The Moment That's Bigger than Losing or Winning
When it comes to playing online casino games for real money, people often say that their primary goal is to walk away from the casino with a thicker wallet than they had when they started.
In other words, winning is usually at the center of the casino experience.
But looking deeper at why people come back again and again, a different goal emerges. And it has nearly nothing to do with whether the player wins or loses. In fact, the real fun happens in the moments before the game ends, when anticipation is at its peak, before the outcome is finally revealed.
That moment is the real key to the casino experience, must more than the lure of easy money. In fact, the money isn't easy. But the hopes of those who play are eternally active, and that makes all the difference.
Playing For Money Makes Games More Fun
It's possible to play online casino games just for fun, without staking any money on the games. But anyone who played for fun and also played for money can tell you - the two experiences are worlds apart.
Playing for fun can help you learn the inner working of the games and can give you a taste for what to expect when you play. But it has little or none of the thrills that make casino games so much fun. There is no threat of losing your stake, and no chance of winning a jackpot. There is no real risk, and therefore there is no real reward.
But staking even a token amount of money on a game suddenly transforms the experience to one of deep inner meaning. Even if the risk is largely symbolic, it's enough to transform the experience into something substantial. It creates space for hope, and that's the key emotion when it comes to the online casino.
That's why the casino experience is largely an expression of optimism.
'The Moment' is Pure Thrills
Watching the reels spin, slow down, and finally stop is one of the most exciting experiences of the online casino. The games are quick, but there is still enough time to build anticipation. And as the reels begin to slow and stop, there is a surge of excitement that only ends when the result of the game is revealed.
The excitement drops after that, whether the game is a winner or not. It's fun to win, and it makes it easier to keep spinning and feeling the thrills that go with it. But since every game is a random event completely unrelated to anything that came before or will come after, it's possible to believe every single spin will be a winner, even if you're on a losing streak. In fact, calling it a streak is not accurate because the games have nothing to do with one another.
There are so few pure moments of excitement in our lives. And even fewer we can call up any time we want to feel them. That's what makes the online casino so special.
Getting Back to Basics
It also helps to play games that offer a good chance to win. Or at least a chance that you feel comfortable with. For some, that could mean sticking to a game that's been a source of enjoyment in the past. For others, it could mean trying out one of the newest games, with the newest features, which may increase the odds of winning slightly. That small edge could help build anticipation just enough to increase the excitement.
For still another group, it could mean going back to the original versions of games as they existed before the wave of popularity hit. That's part of the appeal of the smaller, three reel video slots or even the original generation of five reel video slots. Compared to some of the newest games, the older games represent a return to basics.
So while winning is the great unknown in the casino experience, the anticipation of winning may be the highest experience. Don't let those special moments go to waste.