Slots have been around for nearly a
century and in that time, a variety of slot machine types have emerged for
us to enjoy. There are the traditional, lever-pulling,
coin-receiving slot machines. There are also video slot machines and
those with progressive payouts. You can find games offering a wide
array of denominations- anywhere from penny slot machines to ten
dollar slot machines, the denomination going even higher for
private, “high roller” sections. Games you find on the floor will
vary in color, size, shape and noise but on the inside, slots are
slots and relatively similar to one another. The combinations that
turn up in patterns and pictures on either the screen or the wheels
in front of you are determined by computer programming called a
Random Number Generator, or a RNG. Most states (in the United
States) require that slot machines payout a certain percentage of
the funds they receive back to the players- called a Minimum Payout.
Minimum Payouts can range anywhere from 85-92%, depending on the
area you are gambling. If the minimum payout is 90% for example, the
slot machine must payback in winnings $90 for every $100 it receives in
wagers.
When differing between machines, the most obvious
differentiation will be the physical appearance of the machine. Many
slots will still have the lever on the side, the appendage earning
slots the nickname of “one-armed bandits,” for their ability to
strip players of their money. These often will include the three
rotating wheels in the center, though with technology advancing as
it does, a grand amount have computer screen substituting for the
reels and simulating the rotations instead. Even those with physical
wheels turning are not doing so by mechanism anymore, and are indeed
controlled by computers. The reels are activated with the push of a
“Play” button, rather than the lever on the side. Traditional slot
machines are also limited by the number of combinations that can
win; they are often restricted to three of a kind down the center
row. Slots that offer a computer/ video screen can have more
paylines to possibly win on, and in greater patterns, allowing
diagonals and other patterns. Payout rates will vary on these
additional options, and over a long period of time, the chances of
winning are not actually different that on traditionals.
An additional difference among slot machine variances is
the amounts you are able to bet, and whether your betting choices
affect your chances at winning. Conventional slots machines, those
with physical wheels turning, typically allow a maximum of five
paylines possible (depending on how old said machine is.) So, the
max bet on a machine such as this would include the top, middle, and
bottom rows and the two diagonals- a total of max bet five times the
wager (so if it’s a quarter slot machine, max bet would be $1.25.)
If a winning combination is hit on any of these lines, then you win.
Typically, for machines that are set up in this way, the more money
you bet, the more chances you have to win, and the more often you
will win. Some video slot machines will offer up to 20 or 25
paylines.
Contrary to this, there are progressive slot machines.
With traditional machines, your extra bets, those that don’t win,
are lost and you must hope that you win more often than you don’t.
On progressive slot machines, your extra bets go into a bank of
sorts, for the machines, or sometimes for a group of machines all
linked to the same game. At some point, some complicated,
predetermined combination will be hit (initially or off a bonus game
earned in another manner) and a jackpot winner will get all that
extra money. The longer the game(s) go without a jackpot win, the
longer the extra money accrues, and the larger the progressive
jackpot grows. A display usually above the machine or in the center
of a group will advertise the amount in the progressive bank. Both
mechanical and video variants of slots can be programmed to be
progressive. |
