We’re betting some of you may only know slot machines, or fruit machines as they’re called in the UK, or pokies as they’re know in Australia, from nostalgic memories of standing in smoky pubs or cafes, or garish amusement arcades or casinos with their flashing lights and strange customs and language.

However, maybe you didn’t know there’s a whole other side to playing slots which involves none of the above – the world of online slots. Or perhaps you were already well aware of this but weren’t sure about using online slots or how to go about it. Or perhaps you have even used online slots before enough times but are curious to know more, or for a little support and confirmation that your hobby is a worthwhile one…

If any of these apply to you, it’s definitely worth keeping a short slot free, if you’ll pardon the pun, to read on as we’ll be providing you with some very useful information.

A little bit of history…

‘Slots’ can trace their routes back to the early poker machines of the 1890s, closely followed by the ‘Liberty Bell’ 3-reel machines invented by Charles Fey of San Francisco.

Through the course of the 20^th century, further developments occurred, one of the most significant being the emergence of the electromechanical machine, developed by Bally in the 1960s – the same people who made the Pinball machines of famed song. Why are you telling me this you might ask?

It’s significant to us because these electromechanical machines allowed people to play alone; before that you needed an attendant, especially when it came to collecting winnings.

And it’s where the era of flashing lights, sound effects, and lovely sound of coins crashing down as the big winnings came into full swing.

And it’s also when slots really became entertaining, with hold and nudges, multiple (more than 3) reels, multiple paylines and imaginatively-themed games. But what were the downsides of these ‘fruit machines’?

For one thing they weren’t very secure. They were open to fraudulent activities which we won’t go into here, not because we think anybody would dream of trying to copy them so much as that it would make this article too long and boring! So let’s stick to the point..

The next stage in the development of our favourite diversion was the arrival of video slots, in Las Vegas in the 1970s. These as their name suggests used screens instead of mechanical wheels and so were more efficient as they were less prone to breakdown or inaccuracies, not to mention fraud, than the mechanical slots.

But it was the arrival of the internet in the mid-90s which boosted gaming into the stratosphere. Now you could play from the comfort and security of your own home, even at a casino based in another country, you didn’t need to carry cash or cards around with you, and the variety of games and themes made for a far greater choice than before.

Online slots – a new dimension

The games are so much more entertaining than before, with bonus screens opening up extra and different little games-within-games, the option to vary hugely the number of paylines* and the amount bet, not to mention autoplay (which lets the reels spin for you without having to click yourself) and bet max (which automatically makes the maximum bet available to you at any one time) function.

Think of a world without online slots themed around South Park, Spider man, ancient druids, rich girls, vampires, rock bands, alcoholic drinks…the list goes on. These are all just a mouse click away…

But more important still is the huge payouts which online slots offer, which far outstrip anything the slot machines of yore could come up with (indeed you would never be able to physically carry home the sheer volume of coins that such winnings would require!).

This is made all the greater with the features like wilds, multipliers, scatter symbols, bonus round, welcome bonuses from casinos and, most of all, progressive jackpots, none of which could be had in the old days.

Progressive jackpots make for huge payouts

Progressive jackpots are a great feature. How it works is that all players on a given game are linked together and everything they wager goes into the progressive jackpot fund. This can be both across different online casino sites, and within one casino only. So you can see this increasing constantly on the casino’s site.

The progressive jackpot is unlocked when a player hits the maximum win possible on a machine (so consult the paytable for this) and we have seen some simply massive wins recently (we’re talking millions of Euros, Pounds and Dollars!).

Be sure to consult the wagering requirements of the online casino you are playing with – sometimes you are only eligible to win the progressive jackpot if you make the maximum bet each time.

Online casinos rock!

There’s also the great range of online casinos available for you where you can choose from a similarly broad selection of online slots. As well as being exciting to play, they have helpful instructions information and casinos have customer service support available 24/7 (often via live chat) to help you with any problems of questions, something which you weren’t always guaranteed to enjoy when playing the old stand-up machines.

Any good online casino will offer a welcome bonus, usually of around 100-200 (Euros, Pounds, Dollars etc.), but sometimes more.

Casinos are always offering other special promotions on top of this so be sure to shop around. These bonuses are in effect free money which you can use to get started, and once you have played a set number of times, can start withdrawing any winnings from as well.

What are the downsides?

Now we know what you’re probably thinking – what’s the catch? Surely there’s a downside to playing online slots. Well, yes and no. Of course you need to game responsibly, which is why any good online casino will have resources available to players who get into trouble spending more than they can afford or taking up too much time in a day by playing slots compulsively.

Be sure to avoid Unibet, a large outfit which nevertheless has a reputation for sharp practices like withholding players’ winnings, closing their accounts, having poor customer services, and other issues.

Another possible tactic is to utilise payment methods which again, do not let you spend more than you have – some methods like PaySafe Card can only be bought in maximum amounts.

In summing up

But such issues are only really on the margins, most people can game safely, have a lot of fun in the process, and even make some money, so why not give the reels a spin!

*A payline is a line which reads from left to right across all reels however many there are on a slot (typically 5) and combinations of symbols along that line contribute to winnings. In the days of old 3-reel mechanical slots there was just one payline, a horizontal line across the centre of the reels. In online slots there can be multiple paylines (into double figures) which are not merely straight lines but can trace a variety of diagonal routes across the reels as well.