Slots, or Slot Machines, are the most popular form of gambling in the world today, with more money being gambled on slots than all other forms of casino games combined.

Often known as “One Armed Bandits” the traditional slot machine has three wheels which spin when a lever (the ‘arm’) is pulled. Slots use random number generators to determine where wheels will stop. To win punters must usually to match the symbols or numbers on the wheels to particular specified patterns.

The random number generators used to determine results on slots can be set by the casino to whatever ratio they like, though they are commonly set to pay out at around 93%, though it can be higher or lower.

History of Slots

The history of slots can be traced back as far as the late 1800’s with their invention often attributed to the Californian Charles Fey. He devised a machine much like today’s ‘one armed bandits’, which had three spinning wheels emblazoned with a total of five symbols: diamonds, spades, hearts, horseshoes and the famous Liberty Bell after which the machine was named. The biggest payoff came from lining up three Liberty Bells in a row, which paid ten nickels. The game proved a huge success and spawned a huge industry in mechanical gaming.

You may be interested to know that another early slot machine paid out winnings in chewing gum, and featured the gum’s various flavours pictured on the wheel. This is where today’s still popular cherry and melon symbols derive from. Similarly the commonly seen BAR symbol derived from an early logo for the “Bell-Fruit Gum Company”.