Vegas has lost a lot of beatable video poker games over the last few years. Many believe the reason is that casinos can’t make enough money on positive expectation games, but that’s not it. Casinos made money on positive games for years, some of them extremely positive—103 percent or more. Most players don’t know correct strategy, enabling the casino to make a substantial hold, even on very liberal games.

So why are positive games, even very slightly positive ones like Double Bonus, disappearing faster than bath towels at a Motel Six? Because of a little-known phenomenon, just starting to be studied by researchers: the Dirtbag Factor.

Before explaining the Dirtbag Factor (DF), a little background about beatable video poker games. There are a number of games that return over 100 percent with perfect play. However, unless these games are available in high denominations (a rarity), almost none of them—unaccompanied by a strong promotion or cash rebate—are strong enough to attract a serious pro. When the deal speed and other factors are figured, the maximum amount that can be earned per hour of play is just not high enough to be considered worthwhile, especially since a large bankroll is required.

Profiting from most of the high-payback games like Joker Wild and Double Bonus requires the mastery of fairly complex strategies. Deuces Wild is an exception; although it is one of the highest payback games ever offered, beating it does not require a complex strategy. In fact, I claim that anyone could eliminate the casino edge entirely by learning five simple rules. That means I could teach my 76-year-old mother to play a winning game, and I don’t think she’s ever touched a video poker game in her life.

So Deuces Wild in $.50 and higher denomination has pretty much bit the dust everywhere, while many $1 Joker Wild games, for example, still exist. Too many recreational players are educated enough to eliminate the casino’s edge at Deuces Wild; far fewer of them can beat Joker Wild.
So what really matters is not how good the game is, or even how hard it is to beat. What matters is the Dirtbag Factor.

How do you define a dirtbag? Anyone who:

Plays video poker expertly; and
Has sufficient bankroll and time to play many hours; and
Considers freeloading off casinos his job, or at least a source of income.
Come to think of it, I guess that makes me a dirtbag. And many of my friends, too. So be it.
How is the Dirtbag Factor calculated? In order to figure it, you need to take careful, scientific measurements of the following:
Number of good machines (M)
Number of dirtbags playing (D)
You must then take readings at regular intervals over a period of time, preferably at least a 24-hour period. The more readings you take, the more accurate your estimate of the Dirtbag Factor will be.
Once you have collected your readings, plug the data into this formula:
Dirtbag Factor = D/M for all readings r
The result will always be a number between 0 and 1, which may be expressed as a percentage. The body of scientific evidence gathered thus far indicates that once the Dirtbag Factor for any game reaches 80 percent or more, the game will be removed.