The NSW government's tranche of gambling reforms comes after federal Labor was heavily criticised for not going far enough to minimise gambling harms in its own overhaul.
The changes move closer toward cashless poker machines, a third-party exclusion scheme in venues and broader prohibitions on gambling advertisements on government and council property.
Gambling should be regulated, not pushed to the fringes, Gaming Minister David Harris said.
"People will always have gambling problems, but we have a responsibility to make it as safe as we possibly can and have the supports in place," he said on Tuesday.
A headline reform surrounding cashless gaming attracted immediate criticism from harm minimisation representatives.
Cashless gaming was a key recommendation of a state crime commission report which found about $95 billion in dirty cash was laundered through machines during the 2020/21 financial year.
However, Mr Harris confirmed the state was not planning on making account-based gaming mandatory any time soon.
Wesley Mission CEO Reverend Stu Cameron, who contributed to the government's gaming reform panel, said voluntary measures would not adequately help problem gamblers.
"Voluntary account-based gambling leaves the door wide open for people experiencing serious harm to continue gambling without the safeguards we know can and will make a difference," he said.
He also pushed the government to extend a mandatory poker machine shutdown from midnight to 10am.
Mr Harris also announced a third-party exclusion scheme would allow loved ones, venues and police to apply to ban patrons from certain hotels and clubs under a single state system.
Mandatory facial recognition expected by 2028 would support its implementation, and existing self-reporting systems, with the onus to provide and monitor cameras left with venues.
The announcement indicated the move would additionally support police investigations into criminal gaming and money laundering.
Mr Harris shirked questioning surrounding privacy, saying recognition "already happens".
The government also set its sights on increasing the forfeiture rate of NSW's 87,000 poker machines.
One in two machine entitlements traded between venues will be permanently removed, up from one in three.
Mr Harris said the state's "vibrancy reforms", released in stages since 2023, would support venues away from gaming profits.
ClubsNSW told AAP it was reviewing the announcement to assess member impact.
"ClubsNSW has long advocated for reforms that strike the balance between minimising harm and empowering patrons to make informed choices ... it is imperative any reforms are cost-effective, proportionate and practical for clubs to implement," it said.
Inner West Mayor Darcy Byrne, who put a motion before NSW Labor's conference demanding decisive gambling action last month, said the reforms did not go far enough.
"Labor members voted for a significant reduction in poker machines, but based on current trends, this plan would lead to just a few hundred of NSW's 87,000 machines being decommissioned each year," he said.
"Under this proposal, the NSW would remain the world champion of poker machine prevalence for years to come, with only a tiny reduction in the number of machines and no timeline for reviewing and reducing the hours of operation."
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