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Different Slots
By
Henry Tamburin
A
long time ago the single coin slot machine was the only slot machine available
to players in casinos. These machines were simple to understand from the player's
perspective. You put in a coin, pulled the handle, and if the winning symbols
lined up you would win.
Nowadays, the landscape of slot machines has changed dramatically. Although
there appears to be hundreds of different slot machines on a casino floor, they
generally fall into one of these categories of slots.
1. Multipliers
These machines take multiple coins and the number of coins played multiplies
the winning payoffs. For example one cherry on the pay line might pay 2 coins
with one coin played and ten coins with five coins played.
On most multiplier machines the payoffs are proportional to the number of coins
played except for the jackpot. You usually get a bonus payoff for maximum coins
played when you hit the jackpot. For example hitting three 7's on the payline
might pay 100 coins for one coin played but if you play 2 coins you would win
500 coins (instead of 200 coins). The overall return percentage for these machines
includes the bonus jackpot payoff; therefore if a player plays less than maximum
coins the return percentage is lowered. This feature encourages players to bet
the maximum amount on each spin.
There are some machines, however, that pay off in direct proportion to the number
of coins played (e.g. in the above example the machine would pay 200 coins for
2 coins played). With these types of slots, you are not penalized with a lower
return percentage for playing less than the maximum number of coins.
2. Buy a Pay
These types of machines are the most confusing to players. Their characteristic
feature is that each coin played activates a set of jackpot symbols. In essence
when you inset more coins you are "buying" additional jackpot symbols. An example
is a Sizzling 7's machine. If you inserted one coin and three Sizzling 7's showed
on the center payline, you would not win a thing. It's only after you insert
the second coin in these machines that the Sizzling 7's jackpot becomes active
(with one coin played the single bars, double bars, triple bars, etc are active
but not the Sizzling 7's).
It's very important if you play these types of machines that you play the maximum
coins. You would not feel very good if you hit a winning combination or worse
a jackpot, and then discover that you didn't play enough coins and you end up
winning nothing.
How do you recognize a buy-a-pay machine? Check out the payout schedule on the
face of the machine. If you see a different combination of winning symbols when
a second coin is played compared to one coin played, this is a buy-a-pay machine.
3. Nudge machines
On these machines once the reels stop spinning, symbols will move to the center
payline from just above or below it. The most common nudge machine is a version
of Double Diamonds. Some of the bars and diamonds will drop to the payline.
On these machines you could end up with a winning spin even if no winning symbols
appear on the center pay line when the reels first stopped. This is the draw
that gets players to play these machines.
4. Wild pay machine
On these machines you have a chance to double, triple, even five and ten times
the winning payout if a wild symbol lines up on the pay line. If more than one
wild symbol lines up, the payout is multiplied again.
Examples of these types of slots are Double Diamonds, Five and Ten Times Pay,
and Treasure Tunnel. Slot players enjoy playing these machines because they
like to see their winning payoffs multiplied.
5. Second Chance machines
On these newer type slots, players have a second chance to win. The first machines
to offer this concept were the Wheel of Gold and Wheel of Fortune machines.
When a player hits a spin-the-reel symbol on the payline, it activates the wheel
spinning. Players have a shot therefore at winning a bonus amount.
6. Game -Within-a-Game machines
On these machines, a secondary bonus continues to build as a player plays the
machine. A specific event or special symbols start the bonus round and secondary
game. The Odyssey machines popularized the game-within-a-game concept to slot
play.
7. Multiline Video machines
The Australian slot manufacturer, Aristocrat Inc., are the leaders of the nine-line,
45- coin, slots. On these machines players can play from one up to a mind-boggling
45 coins per spin.
8. Progressives
On a progressive machine a percentage of all the coins that are played are added
to a jackpot that increases in value. When a player hits the winning jackpot
symbols, he/she wins the total accumulated in the jackpot. The progressive meter
then resets the jackpot to a minimum payoff. In general casinos have leeway
on what percentage of coins played is added to the jackpot (usually it's between
0.5 to 2%).
There are two types of progressives. The Megabucks and Quartermania are examples
of progressive slots that are linked to other similar machines in different
casinos. By linking the machines, the jackpots often exceed several million
dollars (the record was about $20 million dollars). These progressives are known
in the industry as revenue participation games because the slot manufacture
owns the machine and the casino essentially leases the floor space to them.
The revenue from these machines is shared between the manufacturer and the casino.
The other types of progressives are the multiple progressives like the Cool
Million slots. On these machines you can win any one of three progressive jackpots
by lining up specific symbols corresponding to the winning symbols. Another
plus for Cool Millions is that they guarantee to pay the first million of a
jackpot and the rest in installments (most other progressives pay the jackpot
in installments over 20 years).
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Henry Tamburin is one of America's premier gaming writers and author of 6 best-selling
books. For a free catalog containing his books and videos, call toll free 1-888-353-3234
or visit his web site for more gaming tips at http://www.smartgaming.com.
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