Some people call them Slot Machines, others call ’em Poker Machines or Pokies but Crown Casino call them Electronic Gaming Machines for reasons unknown. It doesn’t matter what label we apply to them, what is important is that changes are coming to Crown Casino in December 2025, more specific – Carded Play will be introduced and I totally approve and you should too.
For me Carded Play can’t come soon enough, but I understand others may not be as enthusiastic.
Today is April 15, 2025 and we will be staying at Crown Towers next week. I’m going to get my new card and hope to be one of the first.
Carded Play is a new level of protection for both players and the casino. At first glance you may disagree, perhaps citing privacy issues or similar, but think a little deeper and ask yourself why is it necessary?
Regular Crown visitors may already have a Crown Rewards Card. My own card is blue – I am the lowest form of casino-life. I usually forget to use it while playing table games and because I don’t play slots I rarely get Status Points. My wife has a Silver Card, which makes her more special than me, as result she demands I refer to her as “your highness” while offering deference and professing my undying love.
Carded Play ain’t bad so don’t panic
Regular Crown visitor may already have a Card. The difference is the new cards will have your photo on them, and you will need to establish your ID with Crown. Without the new card you will be unable to play any EGM’s.
Carded Play is a big deal and one of the recommendations from the 2021 Royal Commission into Crown Casino. The Royal Commission was necessary because there was some dodgy sh*t going on. People with shopping bags full of dirty money were seen bypassing the rules. I have personally witnessed someone with a shopping bag filled with bundles of $50 dollar notes outside the Baccarat Room with Crown staff – that would have been 10 years ago or more. I ignored it and didn’t realise the significance until after the Royal Commission.
The Commission’s Final Report was delivered in March 2022 and uncovered serious failures in anti-money laundering practices.The report also highlighted how Casino practices encouraged problem gamblers to continue gambling beyond their means through incentives.
I’ve read the final report and suggest you don’t read it if you’re sleepy! I have read a few Royal Commission Reports and they are all a bit cerebral. But in this case, Volume III, Chapter 13, paragraph 99 is a bit of a laugh as they try to determine what the hell a Poker Machine is.
WTF are EGM’s anyway?
When my wife mentioned Carded Play was coming for EGM’s only I needed some clarification “what constitutes an Electronic Gaming Machine?”
I emailed Crown seeking more information on which machines were EGM’s and which weren’t.
Crown were kind enough to telephone me with clarification, which I very much appreciated. When they called I was in Fiona Stanley Hospital getting an IVIG transfusion for my Chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy. Oddly, their number appeared on my phone as Carvers. I almost didn’t answer it.
Electronic Gaming Machines, as of 27th of March 2025, are slot machines only. Table games such as Stage Roulette and similar are not included and Carded Play will not be mandatory. That is a mistake in my book.
There are more than 100 Stage Roulette Machines around the Casino floor. Each of them accepts the Crown Cards and I would argue, strongly, they should be included in the mandatory Carded Play.
When I say Stage Roulette I’m referring to croupiers on stage spinning wheels while players wager electronically. Each of those machines can choose between live Roulette or Baccarat – yet they are exempt!
There are also some computerised roulette games which are purely electronic novelty games and very dodgy if you ask me. Prove me wrong!
Defining EGM’s
Somewhere along the line someone has done some sneaky manoeuvring in order to misidentify devices for the purpose of avoiding something – I don’t know what, but something!
It is clear in my mind the term Electronic Gaming Machine is a broad term but for some reason the definition has been narrowed and excluded what are clearly Electronic Gaming Machines.
Clause 2 of the State Agreement has, since 2003, defined ‘Electronic Gaming Machine’
Page 732 – Perth Casino Royal Commission – Volume III
to mean, in essence, ‘any electrical, electronic or mechanical contrivance or machine’ by
which authorised games can be played. The term ‘authorised game’ is in turn defined as
bearing the same meaning as in the CC Act (namely, a game declared by the GWC to be an
authorised game for the purposes of that Act).
There are inconsistencies where consistency is necessary.
My intention is not to be critical of Crown. I accept the position they are in and it isn’t to catch every dirty-dollar floating through the doors. But we must go above and beyond and close every loophole, every backdoor and every administrative oversight. Vigilance is the name of the game right now.
Live tables are a different story and Carded Play will be almost impossible in my mind. I’ve seen people throw $300 onto a Roulette Table in exchange for chips. Then they have make a single bet before exchanging table-chips for Cash Chips – then walk away – job done.
Let’s dive into why Carded Play matters, what it means for players, and why Crown can’t afford to stop halfway.
What Is Carded Play, anyway?
Carded Play is exactly what it sounds like: in order to use certain machines or games, players must first insert a registered card. This card is linked to their identity, and it records their play. Perhaps every spin, bet, win, and loss.
It’s kind of like a loyalty card (it is a loyalty card), except with a far more important purpose than your existing cards.
By linking play to individual identities, Carded Play allows Crown to track gambling behaviour more closely. It also makes it much harder for people to use the casino as a front for money laundering because now, there’s a digital paper trail; a digital fingerprint.
Attached to your Card will be a photograph for identity purposes and you may need to nominate how much you can afford to lose. I’m not sure how that is going to work or how Crown determine what we can afford to lose. In my own case I have no income, no pension, no superannuation and am a kept man. I live by the grace of my adorable wife.
Loss Limits and Deposit Limits will be phased in over time. What I’m hearing is a maximum bet of $10 will be enforced across the casino, perhaps on EGM’s only.
Carded Play is a massive shift from the “cash in, no questions asked” environment that exists today. And honestly, it’s about time.
These measures are being put in place to protect both the casino and punters. If you are regularly losing more than you can afford you should visit Play Safe on the Crown Casino website for help or speak with a Play Safe Representative.
The Royal Commission: Catalyst for Change
Let’s not forget how we got here.
The Royal Commission into Crown Casino revealed the venue had been used, knowingly or not, as a washing machine for dirty cash. High rollers and organised crime figures were able to pump money through the casino, converting illicit funds into “clean” casino chips or winnings.
With clean casino chips in their hand they’d walk up to a cashier and exchange them for freshly washed, ironed and sweet smelling banknotes. Laundering process complete!
The result? Public outrage, regulatory pressure, and a demand for sweeping reforms. Remember what happened at Star Casino – if I’m honest, Star seemed to be just incompetent and didn’t even try to fix the problems. Crown are having a go at resolving the issue and I applaud them for that.
Carded Play was just one of the solutions proposed to clean up the industry and rebuild trust. And to be clear, that’s a great move. The ability to identify who is playing and how much they’re spending helps root out shady and problematic activity before it becomes a front-page scandal.
Access to the Pearl Room (which my wife is itching to see) will have even tighter controls added. Accessing it will be even more difficult if all the Commissions recommendations are accepted.
Do you have privacy concerns? I don’t.
I am speculating when I say “your playing data will be monitored, analysed, and crucially linked to anti-money laundering systems within Crown”. I’ve been a computer programmer for nearly 40 years and there is potential for information & statistics which could be gleamed from the data is not lost on me. Of course this raises privacy concerns and Crown are making themselves a target for hackers looking for juicy info.
I’m not concerned! Crown will be more than a few steps ahead of me and already putting security measure in place to thwart potential threats. I have no doubt they’ve been a target before and will be again, it is the nature of the world we live in.
Besides, you’re data is already out there. Both private & government organisations collect personal data now. Crown are no different.
But here’s the problem…
While EGM’s will be locked down under this new system, table games and electronic table games will be left out. You could be tracked and monitored on a $1 pokie spin, but throw $1,000 onto a roulette table and collect some clean chips anonymously. Or put some cash into an electronic roulette game, which are not included in Carded Play, and print a ticket redeemable for freshly washed & ironed cash.
My preference is to introduce Carded Play on every electronic machine!
This selective enforcement weakens the effectiveness of the policy. It’s like putting a lock on the front door and leaving the side gate wide open.
I accept that walk-up roulette tables, Blackjack and other games may need to be exempt because the policing of such a requirement is logistical a nightmare. I have used my existing card when playing at a table but often forget about it.
If we’re serious about change, the rules need to apply across the board. Anything less invites exploitation & criticism.
A trust rebuild is in progress
Let’s not pretend Crown Casino got here on its own. It took a full-blown Royal Commission and a very public slap on the wrist to trigger this level of reform. But now that change is happening, we should continue supporting Crown and keep visiting. What may appear difficult now will seem completely normal eventually.
Carded Play and Loss Limits are essential tools to build a safer, more transparent gambling environment. They’ll help identify suspicious activity, protect vulnerable players, and restore some much-needed faith in an industry that’s been rocked by scandal.
Hope to see you all at Crown and happy Roulette Adventures everyone.
