So, I just tried "Zyngo"

I played Zyngo for the very first time today, for about an hour and a half, and won 0 games. I won none!!!

Someone told me that I need practice so I can win. I THINK I understand the game... all I do is click some matching numbers and play the jokers, right? The devil is random, so I can't trigger that. I should go for the corners, center, and the pattern that's given to me.

But, basically, it's just matching numbers.

The person who introduced me to the game lost like 10 games before I started playing, and he paid for his games, while I played the free machines. How are we so bad at it? Is there really a bias against newbs to the game?

Is Zyngo 100% gambling or is there ANY strategy to it? I mean, I'm given random numbers, and I can use auto so I don't miss any numbers. Easy enough. I don't see the challenge... until the devil comes in and takes my score away. Am I doing something wrong? Do I have some kind of misunderstanding to the game?

Thanks for the help.

If it was a game of skill instead of chance then eventually there would be some really skillful players who would have bankrupted the Zyngo owners. But of course that has not happened.

Yes because practicing bingo and slot machine use has been proven to increase your chance of winning.

No practicing doesn't help anything but the Zyngo slot machine owner's wallet. You have no misunderstanding. Seems like you understand it perfectly.

Thanks guys, I guess I'll go back to my dance pads and camp.

The skill part is in the use of the jokers, so I understand it. The yellow joker, especially.

There is an element of skill in how you use the jokers, and I suppose in making sure you match the numbers, but it's very small, certainly nothing like as much as in poker or most other card games.

I like zyngo, find it relaxing because it's so simple. It is possible to win, but it depends very much on the way the game is set. There was one place where I came out fairly consistently about 5-10% ahead, but the winning scores were set a little lower than usual and I am sure it was a honest game - I've been in places where I'm sure the game is crooked from the patterns of how the devil appears.

But I cannot see any rational way in which zyngo is legal and poker isn't, except that everyone knows poker is gambling, people outside SL have never heard of zyngo so it slips under the authorities' radar.

The "skill" in zyngo isn't playing the game. The Devil is far too random to kid yourself there's any real skill needed. It's playing the percentages. The machines aren't smart. But with a little observation and thought, you can be.

some machines don't touch with a 50 foot pole. In particular, version 2.0. Run screaming unless the odds are 100s-to-one. I'm not exaggerating. It annoys me to see this game posting the same high scores to win as other versions. There's a reason why they are so much more expensive to buy on the used market, and that's it.

version 3.01 also seems to average low, but not as bad as 2.0. I avoid them.

version 3.02/3.03 are probably the "friendliest", particularly with the auto-number pick on, and the average score is a little higher.

I too have seen groups of machines that play way below the averages for their marked versions. These machines do one of 2 things a dozen times over - conveniently stop about 1000 short of the pay mark (regardless of how low the score might be), and/or last round devil. Vote with your feet and don't return. Ever.

You can get an idea of the real scores by checking the contest boards. It will show the top 5 scores, and the number of games played, and you can also get a look at which versions of machines they are. Same with any surrounding machines showing last high score, last score posted, etc. Or just watch the players for a while and get a feel.

I've put money in real poker machines too and never won any back, and they are regulated by local authorities on what percentage they have to pay out. SL machines are programmed by owners as to payout conditions with no watchdog, they could set them to never payout if they wanted to and who would know?

Ok... lets get something straight here.

None of the most popular "skill" based games such as Zyngo or Deal (made by extremely reputable creators) in SL, are able to be "altered" in ANY fashion by the owners of said machines.

The ONLY things the owners can "configure" in these machines, are the pay in amounts, the payout amount, the percentages to the pot (if any) and the scores to beat (win the game).

Heck... you have to have SKILL to be an owner and set them up to be good for both house and player! If your players don't win, they don't come back. No players = failed business.

Owners CANNOT increase the amount of devils, or alter the outcome of the game. Period! If you are in doubt about this, go purchase your own game from these creators, rez it and read the owners manual and configure them yourselves. Play them to your hearts content, reconfigure and try again. THEN come back here and tell everyone that owners can turn these games in their favor.

One of the posters above mentioned the 2.00 games. That poster is correct. Anyone who has one of these machines out is a true and true thief out to rip off their customers. Shortly after the 2.00 version was released and the complaints came piling in from the players... the creator quickly went to work and fixed the problem. HONEST owners immediately updated their machines and once again, the players were winning and happy.

So until people have the facts straight and see for themselves what the owners can and cannot do, please do not make assumptions based on your opinions. Get the facts first.

You're right the owner can't change that, but what about the person in charge of the back-end server?

Anyone that thinks any game on the internet is based on "skill", well I have this really nice bridge in Brooklyn.....

or If you invest $100,000 usd with me I can guarantee you 15% returns!

Added: Before I get flamed, I just said there is a possibility of influencing the back-end server. Not everyone in the world is honest, imagine that!

there are alot of slot machines out there(legal and illegal), slot machines you put money and the wheels just spin you do nothing more, are illegal!. but they are still out there,now the slot machines that have nugde buttons are legal. video poker is out there too ,but the have nudge buttons and they are legal and they have 21 some game are legal and some are not,the legal ones have scores to them you just keep making a score and when you get to the high score you win. they are rainbow slot which have nudge buttons they are ok.gaming is max out in second life see alot of places closing down to much gaming.zyngo are legal and deal is on the edge of being illegal but the 2 are ok to playand no cheats to them....not yet.and the owner can not alter the games in any way(just the amount of payout and the score) he cant change how many devils come up the scripts are lock and the owner of game can not change them.

Please explain to me how on earth the person "in charge of the back-end server", could and would change the outcome... when they would NOT be able to benefit from said changes? That person does not receive the Lindens being paid into the machine, nor are they paying out the wins. So what would be the point of doing this?

Ever heard of kickbacks?

added: Or vendors that pay a split commission?

I play the free games exclusively. So far I have won over L1500 ... more than I would have in camping.

There is skill in zyngo, but there is also understanding of how the machines are set up, who's machines are set up better than others, and some skill tips too.

Yes, patterns come first. Always fill the pattern first, always. Then corners and center. Make sure you don't use the green joker on a number than also has that number appearing in that column, or where you could use a blue joker to do it. Pay attention to numbers you can clear that will release multiple rows and columns.

There is a huge luck factor, but instead of spening money, have patience and play free or dollarbie games. You will eventually gain more than you will at most camping spots. There are also a very few places that let you camp AND play free/dollarbie zyngo - and no, I'm not telling, as they are crowded already. :/

If you are playing free play Zyngo, just keep trying

There was one Zyngo hall, I forget which, where people who belonged to the group got random payouts just for being there from $1L to $20L. When I was first starting, I learned quickly that camping was not for me, but I would head over to Zyngo and play on the free machines. Eventually I got so I won from time to time, plus the random payouts earned me more than regular camping.

I haven't played in some time, maybe I'll send most of my L's to my alt and go try a few games

If you think the reputable game creators in SL participate in kickbacks, think again.

As for games that have split commissions with creator and owner... those game creators make it VERY clear that this will happen via signs and notecards, when people go to purchase these games. Information that players can plainly see as well.

Most of these reputable games have been around for nearly 2 years. Linden Labs is FULLY aware of how they work, how they are scripted and how they play. If they did not work in an appropriate manner, LL would be making themselves liable for providing a fraudulent platform. Not to mention, partaking in it.

Once again, please do not assume things. If you have facts to back up your allegations, by all means, post them.

Generally speaking there is no need to rig gambling machines. Gambling games already favor the house within the framework of their rules and math. That is why real life casinos always net win in a very large way even though they are regulated and monitored. It always amuses me when people accuse gambling games of being rigged just because their losses exceed their wins. It shows a fundamental lack of understanding how gambling games and percentages naturally work in favor of the house.

I'm not assuming people of rigged games because I'm losing, I'm being suspicious when the success rate, over a period and a large number of games, varies widely between different venues. When I find that one venue consistently pays me more than I lose, leaving me say 10% ahead, but at another venue I am consistently losing 10%, and those trends hold true over a long period, it seems unlikely that both games are operating in the same way.

Those trends would have to hold true for a VERY long period of time. If the odds of guesing a number between 0-9 is one in ten, on the average you will hit the number once every ten tries. Even if you miss nine times in a row, the odds are still 10-1 against you when you try the tenth time. You could on the other hand hit the number four times in ten, but in the long term (hundreds of thousands of tries), you're going to win once in ten tries. There will be streaks both hot and cold, but it will average out.

It's no doubt the same with the random number games in SL.

They are GAMBLING games. Even if they manage to fool linden labs and go under the radar they still work like gambling games and should be considered as such, a waste of time and money.

I understand how probability works. What I am saying is that when a trend holds true over several hundred games that is a very long streak. I've had times when I've lost 20 or 30 times in a row in places that I usually win in. That's fine, that's how probability works. But when two places give me consistent results over a fairly long period, in other words in one of them, on most days, I will win 3 times out 10, and in the other on most days I will win 1 in 10, I am inclined to be suspicious about how honest the game is. It's not the results in one place that make me suspicious, it's the contrast between places, the way in some places I never have a winning streak, the way in some places the devil will appear on almost every final round if you are ahead of the winning score, the way the % taken by devils appears to average higher in some places than others. The places I'm suspicious about have several sets of random numbers coming out consistently against me. It's certainly possible that it's simple bad luck, but it's the different results over a period between "good" and "bad" games that makes me wonder.

I'd like to expand on this a bit. Not only is each wager on a game of chance geared to give the house the edge, but even when you win, you lose. As an example, a roulette wheel; the odds of hitting a number is 1 in 38 (1-36 0, and 00). If you lose, the house is entirely fair insofar as you lose your entire wager. And when you win, the house pays out 35-1 on a 38-1 shot. You just lost 3 dollars by winning. Those little taxes on winning wagers give the house an even bigger edge and increases their profit.

I haven't looked very closely at the "skill" games in SL, but i'm pretty sure the payout to a given winner is less than the odds of winning the game. They can call these games of skill as much as they'd like, but if the results are random there is no skill involved.

I'm not doubting the in-world scripts as you are limited in LSL with what you can do. All I'm saying is that anything that takes place off-world can be manipulated.

added: And just how would LL be liable for something they didn't create?

You said in your first post the score needed to win was lower at the place you're winning more often. You go on to say you're sure it's an honest game. Of course you're going to win more there simply because you need a lower score. But does it make the other game less honest? I would say examine the payout per linden at both places. The answer to whether it is a less honest game lies in the numbers.

And Poker is more of a skill game than any of the so called skill games in SL. You're right, it was banned simply because it is included in that internet gaming law.

The same way they were liable for all the "casino/gambling" games. If they weren't liable, those games would be all over the grid in a heartbeat.