- How To Play Digital Slot Machines Online
- How To Play The Slots
- How Do You Play Slots
- How To Play Digital Slot Machines
About eighty percent of casino players go straight for the slots when they get into a casino. And why not, they are easy to play, you don’t have to have any special skills, just decide on your wager, spin the reels and wait for a payoff. Read this slots guide to learn something more about these great casino games.
Components of a Slot Machine
A slot machine consists of several components that make up the entire gaming experience. It helps when you understand how it’s put together and what its main components that make it work are, so read carefully.
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How To Play Digital Slot Machines Online
1. Lever – mechanical slot machines have lever, or handles, to the right side for setting the reels in motion. Today, the lever is not used and it is put there mainly as a decorative detail.
2. Pay Table – a slot machine makes a payout according to the payout table. A pay table details important info about the symbols, rules, payouts, bonuses and the jackpot. You will normally find this table at the top of the machine or on the screen itself by pressing a button.
3. Reels – in the old days, reels used to be drums with painted symbols spinning vertically. Today, when slots are mainly electronic and online, the reels are just columns that simulate spinning drums.
4. Cash Tray – land-based slot games make their payouts in real coins. When a payline is triggered, the coins drop in the cash tray in the lower part of the slot.
5. Spin Button – today instead of the handle, video slots have a spin button with which you have to set the reels spinning. Some machines also have an “Auto-Spin” button that will keep on spinning the reels automatically every round until you make it stop.
6. Bet Button – the bet button is used to adjust your wager amount in a game where credits are used instead of coins.
Reading the Payout Tables and Understanding Scatter Symbols and Bonus Rounds
When you open a payout table, you may find 3 to 4 pages with descriptions of the possible symbol combinations, which make the paylines. The first two pages often show the combinations, how many symbols you need to trigger a payline and how much you will be paid out. The rules may be detailed too.
The third page often tells about which are the scatter symbols and wilds and how many you need to activate some feature. Scatter symbols usually portray the main theme of the slot. A scatter symbol doesn’t need to appear on an active payline to trigger a payoff, which is why they are called “scatter”. Usually if three or more scatters appear anywhere on the reels, a bonus feature is activated.
A bonus feature may be consisted of second screen bonus round where usually you’ll need to choose something in order to win some extra cash, or a bonus feature may simply mean a certain number of free spins.
Step-By-Step Instructions
First step: Head to the payout table and read about the payouts, symbols and bonuses
Second step: Decide on your wager and insert your coins or set the credits
Third step: Choose with how many paylines you want to play and how many coins per line
Fourth Step: Press the spin button and wait for the reels to stop
Fifth Step: If a payline has been triggered, you can collect your winnings
Sixth Step: Press the spin button again and wait to be paid out
Playing slots is the simplest way of spending some fun time in a casino. You don’t have to be an expert in gambling to play slots, which is why they are loved by the casual casino players. You can make both very small and very big wagers, depending on the slot, and with little luck, you can hit the jackpot or at least struck a larger win. Never forget to read the pay table before playing.
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The name “Penny Slot” is something of a misnomer. Most people who don't know better might assume that a penny slot costs a penny to play but that's not the case. For decades, the most popular slot machines in U.S. casinos were nickel slot machines. In the late 1960s, Bally Manufacturing developed an innovative machine called the Money Honey, a penny slot that could be played for up to five coins simultaneously. These multi-line machines that accepted multiple coins per line were a hit with players—despite the fact that they were playing more per pull of the one-armed bandit's handle.
The New Penny Slots Offer Extra at a Price
The new penny slot games offer their fair share of electronic excitement with such features as theme songs from popular game shows and movies, bonus screens, and special mystery payoffs. However, all of these extras come at a cost. The most popular games from the Japanese video conglomerate Konami including 'Race Driver' and 'Beat the Field' require a minimum of 50 coins amounting to a dollar per spin. Several other manufacturers have games with up to 16 lines that require up to 100 coins per spin—totaling a whopping 1,600 pennies.
While slot manufacturer IGT offers a penny version of its popular 'Megabucks' game that can be played for just a few pennies, for the standard 'Megabucks' machine, which is a $1 variety, the player must play three coins per spin, or $3. On the new 'Penny Megabucks,' the player is required to play the maximum of 300 coins per spin, so the price is the same.
The Odds Are With The House
These machines are built to be both fun and addictive. They require a minimum number of coins/lines to qualify for the bonus screens (where the bulk of the payoffs are made). Players must make sure to play enough coins/lines to get the payoff when a bonus hits.
For someone to play a 25-cent video poker game, they'll have to play five coins in order to qualify for a 4,000-coin royal flush. That's $1.25 per spin for a chance to win $1,000. On most penny slots offering payoffs of bronze, silver, and gold, the big payoff is much harder to win than the 45,000-to-1 odds on a video poker game. Plus, the player will likely risk $2.50 to $5 per spin to win it. That adds up.
The Psychology of Small Payoffs
How To Play The Slots
Human beings are creatures of habit and thanks to the lure of instant gratification are prone to gamble. When players consistently receive small payoffs, psychology kicks in. The mind tricks itself into believing, 'Great, I'm winning,' when in reality, the player's initial deposit is usually being frittered away to nothing.
Penny slots have the kind of high hit frequency that ropes players in. As fun and exciting as the promise of winning may be, most of the time, the payoff is actually less than the initial wager on a spin. In other words, the bells and whistles go off on a regular basis but for small payoffs. For example, a player might risk something like 100 coins and only get a payoff of 18 coins.
Play Responsibly
The main issue with gambling in general—and penny slots, in particular—is that as a player, you mustn't forget that your personal bankroll is considerably smaller than that of the casino. Bear in mind that if you budget $200 for a trip to a particular casino where playing a penny slot takes 250 coins per spin, you won't get nearly enough spins to make a dent in the long-odds of hitting a substantial jackpot before your bankroll is exhausted.
Fast Facts: Tips for Newbie Penny Slot Players
As with any form of gambling, playing the penny slot machines should be approached with caution.
How Do You Play Slots
- Start by choosing just a few lines or just a single coin per spin.
- It's not recommended for players to automatically hit the maximum spin button.
- Read the help screen to find out how many coins it takes to have a bet on all the lines so you can better decide how many coins and credits to risk per spin.
How To Play Digital Slot Machines
Overall, players should enjoy their slot play, but never forget that gambling is gambling—especially on penny slots. A handful of pennies is still a dollar per spin. If you're playing more per spin, you'll bust-out fairly often—and it can happen very quickly.