The key difference between the two classes is that a class 2 slot machine is connected to a centralized computer system that determines the outcome of each wager. Class 3 slot machines are considered traditional slots, like those you’d see in Las Vegas. If you play slots in two or more different states, you may have played on two different kinds of slot machines. These are called Class II and Class III slots. Though you won't be able to tell the difference in these machines with a cursory glance, there are important distinctions between the two.

• There are several kinds of slots available nowadays, from the classic lever-and-spinning-reel variety to vivid display video slots. Regardless of their technological advancement since the 1930’s, slot machines are still categorized into two groups: class II or class III. Class II Slot Machines.
• That stipulation led to electronic versions of the game of bingo, which eventually took the form of Class II-style slot machines, known as Bingo Games. The Class II Bingo Games would essentially be a game of bingo, with prizes drawn from the overall money wagered. Those prizes, however, would be displayed as reel results on the slot machines.

Understanding the differences between these two types of games

By Henry Tamburin

I’ve received a lot of questions about video poker machines in casinos on Native American reservations. To get the answers on how these machines work, I interviewed Jim Coleman, Senior Product Manager at IGT (a company that manufactures the majority of video poker machines for Class III casinos).

Before I begin, let me give you a brief history lesson on how Class I, II, and III gaming came about. The federal Indian Gaming Regulatory Act established the three classes in 1988, which defined what Indian tribes in a given jurisdiction can and can’t offer in their casinos. “Class I gaming” is defined as “traditional Indian gaming and social gaming for minimal prizes.” Since Class I doesn’t involve commercial gambling, I’ll ignore it for this article. “Class II gaming” means the game of chance commonly known as bingo, whether or not electronic, computer, or other technologic aids are used in connection therewith, including, if played in the same location, pull-tabs, lotto, punch boards, tip jars and other games similar to bingo, as well as various non-house-banked card games (but for this article, we’ll ignore these other types).

“Class III gaming” is full-scale gambling (e.g., Las Vegas or Atlantic City), including table games (blackjack, craps, etc.), slots, and video poker. Tribes must negotiate compacts with the states to conduct Class III gaming; otherwise, they are limited to Class II gaming, providing bingo is offered in other forms or venues in that state.

The following table summarizes the major differences between a Class II and Class III video poker machine. I’ll explain the information in each row in more detail so you can fully understand the differences.

How the Outcome is Determined

A Class III video poker machine has a Random Number Generator (RNG) software program that randomly selects cards from a virtual 52-card deck (assuming no wild cards). When you press the deal button, the RNG selects five cards at random, which is the initial five cards that you see on your screen. The RNG continues to shuffle the remaining 47-card deck until you decide which cards you want to hold. When you hit the draw button, the shuffling stops and the replacement cards are selected from the top of the shuffled 47 cards. By law, each card has to have the same probability of being selected on the deal and draw; therefore, the probability of selecting any card is the same as it would be if you randomly drew cards from a freshly shuffled deck of cards. The probability of getting a winning hand by this random selection process is well known (e.g., the probability of getting a royal flush is roughly once in 40,000 hands).

A video poker hand in a Class II video poker machine is not the result of an RNG outcome at the terminal level. Instead, the machine is connected to a central computer server whose function is to draw bingo balls (randomly as with an RNG.) The result of the bingo game is a “game-ending pattern.” This is a pattern of numbers on a bingo card, such as five-in-row, four corners, round robin, etc., that ends the bingo game with a winning result and a prize. There is a specific timeframe (e.g., 20 milliseconds) in which a player who hits the start button on a bingo machine with a poker entertaining display (i.e., the deal button on his video poker machine) is entered into an electronic bingo game for that common ball draw. Each player has their own bingo card, which they can see on the interface of their player terminal (see photo of display below). The player that has the winning bingo pattern will win a monetary prize.

In addition, other patterns may award interim prizes for the corresponding bingo patterns. For example, the game of Jacks or Better has nine winning patterns (corresponding to the nine winning hands in Jacks or Better). If the winning bingo pattern results in a prize for the bingo game of, say 10 credits, then the player will end up with a poker hand that is presented as two pair on the entertaining display (which is the payout for two pair with max credits wagered).

A key point: Class II player terminals using a video poker entertaining display must involve player participation in an electronic bingo game. Therefore, you must be playing bingo against one (or more) players. You could be playing against other players playing on a video poker entertaining display or even other terminals with varying entertaining displays such as spinning reels (i.e., slot machine).

It really doesn’t matter what the player interface terminal is that will display the results of a bingo game (for video poker, it’s cards on a screen; for other entertaining displays, such as a slot machine, it’s spinning reels). If you happen to be the only player in a location, you can’t play (if you try, a message will appear on your screen, stating “waiting for more players”). However, in some gaming jurisdictions, Class II machines in one location could be linked to another Class II bingo server in another location, so it’s possible you could be playing a game of bingo against a player in a different location using a common ball draw.

Odds

In a Class II terminal using a video poker player interface, the odds of getting a winning hand are determined by the odds of the bingo pattern. Mathematicians at IGT can calculate the odds for millions of different bingo patterns on a bingo card. Therefore, theoretically, they can choose a bingo pattern that mimics the odds of getting any winning hand from a RNG in a Class III machine.

For a Class III video poker machine, the odds of selecting the winning hands from a 52-card deck can be accurately calculated. If you multiply the odds times the payout for each winning hand and sum the results, you can compute the Expected Return (ER) for the game. The ER for different video poker games and pay tables is readily available.

Playing Strategy

If you are playing a video poker machine where the cards are randomly selected by the RNG (e.g., Class III), the skill of the player can influence the outcome.

In a Class II terminal using a video poker interface, playing skill is futile because the result of your hand is already predetermined by the pattern of the winning bingo game. Therefore, deciding what cards to hold prior to hitting the draw button does nothing to improve your chances of winning. For the game of bingo, the result of the bingo game is a certain prize (i.e., payout), and you must get that prize in your video poker entertaining display outcome even if you make a “bonehead play.” For example, suppose you are dealt the following hand:

Let’s say the result of the bingo pattern is a prize of 4000 credits, which translates to a typical royal flush in video poker. However, on the draw, if you decide (knowingly or unknowingly) to hold all the cards instead of going for the royal flush, fear not. A genie will appear on the IGT entertaining display and change the 9 of spades to a 10 of clubs, giving you a royal flush hand and corresponding 4000-coin payout. (The latter payout was determined as the winning outcome of the bingo game.)

Some folks might think the “Genie” feature on Class II video poker machines is good for novice players because it will correct a playing mistake and show them the optimum strategy (i.e., the winning hand created by the “Genie”). Personally, I think this is an expensive way to learn the playing strategy for a video poker game. (It’s better to learn the playing strategy at home on your computer using video poker training software, and then bring a strategy card with you when you play a Class III version.)

Expected Return

Players can look at the Pay Table for any Class III video poker game and know what the ER is for the game (there is plenty of information available that lists the ER for different video poker games). However, on a Class II machine, you have no idea what the ER is for the game (that’s because the results are predetermined based on the game of bingo).

In addition, keep this point in mind. In many states, traditional casinos must report their return percentages to state gaming agencies and this information is often reported to the public. Since Native American tribes are a sovereign nation, their casinos are not subject to state regulation or public reporting of the return percentages on their machines.

Is it a Class II or III Machine?

You’ll know if the video poker machine you are about to play is a Class II machine if you see a display of a bingo card (such as the one below) on your video poker machine.

The Bottom Line

Class II video poker machines are bingo games that give players an entertaining display of video poker that they can relate to. There is no skill involved in playing them and the return on the game is unknown to players. Play these machines for entertainment. Class III video poker machines are a skill-based casino game where the skill of the player can influence the outcome. With a Class III video poker machine, it’s relatively easy to determine the ER of the game.

Acknowledgement: I want to thank Jim Coleman from IGT for the time he spent on several phone conferences with me, and the face-to-face discussion we had at the Global Gaming Expo in Las Vegas, explaining how Class II video poker machines work.

————————————————————————————————————-

Henry Tamburin is a blackjack and video poker expert. He is the host of the smartgaming.com website and the editor of the Blackjack Insider newsletter (for a free three-month subscription, visit www.bjinsider.com/free). For a free copy of his Casino Gambling Catalog, which contains books, strategy cards, and software for video poker players, call toll free 1-888-353-3234, or visit the web store at smartgaming.com.

Introduction to Oklahoma Slot Machine Casino Gambling in 2020

Oklahoma slot machine casino gambling consists of 131 American Indian tribal casinos, casino resorts, travel centers, and “gasinos” along with two pari-mutuel racetracks with slot machines.

No theoretical payout limits have been set for tribal casinos in Oklahoma. In addition, no return statistics are publicly available.

This post continues my weekly State-By-State Slot Machine Casino Gambling Series, an online resource dedicated to guiding slot machine casino gambler to success. Now in its third year, each weekly post reviews slots gambling in a single U.S. state, territory, or federal district.

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Relevant Legal Statutes on Gambling in Oklahoma*

The minimum legal gambling age in Oklahoma depends upon the gambling activity:

• Land-Based Casinos: 18
• Poker Rooms: 18
• Bingo: 16
• Lottery: 18
• Pari-Mutuel Wagering: 18

In November 2004, Oklahoma residents approved a State-Tribal Gaming Act through a referendum. This vote enacted a model tribal gaming compact allowing tribes to use new gaming machines and card games. Based on this generic model, 31 tribes negotiated state-tribal compacts with the state of Oklahoma.

*The purpose of this section is to inform the public of state gambling laws and how the laws might apply to various forms of gaming. It is not legal advice.

Slot Machine Private Ownership in Oklahoma

Class 2 And Class 3 Slot Machines Videos

It is legal to own a slot machine privately in the state of Oklahoma if it is 25 years old or older.

Gaming Control Board in Oklahoma

Oklahoma’s state-tribal compacts regulate tribal gaming in Oklahoma. However, the state of Oklahoma provides oversight under these compacts, which is the legal responsibility of Oklahoma’s Gaming Compliance Unit.

Based on the Oklahoma Gaming Compliance Unit Annual Report 2018, Oklahoma’s casinos prefer offering more Class II games due to Class III games requiring up to an extra 6% of revenue to the state.

The state also collects exclusivity fees from Class III machines. In 2015, 57% of all gaming machines in Oklahoma were Class III games.

Casinos in Oklahoma

As of mid-2019, 31 American Indian tribes operated 131 facilities offering Class III gaming through tribal-state gaming compacts with the state of Oklahoma. These locations include two racetracks offering pari-mutuel wagering and slot machines.

The largest casino in Oklahoma is also the largest casino in the world. This WinStar World Casino and Resort has 7,400 gaming machines.

The second-largest casino is Choctaw Casinos & Resorts – Durant with 4,300 gaming machines.

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Commercial Casinos in Oklahoma

Oklahoma has no non-tribal, commercial casinos.

Tribal Casinos in Oklahoma

The 106 largest tribal casinos in Oklahoma, including two pari-mutuel racetracks with slot machines, are:

1. 7 Clans Casinos – Chilocco Gasino in Newkirk, 106 miles north of Oklahoma City.
2. 7 Clans Casinos – First Council Casino Resort in Newkirk, near the border to Kansas.
3. 7 Clans Casinos – Paradise Casino in Red Rock, 82 miles north of Oklahoma City.
4. 7 Clans Casinos – Perry Casino, 65 miles north of Oklahoma City.
5. 7 Clans Casinos – Red Rock Gasino, 82 miles north of Oklahoma City.
6. Ada Gaming Center – East, 85 miles southeast of Oklahoma City.
7. Ada Gaming Center – West, 85 miles southeast of Oklahoma City.
8. Apache Casino Hotel in Lawton, 86 miles southwest of Oklahoma City.
9. Artesian Hotel Casino Spa in Sulphur, 84 miles south of Oklahoma City.
10. Black Gold Casino in Wilson, 112 miles south of Oklahoma City.
11. Border Casino in Thackerville, 124 miles south of Oklahoma City.
12. Buffalo Run Casino & Resort in Miami, 89 miles northeast of Tulsa.
13. Casino Oklahoma in Hinton, 55 miles west of Oklahoma City.
14. Cherokee Casino & Hotel – Ft. Gibson, 80 miles east of Tulsa.
15. Cherokee Casino & Hotel – Grove, 100 miles northeast of Tulsa.
16. Cherokee Casino & Hotel – Ramona, 30 miles north of Tulsa.
17. Cherokee Casino & Hotel – Roland, 175 miles east of Oklahoma City.
18. Cherokee Casino & Hotel – Sallisaw, 160 miles east of Oklahoma City.
19. Cherokee Casino & Hotel – South Coffeyville, 70 miles northeast of Tulsa.
20. Cherokee Casino & Hotel – Tahlequah, 83 miles southeast of Tulsa.
21. Cherokee Casino & Hotel – West Siloam Springs, 85 miles east of Tulsa.
22. Cherokee Casino & Hotel – Will Rogers Downs in Claremore, 30 miles northeast of Tulsa.
23. Chickasaw Travel Stop – Davis West, 75 miles south of Oklahoma City.
24. Chickasaw Travel Stop – Wilson, 112 miles south of Oklahoma City.
25. Chisholm Trail Casino in Duncan, 79 miles south of Oklahoma City.
26. Choctaw Casinos & Resorts – Broken Bow, 235 miles southeast of Oklahoma City.
27. Choctaw Casinos & Resorts – Durant, 150 miles southeast of Oklahoma City.
28. Choctaw Casinos & Resorts – Grant, 200 miles south of Oklahoma City.
29. Choctaw Casinos & Resorts – Idabel, 240 miles southeast of Oklahoma City.
30. Choctaw Casinos & Resorts – McAlester, 130 miles southeast of Oklahoma City.
31. Choctaw Casinos & Resorts – Pocola, 195 miles east of Oklahoma City.
32. Choctaw Casinos & Resorts – Stringtown, 163 miles southeast of Oklahoma City.
33. Cimarron Casino in Perkins, 60 miles north of Oklahoma City.
34. Comanche Nation Casino in Lawton, 86 miles southwest of Oklahoma City.
35. Comanche Red River Hotel Casino in Devol, 125 miles southwest of Oklahoma City.
36. Comanche Spur Casino in Eldon, 75 miles southwest of Oklahoma City.
37. Comanche Star Casino in Walters, 25 miles southeast of Lawton.
38. Creek Nation Casino Bristow, 60 miles northeast of Oklahoma City.
39. Creek Nation Casino Eufaula, 135 miles east of Oklahoma City.
40. Creek Nation Casino Holdenville, 75 miles northeast of Oklahoma City.
41. Creek Nation Casino Muscogee, 50 miles southeast of Tulsa.
42. Creek Nation Checotah Casino, 120 miles east of Oklahoma City.
43. Downstream Casino Resort in Quapaw, on the border of Oklahoma with Missouri and Kansas.
44. Duck Creek Casino in Beggs, 35 miles south of Tulsa.
45. Gold Mountain Casino in Ardmore, 100 miles south of Oklahoma City.
46. Gold River Casino in Anadarko, 60 miles southwest of Oklahoma City.
47. Golden Pony Casino in Okemah, 72 miles east of Oklahoma City.
48. Goldsby Gaming Center in Norman, 21 miles south of Oklahoma City.
49. Grand Casino Hotel Resort in Shawnee, 38 miles east of Oklahoma City.
50. Grand Lake Casino in Grove, 80 miles northeast of Tulsa.
51. Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Tulsa in Catoosa, on the outskirts of Tulsa.
52. High Winds Casino in Miami, 89 miles northeast of Tulsa.
53. Indigo Sky Casino & Resort in Wyandotte, 90 miles northeast of Oklahoma City.
54. Ioway Casino in Chandler, 40 miles northeast of Oklahoma City.
55. Kickapoo Casino Harrah, 31 miles east of Oklahoma City.
56. Kickapoo Casino Shawnee, 38 miles east of Oklahoma City.
57. Kiowa Casino Carnegie, 94 miles southwest of Oklahoma City.
58. Kiowa Casino Hotel Red River in Devol, 125 miles southwest of Oklahoma City.
59. Kiowa Casino Verden, 57 miles southwest of Oklahoma City.
60. Lucky Star Casino Canton, 60 miles northwest of Oklahoma City.
61. Lucky Star Casino Clinton, 85 miles west of Oklahoma City.
62. Lucky Star Casino Concho, 35 miles northwest of Oklahoma City.
63. Lucky Star Casino Concho Travel Center, 35 miles northwest of Oklahoma City.
64. Lucky Star Casino Hammon, 120 miles west of Oklahoma City.
65. Lucky Star Casino Watonga, 70 miles northwest of Oklahoma City.
66. Lucky Turtle Casino in Wyandotte, 90 miles northeast of Oklahoma City.
67. Madill Gaming Center in Madill, 122 miles south of Oklahoma City.
68. Native Lights Casino in Newkirk, 106 miles north of Oklahoma City.
69. Newcastle Casino in Newcastle, 19 miles south of Oklahoma City.
70. Okemah Casino, 72 miles east of Oklahoma City.
71. One Fire Casino in Okmulgee, 45 miles south of Tulsa.
72. Osage Casino Hotel Bartlesville, 50 miles north of Tulsa.
73. Osage Casino Hotel Hominy, 44 miles northwest of Tulsa.
74. Osage Casino Hotel Pawhuska, on the outskirts of Tulsa.
75. Osage Casino Hotel Ponca City, 50 miles northwest of Tulsa.
76. Osage Casino Hotel Sand Springs, on the outskirts of Tulsa.
77. Osage Casino Hotel Skiatook, 17 miles north of Tulsa.
78. Prairie Moon Casino in Miami, 89 miles northeast of Tulsa.
79. Prairie Sun Casino in Miami, 89 miles northeast of Tulsa.
80. Quapaw Casino in Miami, 89 miles northeast of Tulsa.
81. Remington Park Racing Casino in Oklahoma City.
82. River Bend Casino Hotel in Wyandotte, 90 miles northeast of Tulsa.
83. River Spirit Casino Resort in Tulsa.
84. Rivermist Casino in Konowa, 75 miles southeast of Oklahoma City.
85. Riverwind Casino in Norman, 12 miles south of Oklahoma City.
86. Sac and Fox Nation Casino in Stroud, 60 miles northeast of Oklahoma City.
87. Saltcreek Casino in Pocasset, 50 miles southwest of Oklahoma City.
88. Seminole Nation Casinos – Seminole Nation Casino in Konawa, 60 miles southeast of Oklahoma City.
89. Seminole Nation Casinos – Trading Post Casino in Wewoka, 60 miles east of Oklahoma City.
90. Southwind Casino Braman, 106 miles north of Oklahoma City.
91. Southwind Casino Kanza in Braman, 106 miles north of Oklahoma City.
92. Southwind Casino Newkirk, 106 miles north of Oklahoma City.
93. The Stables Casino in Miami, 89 miles northeast of Tulsa.
94. Stone Wolf Casino in Pawnee, 106 miles north of Oklahoma City.
95. Sugar Creek Casino in Hinton, 55 miles west of Oklahoma City.
96. Texoma Casino in Kingston, 130 miles south of Oklahoma City.
97. The Black Hawk Casino in Shawnee, 40 miles east of Oklahoma City.
98. Thunderbird Casino Norman, 21 miles south of Oklahoma City.
99. Thunderbird Casino Shawnee, 38 miles east of Oklahoma City.
100. Tonkawa Gasino, 91 miles north of Oklahoma City.
101. Tonkawa Hotel & Casino, 91 miles north of Oklahoma City.
102. Trading Post Casino Pawnee, 57 miles northwest of Tulsa.
103. Treasure Valley Casino & Hotel in Davis, 75 miles south of Oklahoma City.
104. Washita Casino in Paoli, 52 miles south of Oklahoma City.
105. WinStar World Casino and Resort in Thackerville, 124 miles south of Oklahoma City.

Other Gambling Establishments

As an alternative to enjoying Oklahoma slot machine casino gambling, consider exploring casino options in a nearby state. Bordering Oklahoma is:

• North: Colorado Slots and Kansas Slots
• East: Arkansas Slots and Missouri Slots
• South: Texas Slots
• West: New Mexico Slots

Each of the links above will take you to my blog for that neighboring U.S. state to Oklahoma.

Our Oklahoma Slots Facebook Group

Are you interested in sharing and learning with other slots enthusiasts in Oklahoma? If so, join our new Oklahoma slots community on Facebook. All you’ll need is a Facebook profile to join this closed Facebook Group freely.

There, you’ll be able to privately share your slots experiences as well as chat with players about slots gambling in Oklahoma. Join us!

Payout Returns in Oklahoma

No theoretical payout limits are legally set by Oklahoma’s state-tribal compacts. Further, no return statistics are publicly available.

Summary of Oklahoma Slot Machine Casino Gambling in 2020

Oklahoma slot machine casino gambling consists of over a hundred tribal facilities with electronic gaming machines existing as casino resorts, casinos, convenience stores, travel centers, bingo halls, and more.

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Gaming regulations come from a generic tribal-state compact, used by 31 tribes in Oklahoma to legalize Class II bingo-style and Class III Las Vegas-style gaming. It does not include theoretical payout limits nor require that tribes make return statistics publicly available.

Annual Progress in Oklahoma Slot Machine Casino Gambling

Over the last year, Bordertown Casino and Arena closed when the Eastern Shawnee Tribe decided to reassess its business plans and close the facility in December 2019. Also, the Texoma Gaming Center in Kingston became the Texoma Casino.

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In early 2020, Governor Kevin Stitt of the State of Oklahoma demanded the state’s tribes update their tribal-state compacts. At issue was an attempt to improve the state’s gaming revenue by increasing income from exclusivity payments for monopoly casino rights. Ultimately, Oklahoma’s tribes united against the Governor, resolving the “bitter feud.”

Related Articles from Professor Slots

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Have fun, be safe, and make good choices!
By Jon H. Friedl, Jr. Ph.D., President
Jon Friedl, LLC