Popular Online Slot Maker Says It Has Corrected 'Bug' That Led to Woman Winning Jackpot
$5,000 Welcome Bonus
The manufacturer of a popular slot game says it corrected a bug that led to 14 complaints and a lawsuit.
American Gaming Systems, the creator of the Capital Gains online slot game, says that they have "taken corrective action" against a bug that allegedly gave players the wrong jackpots. The Associated Press received an email from the company with the update.
"We have worked with the Division of Gaming Enforcement to investigate the cause of the event and in turn have taken corrective action," wrote Julia Boguslawski, chief marketing officer at AGS.
The bug is at the center of a lawsuit filed by Lisa Piluso of Yardley, Pennsylvania, who says she is entitled to the $100,000 jackpot the game said she won. AGS instead offered $280 before upping the offer to $1,000. In addition, 13 other players allegedly filed complaints against the company citing similar incidents. Piluso is accusing AGS of consumer fraud.
The email by Boguslawski addressed the lawsuit. "Although Ms. Piluso may disagree with the outcome of that administrative process," she continued, "there is no precedent for her demand, and we intend to vigorously defend ourselves in court, if necessary."
AGS was fined $1,000 by the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement. Piluso previously condemned AGS for not abiding by the promised jackpot, regardless of the bug's status.
"I'm an experienced online player," she previously explained through a statement, "and I was shocked when AGS officials, including the company president, told me they weren't going to pay, even when I showed them the screenshot that I made of the $100,000 jackpot.
"How many other players have been in the same situation," Piluso continued, "but agreed to settle for a fraction of their winnings after being told they, too, were 'nice people?'"
New Jersey regulators say that the bug caused the wrong symbols to appear on players' screens, telling them had won more than they were entitled to.
The division investigated the matter and wrote to Piluso on August 27 revealing that AGS "had discovered an issue/bug within the game" that wrongly failed to clear bonus symbols from previous rounds from a player's screen.
"This error caused the patron(s) to believe that their bonus round winnings were higher than the actual winnings," Deputy Attorney General Jennifer Russo-Belles wrote.
