I use to work for a Class II slot vendor then a local tribal casino. If I recall, it is all about classifications and sovereignty, as mentioned before. OK doesn't allow gambling (outside the federal, lotto version), thus there are no private casinos. The tribes have sovereign land, which is outside of the state's jurisdiction. I believe the tribes had to negotiate with the fed (again, this is rough memory, so anyone feel free to correct me) and were given Class II licensing, which is "bingo only". Early on, this was the only form of gambling that was available.
At some point, some industrious people figured out how to play bingo and make it look like a slot machine, thus the creation of tribal Class II slots. I want to say there are a couple of different kinds of Class II gaming as well, but the details are fuzzy after a few years. Either way, I know OK tribes have been able to update/alter their classification status to allow cards and such, but that happened about the time I left that industry and I haven't looked back.
Other random info, the famous Vegas gaming is Class III, which allows pretty much anything.
As the guy that use to load the percentage payout tables and such on the slot machines, I can say without a doubt - the house always wins.
At some point, some industrious people figured out how to play bingo and make it look like a slot machine, thus the creation of tribal Class II slots. I want to say there are a couple of different kinds of Class II gaming as well, but the details are fuzzy after a few years. Either way, I know OK tribes have been able to update/alter their classification status to allow cards and such, but that happened about the time I left that industry and I haven't looked back.
Other random info, the famous Vegas gaming is Class III, which allows pretty much anything.
As the guy that use to load the percentage payout tables and such on the slot machines, I can say without a doubt - the house always wins.