You might hear the term “dead spin” when discussing slots with other players or have otherwise come across it. A dead spin is one without any payout unlike a winning spin, where any kind of payout is possible.
It is directly connected to the concept of hit frequency because that’s calculated based on the ratio of winning spins to dead spins. A hit frequency of 50 percent means half of the spins will be dead and you don’t stand to win anything. The lower the hit frequency, the higher the number of dead spins.
Some games have more dead spins than others. Games that are more volatile will have a lot more dead spins, but the winning spins will bring in a bigger payout due to being less frequent.
Extremely volatile games have a very high number of dead spins to compensate for the potentially huge payouts if the right scenario transpires. Other games have high hit frequencies and fewer dead spins, but the winning ones don’t pay as much as volatile games because they are more frequent.
Some slot players tolerate fewer dead spins than others. It depends on your preference. Ultimately, dead spins are required to ensure a house edge and balance out the winning spins. To a great extent, you can’t really avoid them. They are part and parcel of any standard slot machine.
