It’s happened to everyone: You stride into the Luxor, Mohegan Sun, or Tropicana with your wallet filled with cash and a plan for some enjoyable, sensible gaming and maybe two rounds of cocktails. Hours later, you have no idea what time it is, how many drinks you’ve had, or where your money went. Casinos use a variety of tricks to get you to spend more than you planned. The lights, sounds, and physical design are designed to make it impossible to walk away from your machine without a hitch in your step.
Gambling is as old as humanity itself. Dice were used in China as early as 2300 BC, and cards appeared soon after. Modern casinos, though, are a much more sophisticated beast: They offer a wide array of games of chance and, in some cases, skill, that have been scientifically optimized to give the house a mathematical advantage over the players. This edge, which is known as the house edge, is what casinos count on to keep you gambling.
To that end, casinos use flashing lights and soaring ceilings to create an atmosphere of excitement and energy. They also employ special scents that waft through their ventilation systems to help entice customers. These smells and visual stimuli distract gamblers from their losses and increase their chances of finding a winning streak. They are also designed to make gambling feel more prestigious and important than it really is by using digital chips or credits instead of real cash. This can cause gamblers to think of their money more as a form of play rather than an actual purchase, and may lead them to bet larger amounts.
Another trick casinos use is to hide the location of bathrooms from their patrons, so they must trek deeper into the casino to relieve themselves. This can make them pass by other opportunities to press their luck. They are also often situated near food outlets and gift shops, which increases the temptation to spend even more money.
Adding to the sense of prestige and importance are the brightly colored attires worn by the casino’s staff. This is intended to keep them from looking disheveled and lower their chances of being spotted by security guards. Casinos also keep the time of day a mystery by coating their windows with tint and using decor to block out sunlight. They want gamblers to lose track of the hours and their own watches so they will just keep gambling.
Martin Scorsese’s Casino understands the psychology of gambling better than any film before it. His movie is less about the Mafia (though it does feature a few scenes with Nicky and Ginger) than it is about how Las Vegas became an engine for organized crime. It’s a brilliant piece of work that shows how casinos manipulate their customers and how the mob’s influence on that city is slowly eroding. It may lack the pizzazz of a Goodfellas or a Mean Streets, but it’s still an essential look at one of the most fascinating cities in the world.
