Last year Rockstar Games released the biggest update for GTA Online to date, The Diamond Casino and Resort. Not only did the update add loads of new missions and replayable content to the game, it opened the first in-game casino for players to explore and send all of their hard-earned cash in. While the casino can be used to gamble away all of your in-game dollars from the various crimes you’ve been committing in Los Santos, it also allows you to spend real money. Usually this is best left to casinos in the real world. Even though there’s a cap on the amount that can be spend per in-game day, it’s important to gamble responsibly before you slip into a dangerous habit. With that in mind, we’ve put together this list of four tips to help you make sure you’re gambling responsibly in GTA Online.

You’re Still Paying Out When You Win

What a lot of people don’t realise, in both real casinos and the Diamond Casino in GTA Online, is that you pay out even if you win. When you bet $1 the house, the casino in the real world, and Rockstar Games in the case of GTA Online, expects to earn a few cents regardless of the outcome. If you lose, the house gets to keep all of the money you bet, obviously. This is a loss you accept when you put that money down as a bet. However, winning doesn’t entitle you to the full amount you’re awarded. The house takes a percentage of your winnings. Yes, it may be small, but it’s how these businesses operate. This is how casinos can afford such extravagant exteriors, how they pay for the 24/7 power bill generated by the lights, and how they stay afloat.

It’s important to realise this whenever you go into a casino, in-game or in real life. GTA Online’s casino may be a safer bet, because you can spend fake in-0game money, but the rule still applies.

Each Hit is Unique

Regardless of the game, whether it’s blackjack or a slot machine, every hit is individual from the one that came before. Some people see gambling as a grind, something that needs to be worked through before you get the payout. There’s a feeling that you’re progressing towards a big reward, but often that never comes. In GTA Online that’s because every game, every hit, is unique. The casino games use RNG (random number generators) to make every game as a fresh as the game that came before. You won’t have better odds in the next game if you lost the last one, you have exactly the same odds for both. If you’re on a losing streak, don’t lose heart, but also remember that you’re not improving your odds moving forward. Sometimes it’s better to stop and play a few missions to cool off before you return to the casino again.

You Can’t Game a Game

This tip relates to the one above. Anyone trying to bring a gambling system into the casino in GTA Online is going to fail. The game has its own set of rules, and they’re way more complex that you can figure out. If you go into the GTA Online casino with a plan to outsmart the dealers and odds of the games, you’ll lose every time.

Set Your Limits

It’s easy to overspend in casinos if you don’t set a limit. They’re designed to disorient you and make you think that you’ve only been there for half an hour, despite the fact that it’s 3am and you’ve missed your flight home. GTA Online’s casino is no different, though you can tell the difference between night and day thanks to your penthouse. All the in-game money you’ve earned can be burned through pretty quickly if you don’t set a limit, and then you may even be onto real world money if you’re buying currency. Set a limit, and just leave the casino when you’ve hit it. You can always come back when you’ve earned enough in-game money through missions again.

Those are our four tips for responsible gambling in GTA Online’s casino. Keep this page bookmarked if you’re heading to the casino anytime soon. There’s nothing worse than losing a lot of in-game currency through a system that’s designed to take a lot of your money. Of course there are guaranteed wins in the casino, and those are well worth taking part in, just be aware that the other games don’t have the same beneficial odds.