What Slot Machines Does Encore Boston Have
Williams says they virtually have “every new slot machine known to man,” which take up the majority of the first floor below 40-foot-high ceilings and range from penny slots to $500 minimums. Encore Boston Harbor opening day: $2.6 billion Everett casino and resort opens to. DeBole estimates the $21.1 million from slots breaks down to roughly $216 per machine per day.
BOSTON - Picture it. The Encore Boston Harbor casino, February 2020. It's a surprisingly warm Friday night and you and some friends feel like taking just a little bit of money to the nearby gambling facility to see if you can win big. What's the first area of the casino you gravitate towards? For most people, the answer to that question would be the slot machines. They're practically synonymous with casinos, after all. That is why Encore had such a disaster on their hands at the outset of this past weekend.
On Friday night a number of slot machines malfunctioned and shut down entirely after an unknown error, per Boston 25 News. According to Wynn Resorts, the group that operates Encore Boston Harbor, the reason for this unexpected outage was a 'computer issue.' Wynn Resorts did say that they expect the slot machines to be back in action soon, but they would not disclose how many slot machines were impacted by the computer outage.
This is poor timing for Encore, especially since Friday is one of the busiest nights for casinos. Fortunately, for people who won on the slot machines, they will still get their due. Employees delivered winnings by hand and they are still currently paying what people are owed from their winnings as they work to resolve the issue entirely.
This news comes only shortly after the revelation that the gambling revenues from Encore were down. As detailed by Boston.com, Encore generated $49 million in revenue across January, which was a significant decrease from December's $54 million earnings. A change in season could have been to blame for the fall, if not for the fact that two other casinos, MGM Springfield and Plainridge Park, both increased their revenue in the month of January.
There have been a lot of growing pains ever since Encore opened back in the summer of 2019 and it still seems like the Boston Harbor casino has not yet found its footing. Perhaps the decrease in revenue and the slot machine outage will compound to become a motivating impetus for Encore to better get its act together.
Image via Yelp/Ron Y.
Encore casino cheating allegations
Encore Boston Harbor Casino is accused of cheating patrons in the games of blackjack and slots. The newly opened casino is named in a lawsuit filed by A. Richard Schuster of New York.
The plaintiff claims the casino is using odds tilted in its favor rather than what is required under Massachusetts state law.
Schuster is seeking statutory and actual damages along with triple damages, plus fees and the cost of his attorney. The goal is to stop the casino from engaging in the alleged conduct.
Blackjack odds violate rules
The lawsuit holds that the casino’s 6 to 5 blackjack games offered are violating gaming rules to maximize the facilities’ advantage in excess of what is allowed by law.
In Massachusetts, the state allows the 6 to 5 payout blackjack games at casinos, but only if certain conditions are met. Schuster has accused the Encore Boston Harbor of breaking regulation conditions because it combines the 6 to 5 rules with traditional blackjack rules that favor the casino.
The lawsuit also states that lower-payout games require one or two decks. Traditionally, the games would have six to eight decks. Allegedly, Encore does not use single- or two-deck shoes at some of its blackjack tables.
According to Schuster’s lawsuit, with the blackjack odds being shifted, the casino could be taking as much as $85,000 (£68,518.78) each day from consumers.
The plaintiff’s attorney Joshua Garick feels the casino set such payouts to intentionally make more money off its players.
Slot game issues
Schuster also maintains that Encore is not refunding the proper amounts to slot players. The machines used for ticket redemption of slot wins are paying out whole dollar amounts without change. Allegedly, the machines do not provide instruction on how to obtain the balance.
The casino is being accused of keeping the unredeemed change, profiting from this action.
Encore Response
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The accusations have been denied by Encore Boston Harbor. They claim the casino is following state regulations for blackjack payouts and for the redemption of slot machine tickets. According to a spokeswoman for the casino, the operational procedures of the casino have been approved by the commission.
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The Massachusetts Gaming Commission is aware of the lawsuit and has started to review the content of the filing.