(2) Or maybe it’s just a psychological trick because slots are designed to keep giving “small wins” to make us feel engaged?
That’s one way of putting it. In slots, we often are misguided into thinking we are close to winning but the truth is not really. There’s no close or far but we still think there’s a pattern that can somehow show us whether we’re close or not. But in parlays either you win or you don’t. You don’t get consolation prizes.