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What is the definition of casino slots games?

What the definition of casino slots games?

Table of contents

  1. 💬A history of slot games
  2. ✨The key features of any casino slot game
  3. 💡Popular types of Slot Games
  4. 🎯Popular slot game features & bonuses
  5. ✅Slot games facts or fiction?

Are you new to casino slot games? Do you want to know about slots, their features, benefits and separate the fact from the fiction?

If so, then check out our look at casino slot games, exploring a little about their history and development, to the key features of modern-day slots, popular slot game types and lastly we will examine some of the frequently reported ‘facts’ about slots, many of which are not facts at all! Let’s begin with a look at the history of slot games. 

A history of slot games

The first slot game was the Liberty Bell game, invented in 1895 by American Charles Fey. It was an automated slot that awarded prizes of free drinks or cigarettes. It proved to be a huge success, and soon, Fey struggled to keep up with the orders coming in for his machines from outlets all over the United States. 

Over the years, the games changed to machines that could pay out cash prizes, and they continued to grow in popularity in casinos, bars, and sports clubs. By the 1970s, casinos began to link machines together in the first example of syndicated slot games, and they became electronic, with microchips in the late 70s and early 80s. 

However, the modern era of slots began with the development of online casinos, which allowed slot games to develop in previously impossible ways. Slot games now generate considerably more income for casinos than any other form of casino entertainment. In 2023, slots generated an annual revenue of over $35 billion for casinos, whereas table games generated $10.3 billion. 

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The key features of any casino slot game

A modern casino slot, whether in a real-world casino or online, can be very different from older-style slot games. However, they still have some key identifying features. 

  • Players select their stake from a pre-defined amount.
  • Most slot games comprise of reels, though the number of reels can be different from game to game, but most games are between three and five reels. 
  • The number of symbols displayed on screen can vary from game to game as can the number and composition of pay lines. Other slots operate on a ‘ways to win’ system.
  • Each slot has a Return to Player (RTP) percentage. A theoretical amount which shows how much of the total money the slot takes in should, in theory, be returned to players as winnings over the lifetime of the slot game. 
  • Winnings from a slot game are usually stated as a multiplier of your original stake. So if you play for £1 per spin and land a pay line that pays 2.5x your bet, you would win £2.50 on that pay line. 
  • Independently of the RTP, a slot game may also have a stated volatility. Low volatile slots generate a higher number of winning spins, but each win pays out a smaller amount. High volatile slots generate fewer wins typically, but the value of wins tend to be higher. 
  • The outcome of the spin is decided at random through a device known as a random number generator (RNG). 

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Popular types of Slot Games

Now that we understand the key features of what makes a casino slot game. Let’s now look at the different types of slot games you can find. These games are available in both real-world casinos and also online casinos. 

  • Progressive Jackpot Slots

These are slots where a small amount of every wager on the slot goes into one or more jackpot prizes, which are only triggered on rare occasions. Some of these progressive jackpots can run into several millions. Others can be smaller amounts but may be triggered much more frequently. 

  • Retro Slots

Retro games are slots that tend to have symbols and/or features that hark back to the golden era of slots, featuring symbols such as cherries, melons, lemons, bells, bar symbols and similar. 

  • Video Slots

Most online slot games are video slots in that they are displayed on screen. This is a catch-all phrase that covers the vast majority of modern slots.

  • TV & Film Tie In Slots

These are slot games which are based on famous TV shows or films and which often have features pertaining to key characters or incidents in the film or TV show. 

  • Syndicated Slots

These are slots that comprise a number of games, often on a similar theme, linked together in a series. Often, they will have a shared progressive jackpot that can be won on any of the syndicated games. However, the individual games in the syndicate can be very different and have different features. 

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Popular slot game features & bonuses

Some of the top features you can find on modern casino slots include:

  • Wild Symbol
  • Scatter Symbol
  • Free Spins Bonus
  • Other Bonus Games
  • Gamble Feature on Winnings
  • Win Both Ways
  • Megaways
  • Cluster Pays
  • Expanding Wilds
  • Cascading Reels

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Slot games facts or fiction?

People have many erroneous, misunderstood, or misinformed beliefs about slot games. Below we havel highlighted some of the most commonly held beliefs about slot games. We have then explored whether they are fact or fiction!

  • Slot Games Will Run Either “Hot” or “Cold” Depending on the Amount It Generates - Fiction!

As winnings are random, slot game wins can appear to be clustered together, or far apart at any time. The slot game has no means by which to influence how often, or how much, it pays out.

  • Slots only pay out once you have spent a certain amount of money on it. - Fiction!

You are as likely to win money on your first spin on a slot as you are your 1000th. The outcome of a spin is entirely random. 

  • An RTP of 96% means that for every £100 in bets on a slot, I should win back £96 - Fiction!

The RTP percentage of a slot is calculated across billions of spins, across the lifetime of the slot. Even £100 worth of spins is a tiny fraction of that which means the payouts you receive may not be anything like the RTP suggests. 

  • After a big payout, a slot won’t pay out any more high value prizes until it has recouped some cash - Fiction!

As we have said, every spin on a slot is random. If you win a jackpot, you are equally as likely to win the jackpot on the next spin after the win, as you are any other. 

Casino slots offer a massive choice of games to suit all kinds of punters. With thousands to choose from, why not see if you could win when you spin?

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