Understanding Microgaming Statistics

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Today all online gaming software providers allow players to check the game statistics. These statistics provide useful information to players, which allow them to fine tune their games strategy and their wagering patterns. Microgaming is among the only online casino software platforms that allow players to check the statistics of their game play directly from within the software client. Using three games as examples this article discusses how the statistics can be accessed, what they mean and how they can be used.

In the Slots games the statistics box can be displayed by clicking on the "STATS" option in the bottom toolbar. In the case of Slots only the "General" statistics are applicable. The screenshot is displayed below.

The box is divided into two sections "Spin Results" and "Highest Wins". The statistics pertain to the current session only. The Spin Results show the spins played and the session time. From this the software computes the spins that would be played in an hour at the existing rate of play. This allows the player to adjust his wagers given his bankroll and the time he wants to play. If he finds that this speed is too slow then he can exercise the Quick Spin or even Auto Play options. The Highest Wins section records the amounts of the three highest wins in the session. After viewing the statistics the player can continue with these statistics on record or can reset them to zero.

In Blackjack the statistics box can be displayed by clicking on the "%" button in the bottom left. There are four tabs in the statistics box. The box opens by default to the "General" tab. This is identical to the Slots box except spins are replaced by hands.
The screenshot is displayed below.

The second tab is titled "Dealer's Final Hand". The screenshot is displayed below.

This indicates the frequency of the dealer ultimately obtaining a particular hand value given his initial card. The initial cards are shown in the rows and the final hand values in the columns. The hand values of 16 or less are clubbed in one column. There are separate columns for Bust and Blackjack. A value of 30% against initial card "4" and final hand "Bust" indicates that when the dealer started with an initial card of 4 he busted 30% of the times. This can be used to make predictions for future hands and fine tune strategy but for that a large number of hands must have already been played. Making predictions with less than 100 hands played can lead to erroneous conclusions.

The third tab is titled "Starting Hand Comparisons". The screenshot is displayed below.

The dealt hand value of the player is shown in the rows and the dealt card of the dealer in the columns. Each cell shows the percentage occurrence of the combination in the hands played so far.

The fourth tab is titled "Final Hand Comparisons". The screenshot is displayed below.

The final hand value of the player is shown in the rows and the final hand value of the dealer in the columns. Each cell shows the percentage occurrence of the combination in the hands played so far.

In Video Poker the statistics box can be displayed by clicking on the "%" button in the bottom left. There are three tabs in the statistics box. The box opens by default to the "General" tab. This is identical to the Blackjack box. The screenshot is displayed below.

The second tab is titled "Win Summary". The screenshot is displayed below.

The first column lists the combinations in the payout table. The second column gives the number of each type of combination drawn in the hands dealt so far. The third column converts this information in percentage form. This gives the players a sense of which are the more frequently occurring combinations and how frequently can they be expected to occur.

The third tab is "Optimal Play". In order to activate this, the game has to be played in the "Expert Play" mode with the "Show Hints" activated. Once this is done the software prompts the player whenever he is diverting from the optimal strategy. The screenshot is displayed below.

The Optimal Play box has two sections. The "Hint Summary" section indicates the number of hands played with the Show Hints activated. It then indicates the number of hints given, which is an indicator of mistakes made by the player. The "Hint Rate" converts the information in percentage form. The "Comparison to Optimal Play" section first shows the number of hands correctly played. It then shows the optimal expected return and the player's expected return. The credit difference entry shows how much the player is expected to lose because of incorrect play. As the player wagers on video poker if the "Hint Rate" and "Credit Difference" values keep decreasing then the player's game is improving.

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