Published on: October 8, 2025, 03:38h.
Updated on: October 8, 2025, 03:38h.
- Jury determines Torch’s “no-chance” games breach Missouri regulations.
- TNT Amusements awarded $500,000 in gray market gaming dispute.
- Ruling may initiate tighter regulations on unregulated video gaming devices.
A federal civil jury in Missouri has mandated that gray market gaming operator Torch Electronics compensates arcade distributor TNT Amusements with $500,000, having ruled that Torch’s games are illegal within the state.
TNT Amusements filed the lawsuit in Missouri state court in 2019, claiming unfair competition and interference with business dealings. They asserted that Torch persuaded establishments to swap TNT’s machines for what they characterized as illegal gambling devices. The issue was escalated to federal court in 2023.
Based in Wildwood, Mo., Torch Electronics maintained that its slot-style machines are compliant with Missouri regulations due to their “no-chance” or “pre-reveal” configurations. This design allows players to view the outcome of the next spin before placing a bet, a feature the firm argues negates the gambling element as per state laws.
Furthermore, the devices follow a predetermined sequence of outcomes rather than relying on a random number generator. Torch’s legal team contended that this structure effectively minimizes the chance element.
Legality? No Chance
However, the jury sided with TNT’s position that the length of the sequence, coupled with the randomized starting point upon restart, rendered it effectively unpredictable. Since players typically engage through multiple spins instead of a single play, they are essentially paying to discover what results will occur in the spin after the next one, which remains unknown.
This case marks the inaugural judicial examination of Missouri’s gray gaming machines’ legality. Although the verdict is civil, it could pave the way for heightened enforcement actions against such devices that have operated within a nebulous legal framework throughout Missouri.
Evidence presented in court indicated that from 2017 to 2023, players invested $32 million into about 100 Torch machines across merely 20 locations, with a reported payout of 65% in winnings. The Missouri Gaming Commission estimates that approximately 15,000 Torch machines are currently in operation statewide.
In contrast to regulated casino operations, Torch’s machines lack oversight from state reporting or taxation, resulting in minimal public scrutiny.
‘Recovery of Millions’
“We appreciate the jury for recognizing Torch’s misleading claims,” stated Mark Finneran, the attorney representing TNT, in a comment to The Missouri Independent. “Following the jury’s verdict, we anticipate pursuing an official ruling from the court regarding the illegality of the Torch devices.”
Finneran further noted that TNT intends to seek the return of millions in profits that Torch accrued through the misleading designation of its machines as ‘no-chance’ games.
Torch is anticipated to contest this ruling.