Recession Vs Gambling Games

Thursday, 12 November 2009 17:43

• Recession Proves Deadly for Once-Thought Immune Games

When Las Vegas was in its heyday, Atlantic City was fresh off of a revitalizing Trump makeover and Macau became the newest casino destination, respectively, these cities of great excess were thought to be among the scattered hosts of a recession-proof business: gambling. One by one, casinos quickly started showing signs that they, too, could suffer the dire effects of economic recession. Even still, so-called "experts" claimed, like clockwork, that the latest and greatest casinos were essentially too big to fail.

Why have they been so wrong so often? It's easy to see today that even the top online casinos do better than on-location establishments, per scale, so why do some put so much faith in gambling venues as money earners? It all has to do with people and their inclination to "strike it rich," so to speak, with a lucky spin.

In reality, games of chance - including games like lotteries, bingo, sports betting and even the best blackjack games - have always raked in massive money, given freely by those among us who would love nothing more than to hit a row of sevens on a slot machine and kiss our recession blues goodbye. And truthfully, there was a time, a short period of ironic bliss, where gambling venues were actually recession proof.

In their humble makeup from floor to ceiling, the average Joe's and Jane's of the world could easily and affordably frequent various gaming houses and put up their bread money in hopes of taking the bus home with bill money. But as the world evolved into a not-so-humble montage of high-rises and neon glow, the cover charge increased exponentially. This vast shift in the required wallet size of everyday gamblers hindered many casinos' ability to keep afloat during times of penny-pinching security.

As Las Vegas, AC, Macau and other popular spots grew in size and in their lavishness the patrons were the ones ultimately bearing the brunt of the burden. No more 99-cent shrimp cocktails, to be sure, and if you had aspirations of winning a grand on penny slots, you better rethink that and break into your grandchild's college fund to crack the code on the quarter progressive monstrosities.

Oddly enough, or maybe simply sufficient, games like bingo do not suffer near the financial loss as big-name casino games during times of economic downturn. Of course, this isn't to say they're ultra-flush, packing the house and raking in more dough than before. But in comparison to the brightly-lit gambling venues, the average bingo halls of the world can keep up and aren't forced to close shop and file bankruptcy.

The percentages of bingo cards don't change; the prizes are still basically the same. It's only the fact that bingo is affordable and accessible to the same crowd that keeps this game doing well when others, needing to turn uber profits, go belly-up and float downstream with the rest of the muck.

To that end, bingo is a user-friendly, gambling-lovers best choice in times like these. By remaining humble and grounded and not looking to expand, the game has managed to keep its base in tact.

Written by a bingo lover