John Merrow Although you might not think so, the slot machine is a very old pastime. Suffice it to say that this is a game that originated at the turn of the 19th and early 20th century.
Back then, slots consisted of five mechanical reels, lit by electricity. So, certainly not as we know them!
Slot machines, although innovative in the gaming industry, were not a particularly popular game (in the true sense of the word). They appeared rather boring and, on balance, almost impossible to beat.
The evolution that led to the different types of slot machines
playing a slot vltThe real turning point came in the 1970s: with the advent of information technology in the global culture, slot machines were able to benefit from the inclusion of computers and later more and more complex software.
From then on, giant steps were taken!
The single coin type of slots
These machines are very hard to find today, as they have become a bit obsolete with the introduction of slots that accept notes or more coins per spin.
Once upon a time, however, they went from coin to coin and the spin was performed only by operating the iconic metal arm on the right side of the slot.
The more nostalgic can still find them in Las Vegas, as many casinos retain them as an iconic feature.
These slots generally consisted of three reels and only had a single payline in the middle.
Slots with multipliers
A slot that accepts more than one credit at a time and relates the payout to the credits entered is generally referred to as a multiplier.
These slots made their debut in the late 1980s and provided a way for each player to raise their credit per spin.
Up to this point, a slot that accepted one coin and paid out a given combination (hypothetically) $5, would then pay out the same combination $10 with the insertion of two coins.
Multi-payline slots
Over the years, manufacturers have introduced slots that offer more than one payline in order to provide more action to the player. Usually, each additional payline requires the activation of another credit.
In casinos, a player could usually find slot machines with only a few paylines. With the advent of online slots, however, paylines are sometimes 10, 25 or 50.
Playing on more paylines does not actually increase the chances of winning, but rather increases the chance of collecting multiple combinations.
The most classic category of slots: with wild and scatter symbols
Slots with wild symbols are perhaps one of the most modern and popular slot categories. Wild” symbols (which we could simply translate as “joker”) are generally used to replace the various symbols that the player needs to complete a winning line.
If, hypothetically, we players hit the slots and 3 identical poker symbols and a wild symbol appear on a payline on which we have bet, it will be as if we had collected 4 poker symbols on that line and the slot will award us a payout equal to that combination.
A “parallel” category to the wild symbols are the scatter symbols, which – especially in online slots – with their multiple appearances (generally three scatter symbols appearing across the screen and not necessarily on a line is sufficient) allow the player to play “alternative games” where the slot will be inclined to pay out more.
Often there can be slots with both wild and scatter symbols.
These top symbols have always been one of the features that ignite the action and make the game exciting. Of course you can only find them in the best online slots by searching through the offerings of Gioco Digitale.
