Slot machines are one of the nation’s favourite pastimes. Across the UK there are over 40 million active online casino accounts. To put that into perspective, there are just under six million golfers and around 55 million people who watch football each year.
But while all of us are well aware of how the beautiful game works, less can be said around the functionality of slot machines, as well as boosting your chances of being successful on them.
Understanding Casino Slot Machines: How They Work
Getting to grips with how online slot machines work in particular is invaluable for anyone who enjoys a spin on them. It can often be the difference between managing your bankroll effectively and losing more than you would like.
The main thing to understand about online slots, and indeed ones you find in real-life casinos, is that they are completely random and any one spin has just as much chance of winning, or indeed losing, as the next. This is possible through the use of a random number generator (RNG), and every online casino that’s regulated by the UK Gambling Commission must have slots that use RNGs that are approved by them.
Wherever you find your slots, whether it be through popular casino review sites on Slotsjudge.com or simply heading to your favourite online casinos, games will also be influenced by two key features, their return to player (RTP) and variance.
RTP, or return to player, indicates how much can be expected to be returned in the long term, making it an important benchmark when choosing a slot. The variance, in turn, reflects the level of risk: slots with low variance are more likely to produce small wins, while high variance games can bring large payouts, but less often. Therefore, it is important to consider both of these parameters to find a slot that suits your playing style and expectations.
The Technology of Slot Machines work
Among the main parts of technology to take note of when it comes to slots are around the likes of random number generators and what RTP and variance means for your gaming.
- Random number generators: Online slots use RNGs to ensure they are fair. Essentially they ensure that every spin has the same likelihood of winning or losing. So, even if you were to get a payout on one spin, you’d have the exact same chance as the next.
They work by creating random number sequences every millisecond, which match different symbols on the reels. When a player spins, the RNG kicks into action and produces the symbols we then see on our screens.
- Return to player: This is a percentage you’ll find on every slot machine. You can usually find this in the game settings or info. The percentage reflects the amount of money that is given back to players as prizes from what is put into it. The RTP is an average that is delivered over a prolonged period of gaming, not per session and is generally measured over between 10,000 and 100,000 games.
However, it can prove a good barometer for players, with the higher the RTP the more chance a slot will payout. Typically you should look for slots in the mid-90s, percent-wise.
- Variance: Also referred to as slot volatility, variance is a signal of the deviation of payouts that a player will see when playing slots. Typically slots are broken down into three brackets, high, low and medium.
The UK Gambling Commission describes the differences as: “A highly volatile game will have a larger tolerance and might be comprised of prizes falling into the ‘very large but rare’ category. A low volatility game will be much more predictable and mostly comprised of prizes falling into the ‘small and often’ category.”
Again, this is calculated over a longer period, so there are exceptions within short term sessions, such as hitting the jackpot on a low volatility slot.
Tips on How to Win at Progressive Online Slot Machines
By understanding the above, you can start to improve your chances of picking up some money, both through the knowledge acquired and a few tips and tricks of the trade.
- Practice in Demo Mode
Understanding the slots you’re playing is really important, so before you play for real money, practice in demo mode. This can give you insights into things like the bonus rounds as well as general gameplay and means you’ll have a better idea of bets to place and how to manage your bankroll.
- Bet the Maximum Coin Size
What people often don’t realise is often with slots the jackpot can only be triggered if you place the maximum bet. This is because you’re playing a higher pay table when you bet the maximum coin size, so as a result the payback percentage increases.
- Find the Lowest Edge
Analysing the RTP of a slot is a must. Essentially, you want to find the slots with the lowest house edge, and therefore picking slots with higher RTPs will improve your chances of a payout. Typically, you want to be looking for slots with an RTP of 96% or higher. You can find some as high as 99%.
Investopedia succinctly describes what the house edge is: “The house edge represents the average gross profit that the casino can reliably expect to make from each game. On the games with the lowest house edge, a casino might be generating a meagre profit of anywhere from around 0.5% to a bit over 2%. On other games, it may make profits of anywhere from 15% to 40%.”
Therefore, it is important to limit the profit made by the casino and in the short term, try to make it profit in your own pockets.
- Play the Maximum Payline
With some slots you can choose the number of paylines you wish to play. It’s perhaps common sense to suggest that the more paylines that are open, the better chance you have of symbols producing a winning combination. Note, though, that it does increase your bet size to open more paylines.
- Limit Your Time
One of the single biggest things that can affect your chances of winning or losing is you, yourself. You should always play slots when you are fresh, awake and fully concentrated, so limiting your session time to periods when you aren’t tired, or switching off if you start to become tired is a must. Gaming fatigue can lead to bad decision making and is, effectively, gambling irresponsibly.
- Set Win Limits
You know the saying, “quit while you’re ahead”. Well that more than applies when it comes to playing slots. It’s all well and good claiming a big win, but if you’re then putting it back into the slot, it’s all a bit pointless. Set yourself win limits and don’t be afraid to take the money and run. You’re only going to be able to enjoy your winnings if you cash out, after all.
- Have Fun
Finally, playing casino games is a pastime and we should enjoy our pastimes. If playing slot machines stops becoming fun, then you should stop. Gamble responsibly, play within your means and enjoy playing. Things like chasing losses isn’t fun and can lead to further damage, so play within your means, set yourself limits and enjoy your sessions.
Making the Most of Online Slots
Ultimately, like anything, knowledge is power and understanding how slot machines work will certainly hold you in good stead. What’s perhaps most important to note is that winning is never a guarantee. Reels are random but what you can do is ensure you’re in the best position to win, by being fully focused, knowledgeable about a game and you’re doing the right things to trigger the jackpot.
Do that, and you at the very least put yourself in with a chance.
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