Slot Machines & Video Poker: Slant Top vs. Upright

I’ve noticed a lot of incoming searches that are inquiries about slant top and about upright video poker machines so I decided to share my thoughts on each type of game.

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Upright Machines

I see more upright machines at casinos than slant top models.  The machines are placed on cabinets to place the games at eye level.  It’s nice to sit upright and have everything right in sight.  These machines promote good posture because of the line of sight.  Because there is this direct sight line there isn’t a real desire or need to slouch.

Some will put their feet up and lean back while they play poker.  When I was a kid my mother made me nervous about falling down if I lean back, so I don’t do that.

I don’t mind these games, but if I’m drinking something I’ll typically have to stop playing to pick the drink up or put it down.  It’s a small thing, but I don’t like the pause while I’m playing.

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Slant Top Machines

There aren’t as many slant top machines in casinos nowadays.  It seems to me that many of the slant tops are older games – specifically slots.  I stay away from the slots because most of them are old, although there seems to be some newer games coming onto the market.

The seats are lower to the ground because the games are set lower to the ground.  There’s a tendancy to lean foward to the game because of the arm rests.  I find these games to be have more room than the uprights.

The real reason I like slant tops is because I have easy access to the buttons on the game as well as my drink.  There’s little pause when I play these machines.  Specifically, I enjoy playing video poker on these machines early in the morning over a cup of coffee.

The type of machine doesn’t really matter to me.  When playing video poker the pay tables matter more than anything else.  With everything being equal, I would choose a slant top game.  I enjoy being lower to the ground and I don’t mind the posture as long as it gets me access to my drinks quicker.

What do you prefer?

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Las Vegas Writer, Marketer, Consultant. I love Vegas and everything about it. When in Vegas do 3 things: eat, drink & gamble.

4 Comments

  1. jmp14

    I don’t like to think I’m superstitious, but I’ve generally had better overall luck on uprights. I don’t know if the fact that I’m sitting up straighter makes me feel better so I THINK I’m luckier or if it’s because I am forced to take little breaks to have a sip of my drink (the opposite of the way you feel, it seems). Or maybe there’s less glare on the screen of an upright.

    That said, I’ll play the slant top outside the B-Bar again if it remains as loose as it was last time!

  2. admin

    jmp – I’ve actually hit a jackpot on each kind of machine – upright, slant top ($5 VP seems to alway be slant top) and bar top (not shown here). No superstition after a few drinks. 🙂

    The last time I played the 9/6 JOB slant tops at Borgata I doubled my money both times I sat down. I like that kind of turnaround. 🙂 If I play VP, I will certainly go back.

    TC

  3. I like the uprights better but only because there seems to be less glare on the screens at the casinos I play at the most. Exception to that — the Super Times Pay and All-Star slant tops at Planet Hollywood in LV because they have the most comfortable, adjustable chairs and there never seems to be any glare on the glass. (Maybe because it is so dark in there to begin with?) Like you, though, I use pay tables as my main deciding factor.

    C.C. Royal

  4. Ted

    Slant-tops, no question.

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