If you’re a huge fan of the one-armed bandit, then you should know you’re not alone. There are actually millions of people like you around the world, some of whom play slots in their favorite land-based casinos while others get their fix by playing online. Wherever you decide to play slots on, whether online or in a land-based casino, there are a few things you need to know about these machines.
Aside from the fact that they are the most popular games for gamblers, they are also the biggest earners for most casinos. It has been said that 85% of a casino’s earnings come from slots. These machines operate with the help of a random number generator (RNG) and are easy to operate via a button or the pull of a lever. There are a lot of other fun facts that most people don’t know about the slot machine. Here are some of them:
Slot machines are not as bad as their moniker makes them out to be
The term “one-armed-bandit” does not come from nowhere. This comes from the fact that people tend to lose more than win on these machines, and why some casino pundits warn people against them.
What some people don’t realize is that this nickname doesn’t really fit the machines of today. Slot machines now give people a higher chance of returns than they did in the past. If you were to look at the RTPs of newer machines, both online and in real casinos, these have return to player percentages in the 90th percentile. If you really want a big chance at winning on these machines, choose machines that have 96% or higher RTPs.
Slot machines actually don’t have a tally of how many jackpots they’ve paid out
Some players tend to steer clear of machines that have paid lots of jackpots recently. This is because of the belief that these machines will only dispense of so many jackpots in its lifetime. What they don’t realize is that these machines actually don’t have a tracker for how many people have won on them.
This means you have an equal chance of hitting it big on the machine as the person who just vacated it. The superstition of hot and cold machines is not real. This was brought about by players in the past who believe that you have to fill up a machine with coins before it’s ready to dispense anything for you to win. This belief stems from the idea that when a machine has currently given out a jackpot, that it won’t be doing that again anytime soon since it has just emptied itself, so to speak.
Old slots and new slots have very little in common
If you’re still thinking about how low your odds are of winning on slot machines because of how old slot machines used to just gobble up coins, think again. Slot machines in the past have very little in common with the newer machines apart from the name. The slot machines in the past only allowed you to win on a single payline. Newer machines allow you to win from up to thousands of paylines and this is due to the new technology used with it.
Now slot machines don’t rely on levers, physical reels, and hoppers to operate. These can be operated using computerized systems, random number generators, and have touchscreens that allow you to increase your chances of winning. In the past, slot machines usually had only three reels. Nowadays, they can have up to 10 reels, depending on their design.
You can become an instant millionaire with a single click
Yes, slot machines these days can make you rich in just a single minute. As long as you’re lucky enough to hit the jackpot, machines that have progressive jackpots can reward you with millions of dollars in winnings. The main reason why progressive jackpot slots get to accumulate such huge jackpots is because these machines are connected with others like it all around the world.
The winnings that you can get from these machines start at a base amount and this increases as time goes by. As long as no one hits the jackpot, the amount goes up until it reaches astronomical heights. As with any slot machine, people can hit the jackpot here at any time. A person can win the accumulated jackpot in one part of the world and another person can win the base amount jackpot immediately after, if the odds are in their favor.
Reasons Why Slot Machines are the Most Popular Among Gambling Games
There are lots of reasons why slot machines are very popular and comprise the biggest earnings for casinos. Here are some of the reasons why these machines are as addictive as can be:
Easy to play – What is there to understand about playing slots? All you have to do is put in money, spin the reels, and hope for a winning combination. There are no complex rules for you to learn or follow. There are no complicated game moves that you have to know or practice in order to play.
It’s a singular game – When you play slots, you don’t have to play with other people. You can play it on your own. There are no dealers and other players that you need to worry about. You are playing by yourself and you can play as much or as little as you want.
You can play as continuously as you want – As long as you have enough credits for the machine, you can play for hours on end. This means you won’t have to wait too long for the next round or the next results. You can spin the reels up to 600 times in a single hour, which is a difficult feat to replicate on any other casino game. On roulette, the most you can do is 100 spins in one hour. On blackjack, the most number of games you can play in a single hour is 200.
Things to Remember When Playing Slot Machines
If there is one thing to remember when it comes to these machines is that they are very addictive. The ease in which you can play and the other factors that make it the most popular game in any casino is what make it addictive. If you don’t want to spend hours on end spinning the reels, you need to practice some restraint and set some rules for your gameplay. To avoid any possibility of playing beyond what you can readily afford, here are some rules you should follow:
Set a limit for how much you will be spending on your game– When you play slots, you have to make it a point to set a limit to how much you will be spending on it. Win or lose, keep to the amount that you set for your gaming. If you set $100 for your game for the week, leave it at that. Don’t try to chase what you’ve lost in the hopes that you can make back the money.
Try not to play on dollar machines – Try to stretch your bankroll by playing on smaller machines. Dollar slots can easily eat up your $100, leaving you wanting for more. If you play on quarter machines or choose smaller coin denominations on online slot machines, you will be able to stretch your money longer. You also get more chances of increasing your money by betting small amounts on slots than big amounts on it. You can slowly build your winnings at these smaller machines over time than you can hope to win big right away on dollar machines.
Divide your bankroll into portions for easy manageability– If you divide your $100 bankroll into four or five parts, you can stretch your gameplay and enjoyment. You can even get to try many different machines this way instead of just one machine that can eat up all your money. Once one portion of your bankroll is consumed, hold off for fifteen minutes or so before using the next portion on the same machine or on another machine. This way, you don’t spend more than you can readily afford on your gaming.
The trick to playing smart on slot machines is to not set your expectations too high and to stick to your budget. Try to win that jackpot today with what you can readily afford. If you don’t win, come back another day when you have extra for the machines again. This way, you don’t find yourself in debt because of gambling and it doesn’t become a problem for you or your family.
