Researchers warn a new wave of simulated gambling applications are aiming to hit the jackpot with a new generation of younger gamers.

Gambling researchers say some games are deliberately designed to appeal to kids as young as 12 and they are seeing more young people trying gambling because of the ease of access brought about by the internet.

In 1999, research from Southern Cross University found among adults online gaming was only 0.6 per cent of the market, compared to 8.6 per cent now.

Former gambling addict Dylan Gee was just 17 when he became hooked.

“A pop up came up on the screen that was for gambling for poker machines and I clicked on that… and basically it went from there,” he said.

“It started off just here and there but then it became a big thing all the time and that was before I was 18.

“So by the time I turned 18 that led on to me wanting to go play the real poker machines.”

The consequences of his addiction were immediate and he says it led him to “a very dark place”.

“I lost lots of money, the house that I was renting… it led to crime and other substance abuse like drugs and alcohol.”

But there is light at the end of the tunnel and he says he is now on the road to recovery, living at the One80TC rehabilitation centre in Sydney’s outskirts.

The facility deals with all kinds of addiction. The centre’s manager Gail Davies says a gambling problem can often be invisible.

“We’re not seeing necessarily the gambling issues as a primary issue, it’s the other things that we see first that people are willing to bring out in the open,” she said.

“For some of these guys it seems like gambling is not a cool addiction to have and so I think that’s why they’re not always willing to disclose that when they first come in to the program.”

Gambling games prove successful on smartphones

The University of Adelaide’s Dr Daniel King has found a significant proportion of people aged 12 to 17 played simulated gambling games on the internet.

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