to make them addictive (because again, no profit motive).

Re: undefined

#173

Post by mikeash » Thu, Nov 17, 2016, 2:49 AM UTC

fastbetshenry wrote: post #160

Here is my proposal to eliminate problem gambling forever: scrap all laws restricting gambling. I know this might sound surprising (ok possibly crazy) but hear me on... Today it is extremely expensive to open a casino. I'm not sure what the laws for offline casino are, but license costs for a new online casino are 100s of 1000s to millions USD per year. Subsequently there are very few companies that compete in this s…

Are gambling addicts limited by time or by money? If they're limited by money then reducing the house edge just means they'll play more before going bust.

Re: undefined

#174

Post by Friction87 » Thu, Nov 17, 2016, 2:56 AM UTC

taurath wrote: post #132

OscarCunningham wrote: post #128

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Video games have a sane money/fun ratio. If you're addicted then you might screw up your life but you won't steal from anybody to keep up your habit.

I guess what I'm asking is, where is the bar for a healthy pastime vs an addiction? Is it willingness to steal from others to keep up habits? Or is it things that are addictive enough to make one forget the rest of their lives?

I'm a person currently struggling to find that line as well, and what I'm currently using as a barometer is: does it affect your livelihood?

I would say that my love of alcohol and wine in particular would qualify as an addiction; but at the same time I'm able to hold down a job. My bosses are happy with my work and I do feel fulfilled with what I've accomplished at the end of the workday.

I'm sure psychologists would have a field day with me but as far as your original question I've offered my input.

Re: undefined

#175

Post by toast0 » Thu, Nov 17, 2016, 3:37 AM UTC

ikeboy wrote: post #25

bduerst wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Well, the SEC [kind of] already does this with accredited investors :)

Can you be accredited based on embezzled or borrowed money? Will it bring attention that will uncover it?

It's self accreditation, the party taking the investment gives the investor a questionnaire, and then says ok looks good to me.

Re: undefined

#176

Post by gozur88 » Thu, Nov 17, 2016, 3:59 AM UTC

jon-wood wrote: post #106

Bartweiss wrote: post #88

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Absolutely the case, though casinos don't have quite the same incentives. Freemium devs can't fly in wealthy players and customize their games, for instance. But this absolutely explains a lot of these things. For a while, I wondered why freemium games don't offer an "unlock all" option for $2, or $10, or $100? Turns out, it's because even $100 would be a massive loss compared to what the 'top' players sink into Cand…

> Freemium devs can't fly in wealthy players and customize their games, for instance. I wish I could remember the source but I'm sure I've heard of freemium developers researching their biggest whales and then tailoring high end items to match the colours of their favourite football team.

They absolutely do stuff like that. There's a freemium game developer that lives in my neighborhood. Something crazy like 50% of their income came from just a handful of people (literally - something like five people). Naturally, the devs made the effort to reach out and figure out why those people were buying things and what the company could do to keep them buying, asking what features they'd like to see and what models they liked.

Re: undefined

#177

Post by gozur88 » Thu, Nov 17, 2016, 4:01 AM UTC

saretired wrote: post #161

The one time I was in a casino I accompanied a coworker who gambled to one of the low dollar casinos in Colorado. What I noticed were poor people who came with $100 and wanted--or needed--to leave with $200, and of course the business model says that very few of them did. I bought a $10 bucket of quarters out of boredom and after 10 or so minutes I had $11.25, which is an incredible annualized return but not what gam…

The difference is when you have no savings and minimum wage is $10/hr (or whatever), you can recoup a $100 loss in a couple days. I used to play poker with a woman whose husband lost decades worth of savings.

Re: undefined

#178

Post by gozur88 » Thu, Nov 17, 2016, 4:02 AM UTC

OscarCunningham wrote: post #128

taurath wrote: post #110

Does anyone else think certain video games are the equivalent of slot machine? I'm not just talking about simple phone games, but more complex, team based pick up games as well - if you rely on a matchmaker that knows to an approximation the skill of each player, is it not randomizing ones chance to win? I live with gaming addicts and used to be one - they spend every waking hour on their pcs while not at work. It's…

Video games have a sane money/fun ratio. If you're addicted then you might screw up your life but you won't steal from anybody to keep up your habit.

Sure, but the real currency of life is time.

Re: undefined

#179

Post by deleted_soon » Thu, Nov 17, 2016, 4:09 AM UTC

eppeltert wrote: post #98

kirykl wrote: post #77

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This does make me wonder why there's not an AM and PM toothpaste sub category. AM toothpaste with caffeine and PM with some type of mild sedative. They could double sales

I always figured toothpaste for sensitive teeth contains local sedative.

Any toothpaste with menthol (pretty much all of them) contain a local sedative, it's just not addictive

Re: undefined

#180

Post by beggi » Thu, Nov 17, 2016, 4:13 AM UTC

downandout wrote: post #150

billmalarky wrote: post #50

"Richardson’s employer, Colombo Candy & Tobacco Wholesale. Richardson, the company’s controller, embezzled $4.1 million over the course of two years to support her gambling addiction. (In 2014, Richardson, then 54, was sentenced to 14 to 20 years in prison for the crime.) The thefts ultimately put the company out of business." So a company based on exploiting human addiction caused another company based on exploiting…

The casino industry is full of contradictions. Steve Wynn's father was a degenerate gambler who died with serious gambling debts. Sheldon Adelson, who has made billions from gambling addiction, has spent millions fighting online gambling. Why? Here's a direct quote [1]: "[My father] was poor, but he loved to gamble. I saw the cost of a family immersion into losing money on gaming. When I look at people like that, I s…

Same thing from most in-app purchase based games.