International Game Technology (IGT), a leading supplier in the gaming industry, faces legal troubles against its Wheel of Fortune slots. Plaintiffs claim that its Wheel of Fortune slots line are misleading.

The complaint, filed by four former players, also involves several major operators like Bally’s, MGM and Penn. It states that the popular slot games trick players into believing that they have a good chance of winning a big prize.

The suit seeks compensatory damages for the plaintiffs and for Wheel of Fortune players at the casinos named as defendants. It also seeks an injunction against the defendants, which means that it would prevent them from offering this product.

Wheel of Fortune ‘defrauds’ customers

Wheel of Fortune slot games are technically compliant with local regulations. However, plaintiffs claim that it is misleading by purpose and seeks to “defraud” customers.

Inspired by the classic TV show, the Wheel of Fortune slots series, as the name suggests, involves a physical wheel being spun. Players win prizes depending on the cell on which the wheel lands.

Wheel of Fortune slots’ outcome of landing on the segments is determined by a random number generator and are not equal like mechanical wheels. Based on this, plaintiffs claim that the game defrauds casino goers out of money.

Adding that the visual similarities between IGT’s Wheel of Fortune and the traditional game trick players into believing they have an equal chance of landing on each cell when they do not. The visual clue of the digital wheel implies that it obeys the laws of physicals when that is not the case, which distorts players’ perception.

The suit compared IGT’s Wheel of Fortune slots to a “roulette wheel with a magnet surreptitiously affixed beneath the green zero and double-zero segments.”

In other news, IGT, the manufacturer of the Wheel of Fortune slot launched an investigation into the cyber-attack that it recently experienced. According to the filing by the company, an unauthorised third party gained access to part of its systems.

IGT said some of its internal systems and applications experienced disruptions and that the company has initiated an appropriate response plan.

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