Slot machines are one of the most popular forms of casino games out there, making up at least 70% of a casino’s entire income, and taking up the majority of the floor space. The online casino at Paddy Power is just one example of how slot machines have developed into the incredible, immersive adventures they are today, and how – since the very first slot machine was developed in 1891 – the variety of games available has now skyrocketed.
Read on to find out more.
The first Poker machine
The very first slot machine was developed by a New York based company called Sittman and Pitt in 1981. This comprised of five drums and 50 playing cards. Players would insert their money and pull the lever to play. This would activate a spring and rotate the cards across the reels. The aim of the game was to line up Poker hands, and in order to increase the house edge, two cards were removed – the jack of hearts and the ten of spades. With no automated payout mechanism, prizes were collected in the form of free drinks and cigars at the bar where the machine was found.
The Liberty Bell
Charles Augustus Fey is widely known as the inventor of the slot machine, with his creation of The Liberty Bell sometime between 1887 and 1895. This machine allowed for automated payouts, but in order to do this the machine was simplified. The five drums were replaced with just three, and the playing cards were replaced with five symbols – hearts, diamonds, spades, horseshoes and a liberty bell – the latter rewarding the highest payout.
Fruit Machines
In 1902, slot machines were banned, but The Liberty Bell continued to be manufactured. In order to make use of the popular machines, prizes were rewarded in the form of sweets and chewing gum. The machines now featured fruit symbols to correspond with the flavour of your prize, and the ‘BAR’ symbol was added, as it was based on the logo of the Bell-Fruit company – the company who provided many of the prizes.
Electromechanical Slots
Money Honey was the name of the first electromechanical slot, developed in 1964. Players would still start gameplay by pulling a lever, despite there no longer being a use for a spring. The machine featured a bottomless hopper, providing payouts of up to 500 coins.
Video Slots
In 1976-1978, the first video slot was developed using a 19-inch Sony TV. The game Fortune Coin was featured, allowing players to experience themed games for the very first time.
In 1996, Reel ‘Em was produced. It was the first video slot to feature a second screen bonus round, where additional payouts could be won.
Online Casinos
The mid-90s also saw the boom of the internet, with online casinos revolutionising the way we play games. It didn’t take long before slot games were available to play online, which opened the doors for developers to get creative and produce a variety of stand-out themed games. Popular titles from the machines in bars and pubs were adapted for online gameplay, and as technology advanced, so did the complexity of the games. In the modern day, it’s estimated that there are over 7500 different slot games worldwide.
Megaways
In 2015, Australia-based development studio Big Time Gaming hit the market with Megaways. The first game to feature these futuristic mechanics was called Dragon Born, but it wasn’t until the launch of Bonanza in 2016 that they took the slot world by storm. Modern technology allowed for the creation of this random wheel modifier, which has the ability to change the number of symbols that appear on each reel during a single spin. With six reels, seven symbols and incredible mechanics, slot games have truly been revolutionised with the Megaways mechanics available on a massive variety of games, providing up to 117,649 mega-ways to win!
