When video gaming started in the 1970s and well into the 1980s, playing games was considered a simple thing. It was largely considered as a mere pastime, an activity of interest, and mostly the domain of kids. Games were played at arcades where kids and teens would hang-out after school, or during weekends, inserting coin after coin for a few minutes of immersive bliss and exhilaration. From this beginning of the video game industry, the similarity to the casino game culture was already quite evident.

The casino is a place for adults to go to and entertain themselves with games of chance and much more. It was for all intents and purposes, a “betting” place, similar to those folks who addictively visit the race tracks and probably bet on the “Horse with No Name”. The difference with the arcades was that the kids never got their coins back. A “Video Game Console” was not a “Slot Machine”.

Many in the game industry started to see the similarities between Casino and Video Games and the culture that permeated from each. They were distinct and hugely of different worlds, yet certain core psychologies, when it came to playing games, were very similar or the same. We all know that the Video Game Industry is an industry, and just like in the Casino scene, Video Games and Video Game Machines have to sell and profit from its target and intended audience.

So, over the years, as video Games evolved from arcade consoles, to home consoles, to the microcomputer market, and finally to mobile devices, game developers and publishers took in every trick in the book which included studying how Casino Games worked and applied it to Video Games while keeping the industry as distinct as possible from that of the Casino gaming world.

To this, let’s take a quick look at how Casino gaming influenced many of the Video Games we have today.

The Psychology of Addictive Gaming

Whenever you play a game, any game, there is always a chance you will win or lose. The root word is “Chance” and it is this same principle that drives Casino players to keep playing and coming back for more. The psychologies behind the Game of Chance is myriad and have been tried and tested since people started betting on games. Likewise, these very same psychological principles can be adapted and applied to Video Games without the betting included, and in-game rewards like added gears, items, upgrades, loot boxes, or simply winning and completing the game, serve as the main incentive to keep playing more.

Stimulation Loops

Casino Games are mostly known for their visual, audio, and psychological stimulation. The flashy lights, the dings and caching, the lively interlude tunes of the Slots, and the exhilaration of the Roulette ball landing on the number you bet on, or laying your “Ace of a Hand” down, and claiming the pot, all contributes to overall player stimulation and eventual addiction.

Applied to computer games, with all the in-game rewards, loots, gachas, audio cues, and jubilant soundtracks, the player is stimulated to really enjoy the game and play, and play, and play. Applying the “Casino Principle” a bit more, and you’ll have the player visiting the in-game store a lot more frequently.

Play Well, Win Well!

Speaking of rewards, the rewards system of many Video Games (for all intents and purposes), provide the feel of playing and winning big stakes at the Casino in many but subtle ways. The loot boxes, gacha rewards, bonus items, rounds, upgrades, level-ups, and many more provide not only the incentive to win but the psychological feel of accomplishment that serve as a satisfying Dopamine rush for the gamer. If you play well, you win well!

The Competitive Streak

Humanity in general is a social race. Humanity also in general is a competitive race. Both Casino games and Video Games provide that need by bringing people together in one place or together online to socialize, play together, and compete with each other. “The thrill of victory and the agony of defeat” has never been more real in both the Casino and Video Game world short of the Worldwide Olympics.

An Alternative to Betting

Let’s just state it honestly, with the exception of online Casino Games that give the player the option to play them as a game, or play them as a bet (for lack of a better term), the Casino in general, is a place of legalized high-stakes gambling. This can never be brought to the video gaming world as it is not only illegal, but immoral as the game playing crowd are mostly made up of minors. Regardless, game companies can legally adapt Casino monetization principles while staying clear of the gambling process.

This can be seen on how in-game purchases and micro-transactions work where gamers indulge in small but repeated spending which are low-risk and non-betting activities, yet, they build up to a huge total over time. Nope, no gambling here, but they sure are putting a lot of coins, a lot of coins, into those slots!

By the looks of it, this trend will continue into the future because the gaming industry has found the goose that lays the golden eggs in keeping gamers playing happily the way Casino players do.

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