Resorts Casino(Queens, NY) review.

Not really a review, just my opinions of my 1st visit.

It took me a while to even find the casino; there were no directions nor
signs once you exit the train. For anyone who takes the A, make sure you dont go to Lefferts ave.
Exit from the rear at Aquaduct, and the shuttle bus stop is right there. If from the front, turn left, and take the small path, walk up towards the stop some 500feet. You could walk to the casino in some 5mins instead ifcourse.

The casino's front has horses, but that's all the decor you get in the place. Lots of security, more even than needed.
The crowd was definitely on the older/retiree side; very few if any young people, meaning under 30.
Lots of Asian gamblers, games, signs, workers, etc.

There are no table card games, just slots, VP, and video roullette. The VP machines only play on 2x for 50c.
I gave VR a try for the first time, and my bet was returned to me as I guess the min was $10, but then I lost $12 on $20 bet.

As for slots, wow what a rip-off. Mostly 1c x25 and x30 bets, took a while to find a 1c with 10lines x10 machine. I guess the bosses know people dont want to spend $37 on a bus and/or drive 3hours to AC, so they take advantage of that and the suckers fall for it. However, with SGS bus you get $30 back, and with Academy/Greyhound you get $20 back.

Not to say I didnt see some new and flashy slots in Resorts, I did, tried 'em out won some but mostly lost. Some guy won $600 on a $1 slot.
There is a high-roller slot room which I did not enter.

The 360Bar was ok, lots of booz, nice TV. The food court had over-priced grub; $10 for soup, $6.50 pizza slice.

Overall, I'd rather go to AC for the variety of play and places to eat and see than Resorts, Foxwoods, Mohegan Sun. But if it's cold, I am bored, dont feel like driving to AC, want to watch a huge TV, I'll go to Resorts.

 

They should rename Resorts (and any other NY casino) Rikers Island, since gamblers playing electronic versions of Video Poker, Blackjack, Roulette and other games with calculable odds will be paid based on a lottery formula, not an mathematically calculable formula based on probability and randomly generated results.

Paytables on video poker played in New York (and other states which offer this type of gambling) are irrelevant. These are video lottery terminal machines and are not like any legitimate gambling devices found in Nevada or New Jersey. A 9/6 JOB will pay 99.54% in Nevada or New Jersey, and 92% in New York. Results on these machines are not random.

Slot players won't notice much of a difference as their payback percentages are about the same, even though the results are determined in a different manner.

Hopefully these rules are clear to all patrons entering. Then again, when the mafia ran the numbers racket, they would return 75% of all wagers, unlike the State of New York which returns about half, or 50% less than the mafia.

 

This is why I drive past Resorts World and go to AC, I hate VLTs. Not to mention, no "Resort" at Resorts World. In AC I get free rooms, free drinks, free grub, free play, and a pretty fair game.

 

What really gets me about New York is they negotiated a Class III gaming compact with Indian Casinos (i.e. video poker from a random, standard poker deck), but they can't offer it for their state-run racinos??

Makes no sense. As long as you stay away from video poker though, the racino will yield results very similar to Vegas.

 

I live about 10 minutes away. I've made Six Vegas trips in two years and 2 Resorts trips in the same period of time. Yeah, I couldn't figure how I won some hands until I read later that they were Class III machines. I went because a friend wanted me to go with him. Otherwise, I'm not interested.

 

No live dealers.. gonna pass. Lived very close to here when I was at school. A couple of friends went. They said that the crowd was equivalent to the bus letting off from Ryker's. AC is just a few hours away, Mohegan or Foxwoods is a ferry ride.

 

That's a big part of the reason why; the Indian tribes want to keep a monopoly on "real" casino gaming.

 

Thanks for the review. I live in Queens and have never went there because I heard the VP sucks in plain English. I still don't understand why but I don't really care that much, I ain't going. It's a real shame, I would enjoy a close by casino.

 

Hold all 5 cards of a non-paying hand until you see a "magic genie" appear to change your hand to a winning one, then you'll see a difference. All wins are predetermined. They typically return 92% or so. In Vegas you can find 99%+ machines where strategy matters!

 

Lol, so the reason I play VP, because I like to use my brain, is negated. Thanks for the explanation.

 

I really don't like these "racinos" or other cheap-o, poor odds, dime-a-dozen operations that are popping up everywhere now. They are like Walmart casinos. There's nothing special about them. There's no class. It's not a resort experience. Honestly, I don't understand the point of them at all, but then again I consider gambling to be part of a greater experience. There's no nice hotel rooms at these places, no top-class places to eat, and the entertainment options (shows, clubs, etc.) are pathetic. When they don't even have table games, what's the point? I just don't get it.

 

Here is a pretty good description of the difference in video poker machines.
Randomness still plays a role in all of them, but the Class II common in NY is random the way bingo is random, and the skill level does not matter.
They are shameful because in the context of video poker they really pretend to be what they are not.

http://www.casinocenter.com/class-ii-vs-class-iii-video-poker-machines/

Since the government that might regulate such deceptive tactics gets their piece of the action, gamblers are not protected and any law that might be in their benefit is absent. The point is to make tax dollars by redistributing the wealth of the lower middle class, retired folks, the poor and the ignorant. It is not to provide an even break for gamblers. Watch the faces of the players. Very few are having fun. Note that poker rooms, which would be offering just a service to gamblers instead of taking a piece of the action, are absent from these clip joints.
Because there is usually little of no nearby competition, the payback can be set very low and still get customers because it is "the only slot in town."
In Vegas even slot payback is kept higher because of the need to compete. And video poker can actually be in the advantaged player's favor.
So much is lost on these poor payback machines that any amount of play would easily pay for a flight to Vegas and some cheap rooms. Why senior citizens who could go to Vegas for a few weeks don't opt for that option is a mystery to me. I guess in most cases they just can't do the math or can't discipline their play over a few weeks. Sad, really.
For working folks who could not take the time, I am hoping that more casinos in more states and closer might bring real competition to this market. But then I hoped that Foxwoods and those places would bring better VP to Atlantic City and put pressure on Vegas. Those are Class III, but not the full pay of Vegas. That gamblers do not buy VP the way they buy gas or groceries is a puzzle to me.
Florida put poker rooms into their race tracks and dog tracks and Jai Alai. Seems more gambler friendly. I don't think of Florida as very progressive, but in this matter they are way ahead of NY state unless you value exploitation.

 

If you are a penny slot addict near Queens, I would recommend going to Resorts World vs. AC. The one non-stupid thing about the VLT games in NY is that they have 90% minimum payback (the highest in the country) vs. AC's 83%.