Slot Game

Have you ever stopped playing slots for long enough to ponder their success? These games have paytables that tell us how many coins are on offer for achieving certain combinations of symbols, of course. Many people like to play to see if they can achieve those aims. However, this does not explain the number of people who may simply try the games for entertainment, without making any real bets on them as they play.

We thought we would look at various potential reasons why slots have proven successful over the years, especially since making their way online.

There is always a chance to scoop prizes

We know this, of course, if we make proper bets on them with real money. If we play simply for fun, using the fun coins the slot provides in most cases, we will not secure anything other than fun coins in return. For some, this is enough, as it is enjoyment that they seek rather than anything else.

Of course, most people who are eager to play slots will be thinking of the chances of getting access to those jackpot amounts we all know and love. Even if a slot does not offer a progressive jackpot, it will still offer top prizes for attaining the most difficult to find combinations. And who would turn down the chance to try and search for those?

No strategy involved (for the most part)

It is rare to find a slot machine that gives us the chance to employ a strategy of some kind. Of course, we might encounter a game that offers us a selection of bets and lines to consider. We then get the chance to see how many lines we would like to bet on and for how much, to suit our budget and appetite.

But as for the game itself, we simply spin the reels and see what happens. It is rare to find a game that offers us anything else. It means we do not need to be experts in how to play. We should know how slots work, of course, so we understand the game we are going to play. However, unlike blackjack, where we must decide whether to stick with the cards we have or to choose another one… and possibly go bust doing so… we do not get any such decisions to make in slots. That makes the game easier to play.

Accessible to many people

Provided we are old enough to sign up and play at an online casino, we can expect to enjoy plenty of slots to play. It is no longer necessary to sit at a PC or Mac and play, either. We can get access to these games on our smartphones and tablets too. That means we could be anywhere from sitting at our dining table to relaxing in bed, to being on the beach, or sitting in a coffee shop somewhere. Even passing the time waiting for a dentist appointment suddenly becomes more entertaining when you know you can visit an online casino on your smartphone.

You can usually play just for fun

Lots of people play slots for fun nowadays. You can’t do this if you choose the regular one-armed bandits in real casinos and bars, but it is possible if you select the online option. These versions are exactly like the paid ones, except they give you demo coins to play with. There could be a finite amount of them, but you might win more demo coins to keep things going for longer. The game will play just the same as the regular one, which means you can also see how it works and figure out if you might eventually want to place a real bet or two.

But some people just want to enjoy these games without betting anything on them. Since there are so many diverse slots to choose from, it makes sense this would be the case. Indeed, there are slot-based sites around today that provide dozens if not hundreds of slots to play, with no need to bet anything on them. The sites are provided on this basis, so while you need an account to play, you will not be required to deposit anything. The onus is on fun and nothing else. There are occasionally apps you can download onto your phone or tablet that work the same way.

There are thousands of slots to choose from

Thousands? Yes, thousands… some slot sites have hundreds on offer from a handful of providers alone, and there are plenty of software developers out there creating games we all love playing. No doubt you are aware of some of the names in this business. Microgaming, Playtech, Betsoft, Rival Gaming, RTG, Wager Gaming… there are many other big names we could mention too. Many of them have collections going well into three figures now, with new titles coming out every month as well.

That means everyone is sure of finding slots they know they will enjoy. If you look around online today, it never takes long to find some games you will love, even if you never intend to do anything other than play them for fun.

Slots are packed with special symbols

While the most basic slots require you to spin three identical symbols onto the same line to get a prize, many games do have symbols that are more important than others. Some are wild, enabling them to stand in for other symbols. Some are scatters, awarding scatter prizes no matter where they drop onto the reels. Still more have bonus symbols, free spin symbols, and occasionally other special symbols as well. Creators are always trying to come up with something new, so it is no huge surprise to play newer games and find there are elements included that you haven’t seen before.

Even with familiar icons such as wilds, there are numerous ways they can be used. For instance, wilds can expand on their reels or expand in other directions. They can freeze in place, perhaps offering a re-spin for free. They might also multiply in number or be randomly added to the reels following a spin by one of the characters in the game. Some slots carry several wilds with them as special features, while others may simply appear as multipliers. Find a multiplier wild to help you form a winning line and your prize is multiplied by the value you see on the screen.

Choose from dozens of unusual and familiar themes

Slot game themes are fascinating to look at. Some have proven hugely successful over time and even today there are new slots based on those themes that continue to be released. No doubt you have visited ancient Egypt, the Mayan temples, Oriental settings, outer space, a gold mine, a forest, an underwater setting… these are just a few of the familiar settings that crop up regularly in slot games.

But for all the famous settings you might have seen before, there are many less- familiar ones around too. You might encounter unusual themes occasionally, such as the steampunk theme that cropped up recently. Of course, since that early attempt with the theme proved to be popular, other providers have now had a go at developing slots on the steampunk theme too.

Sometimes, you might see two themes thrown together to see what happens. Magic might be put together with gems to provide a new twist on a game. In other examples, different elements of a theme might be used to create unusual bonuses or other features that you won’t have seen before.

Slots now have more than just three or five reels

The classic three-reel slot is still very popular among many players. While some find it far too basic and dull – at least to play for long – it has a core group of fans that keep it going. Even today, though, we’ve seen some software developers tweak the original three-reel, one-line slot to deliver some more unusual elements. The three reels may include three positions on each instead of one. This makes it possible to add more lines and more possibilities with the available icons in play.

The five-reel slot has more room for paylines and offers you the chance to spot more things happening on the reels, too. For instance, you might find reels do strange things or that the icons on them disappear and are replaced by others. If various symbols appear in the right order, we might have something else to look forward to as well…

And of course, we also get the chance to find a few slots with four or six reels in action. They may not be very common, but they are out there, providing yet another fascinating riff on the usual slot game experience. Can you find seven-reel slots too? We have.

Slot games also provide us with bonuses of varying kinds

Bonuses are popular among many players. They can mean we win some free spins or manage to trigger a bonus of some kind. Bonuses are presented in lots of ways. Some might occur on the reels, especially if the bonus requires us to pick a triggering symbol to find out what happens next or how many coins we’ll win. Other bonuses occur on other screens, and that means we could experience anything from a simple picking game to a battle, depending on the theme.

You can see there are countless reasons why a slot game is probably the most popular casino game around today. They are decades old and have arguably become more popular still thanks to the internet. Do you love slots? If so, why are they your favorite game?