Questions for Casino Owners

Hi

I am interested in starting my own casino - nothing too big of course, and would love to hear about the experiences of those who run their own.

I have some ideas about how I could make mine a pleasant place to play, and would specifically have freeplayers/low amount zyngo machines in mind. I'd like to be making enough of a profit that it covers my tier and membership, but beyond that I'm not looking to earn money from it - just create a fun place (i.e good odds, small payouts) for non-high-rollers like myself.

Is this a realistic goal? I wouldn't expect anyone to tell me what they make from their place, but if any owners out there could give me an indication of whether this is possible that would be great (as you know start-up costs are pretty significant).

Do you have any suggestions, or things to bear in mind?

Also, I have been to Aargle Zymurgy's place and checked out the notecards for Zyngo machines, but I was wondering if someone could explain to me what happens when someone wins the pot on one of your machines. For instance, if I have a freeplay machine set up with a prize of $20, when someone gets the score to win that prize, does this money come directly out of my account? To set up such a machine, I imagine I would have to pay $20 into it - is that right? I'm trying to figure out how much money I will need to always have aside so I can pay winners.

My apologies if any of these questions are obvious, I'm still quite new to SL and the forums. Thanks for your help

Casinos are against the SL ToS. Please check out:

http://blog.secondlife.com/2007/07/25/wagering-in-second-life-new-policy/

Sorry to blow a hole in your ambition.

I didn't realise they were illegal, but now I'm confused - how can all the Zyngo places be in operation? Zyngo and similar machines were what I had in mind - are they illegal or have I created some confusion by using the word 'casino' in the wrong context?

If it's determined that a degree of skill is involved, it's not considered gambling. I'd definitely stay away from the term 'casino' though.

Ahh, it seems I have already made an embarrassing blunder then. I don't mean to set up an illegal casino - I mean a place with legal Zyngo/similar machines, my apologies

No you didn't create any confusion. Recently there are a few individuals offering Zyngo & similiar games in the mistaken belief that there is a loophole in the TOS ban against gambling. LL is busy and they might even be able to get away with this for a couple more months OR they might be shutdown tomorrow. Before you out lay any real world capital into a buisiness venture involving Zyngo or anything else, I would suggest going to a Governance Team meeting (Search in the wiki). They hold open office once or twice per week and you can get a clear ruling from them before taking a chance and loosing money.

From the Knowledge Base:

My suggestion is to design *ANY* gaming establishment to recoup initial investment quickly

That goes for the legal ones!

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Basically you have to operate under the very real possibility that Zara Linden and the Governance team will be instructed to enforce the Gambling Ban much more strictly at *any* time.

Which coupled with an AR of your establishment would run you instantly out of business.

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So don't spend more than your willing to lose, and don't count on being around forever.

keep your business plan lean and as profitable as possible.

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Anyway thats just me thinking out-loud when considering all the things that could go wrong.


Good Luck.

Jesse Barnett, I think your suggestion is a good one - I have read that Zyngo was considered ok by Linden Labs, but given what you have said, I would definitely prefer to hear that directly from them. Thank you for your advice - I love SL so far and want to abide by the rules.

Please keep in mind anything the Governance team says is written in sand at low tide.

Recently ..

They approved the Z$ scam only to reverse themselves a few weeks later.


I think it was because they originally didn't understand all the steps involved in the process ...



But regardless .. it means they could give you a yes nod or more likely a slightly positive neutral nod.

And you might commit significant resources only to get caught in a shift.

You are welcome but also keep in mind what Colette said. I would bear that in mind if the GT answer was kind of iffy. And also remember that LL can change thier mind anytime they want to and have done so in the past.

You came with an honest question and we aren't looking to discourage people from money making ideas. Just don't want you to get hurt especially in the present RL money enviroment right now.

I really appreciate the willingness of everyone who has responded here to let me know what I could possibly be getting myself into, and will definitely consider these suggestions a lot before/if I proceed - thank you!

To get the other perspective maybe try talking to Argyle however its spelled. The Zyngo guy. He is approachable enough,

Though he'd probably laugh that I complimented him as such.

Do you have any idea how many casinos there are in SL? I'm visiting random places on the map, and here's what I'm finding:

http://greendots.typepad.com/

Casinos everyfrickenwhere. All pretty much empty.

Might be less empty if all the good games weren't illegal.

I think it's a very high-risk proposition. If you sink money into it, and LL suddenly decide to crack down, then you will lose it all with no refunds and no recourse.

I suggest you sink your life savings into the plan. Then in 3-6 months when the Lindens ban those games, come post here about how unfair it is. About how you were promised a loophole by Headuphisass Linden. And a few threats to sue LL will round out the thread.

We haven't had one of those threads in a few weeks. They are always such fun.

A little less colorful than the last reply- i wd suggest anything other than gambling. Heck, how about a movie theater?

SL is about socializing and and creating- try either

"All your online casinos are belong to us........"

http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2008/09/23/ap5458185.html

FRANKFORT, Ky. -

Kentucky's pro-gambling governor is looking to make sure all bets are off for more than 140 online gambling Web sites that operate in the state known for the world's biggest horse race.

Gov. Steve Beshear said his administration has asked a Franklin County Circuit Court judge to give the state control of 141 gambling Web site domain names. Beshear said he's looking to restrict Kentuckians' access to Web sites with names that include some of the most popular gambling sites for U.S. players: bodoglife.com, doylesroom.com and fulltiltpoker.com.

yup and if sl ever got on a list like that all gambling would be off period heck if a state said they wear looking into sl to maybe deside if it should go on the list, boom bye bye zyngo

Games of "pure skill" are fun...and novel ones are even better.

Here's two, just at random...

En Garde, a fencing game.
Sky Joust, a jousting contest on goofy looking birds.

Come up with something like these...an SL sport...and then charge people either for the equipment, or to use the facility, or both.

Much more creative than trying to tiptoe around the gambling ban. And if it's new and fun, you won't have the problem of having just "one more empty casino" on the map.

heck i would think tilting tuorneys in general would be a good draw ,hummmm wonder if there is room for a list in brouwer and how much space is needed

Skill involved, think again. There has to be some sort of randomness involved otherwise every game would have a possible winning solution. And that hardly is the case.

I enjoy playing En Garde..however i wouldn't classify it as a "pure skill" game.
True..how you play the numbers given affects the outcome..you are still working with random generated numbers. Example..you get a bad series of numbers... you lose
even if skilled.