A trial led by Aristocrat into responsible gambling features on gaming machines in Queensland, Australia, has been welcomed by the state’s Minister for Gaming, Paul Lucas.
The eight-week trial was conducted by the slot manufacturer at five Queensland surf lifesaving clubs and overseen by researchers from the University of Sydney. The responsible gaming features that were included ranged from special messages and animations encouraging players to gamble responsibly to a bank meter to an alarm clock to help players determine the amount of time they wish to play for.
The trial concluded that voluntary harm minimisation features seemed to negatively impact the enjoyment of problem and ‘at risk’ players but had little impact on the experience of most recreational players. The clocks and time limiting, however, were not relevant to players and appeared to have little influence on game play. Most players routinely set and abide by spending limits without mandatory pre-commitment regulations.
Australia is presently debating the merits of introducing a pre-commitment system to gaming gaming machines and Lucas suggested that the results of the trial provided an opportunity to see what may or may not work when it comes to harm minimisation.
“The Queensland government supports voluntary pre-commitment but we believe more research is required before other solutions, such as those proposed by the federal government can be considered,” he said.
Professor Blaszczynski of the University of Sydney said that the responsible gambling features included in the trial machines offered additional options to assist gamblers control their behaviour and make informed decisions.
“The messages on the machine targeted the specific members of the population – problem gamblers – that they were intended to reach,” he added.
