Software Engineer Assistant Professor Dr. Mehmet Kaan İldiz stated that virtual gambling and betting systems are presented as games based on randomness on the surface. He noted that user behaviors are profiled in detail, and these profiles form a basis for strategic interventions that maximize the user's retention within the platform, adding, "The feeling of 'I won' experienced by the user is merely a pre-calculated deviation margin within the system's mathematical expected value projection."
İldiz stated that bonuses activated after losses and intensified audiovisual stimuli suppress rational decision-making processes, and he said, "Addiction becomes the product of an algorithmic design so deep that it cannot be explained by individual will."
Üsküdar University Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences, Software Engineering (English) Department Assistant Professor Dr. Mehmet Kaan İldiz drew attention to the algorithmic systems operating in the background of virtual gambling and betting platforms and the dangers they pose.
Virtual gambling and betting systems are presented as games based on randomness
Assistant Professor Dr. Mehmet Kaan İldiz stated that virtual gambling and betting systems are presented as games based on randomness on the surface, and said, “Although the fundamental dynamic of algorithmic operation in virtual gambling and betting environments appears outwardly as game areas based on random variables, in the background, they harbor rational operating models fortified by highly sophisticated data mining and probability engineering operations. These platforms create behavioral data sets across a wide spectrum, from users' in-game engagement times to temporal periods when their risk appetite peaks.”
The feeling of 'I won' experienced by the user does not reflect reality
Assistant Professor Dr. Mehmet Kaan İldiz, pointing out that user behaviors are profiled in detail, said, “These created profiles serve as a basis not only for optimizing marketing activities but also for strategic interventions that will maximize the user's retention within the platform. The mathematical advantage, known in terminology as 'house edge,' transforms the probability distribution of each transaction and game into an asymmetrical structure in favor of the platform in the long run. While individual and instant wins function as psychological reinforcements necessary for the system's sustainability and user motivation, the system's profit margin is deterministically preserved in the cumulative total. Therefore, the feeling of 'I won' experienced by the user is merely a pre-calculated deviation margin within the system's mathematical expected value projection.”
The architectural design of games is built upon probabilistic inequality
Assistant Professor Dr. Mehmet Kaan İldiz, also touching upon the "randomness" claim frequently emphasized by digital gambling platforms, stated, “The claim of absolute randomness advocated in digital environments is limited to pseudo-random number generation processes at a technical level. Unlike the chaotic and externally influenced randomness in the physical world, software processes rely on algorithmic calculations that proceed from a specific starting value. Although this makes the system appear unpredictable from the outside, since the architectural design of the game and its payout tables are already built upon a probabilistic inequality, this so-called randomness alone does not constitute a guarantee of fairness.”
The design is structured in favor of the system
Assistant Professor Dr. Mehmet Kaan İldiz, emphasizing that the architecture of games and payout tables are inherently built upon a probabilistic inequality from the outset, continued:
“This asymmetry at the design level is the fundamental element guaranteeing the platform's financial sustainability. While potential vulnerabilities in the security layer or poorly designed generators could theoretically increase the system's predictability, the real risk lies not in direct manipulation but in the inherent structural and rule-based advantage the system possesses. The capacity of software processes to influence outcomes manifests not as direct intervention, but rather as the statistical structuring of game rules in favor of the system. In this context, the technical limitations of randomness and the design being structured in favor of the system constitute the primary risk factors faced by the user.”
How do algorithms fuel addiction?
Assistant Professor Dr. Mehmet Kaan İldiz stated that virtual gambling platforms monitor and analyze user behavior in real-time, explaining, “The analysis of user behavior enables platforms to shed their identity as mere game providers and transform into behavior engineering centers. With the opportunities offered by digitalization, platforms possess data infrastructures deep enough to monitor and evaluate users in real-time. Compensation motivation exhibited after losses, risk-increase patterns, and the dopaminergic effects created by small wins are identified through real-time monitoring mechanisms and transformed into personalized incentive strategies.”
Addiction is the product of algorithmic design
Assistant Professor Dr. Mehmet Kaan İldiz stated that these analyses, conducted through metrics such as game durations, exit moments, and bonus usage habits, are supported by micro-interventions, saying, “Micro-interventions implemented in line with the analyses obtained, such as bonuses activated after a loss or the intensification of audiovisual stimuli, suppress the user's rational decision-making mechanisms, thereby increasing in-game retention. This integration of maximum immersion principles from digital game design with the risk factors of gambling evolves gambling behavior from a simple entertainment activity into a systematic habit and addiction cycle. At this point, addiction becomes the product of an algorithmic design so deep that it cannot be explained solely by individual will.”
In the long run, the system is invariably the winner
Assistant Professor Dr. Mehmet Kaan İldiz also assessed why the system is invariably the winner in the long run within the virtual gambling ecosystem, stating, “The system being the absolute winner in the virtual gambling ecosystem in the long run rests upon three fundamental ontological layers. First, there is the concept of mathematical superiority and expected value. Most games are set up asymmetrically through probability and payout tables to work in favor of the platform in long-term statistics. Second, there is the manipulative use of behavioral economics and cognitive biases. Interface designs, such as presenting losses under the guise of wins, distort the user's perception, leading them to misjudge the cost of the game. Third, there is data-driven optimization and a continuously learning algorithmic structure. Platforms collect more data as user interaction increases, optimizing their intervention capabilities. When these three layers combine, while individual success stories remain statistical noise, the system's mathematical and behavioral design guarantees the sustainability of profit. Consequently, while the user continues to play due to the emotional intensity created by moments of winning, the system, with its rational and data-driven structure, makes the transfer of total capital inevitable.”