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The Evolution of Online Slots

Added: May 16, 2012

Slots had to start somewhere, and it was thanks to microgaming back in the mid-1990s that players could now experience a simple but effective slot machine online. Granted, it was the most basic form of slot machine available with just three reels and one winning payline. They had primitive graphics and dull sound effects and just a Spin Button and a Select Stake Button to worry about. Today we call them classic slots and they remain just as popular now as they did more than 15 years ago.

Not many people know this little fact, but that very first online slot machine can still be played today and is available in various well-known gambling portals. It was after the success of this first online slot that Microgaming continued developing and churning out more of these classic casino games, and it wasn’t long after this when other software companies such as Playtech and Cryptologic also jumped into action and started releasing their own classic slots varieties.

One of the great things about online slots is that they offered players a better payout percentage rate compared with land based video slot machines or fruit machines, so thousands of slot enthusiasts started turning to these. Within just a few years of the first online slot machine having appeared, there were literally hundreds now available for players to choose from and all at the click of a button.

With more money now to spend on improving their games, each software company’s creative teams immediately began revolutionising slots and they achieved this by throwing in more reels and increasing the amount of winning paylines. Additional symbols also started appearing on the reels such as scatter symbols, wild symbols and various other bonus symbols. This made the slots seem more appealing and kept the players entertained for longer periods of time, which meant that players were spending more money.

The latest evolutionary step for the modern online slot machine has been the recently developed 3D i-Slots. These aren’t necessarily slots that require you to wear 3D glasses or require you to have a special 3D-enabled screen, although those types of slots do exist. i-Slots are the latest craze that have got players and operators excited and many of them are instantly loading games, developed by software companies such as Sheriff Gaming, Betsoft, NetEntertainment and various other revolutionary software companies.

i-Slots feature impressive graphics that are accompanied by innovative sound effects and they have given us a glimpse into what the next ten years could hold for online slots. Titles such as Ed’s Venture, Jacks T-Rex, Gonzo’s Quest, French Cuisine, Barbary Coast, Beretta’s Vendetta, A Night in Paris, Magical Forest and various other top titles have taken online slots to the next level, plus the number of these new cutting edge i-slots continues to grow.

These games are an absolute treat to play on and they include some wonderful bonus rounds and amazing in-play animations. If you are still stuck on classic slots, perhaps it’s time you found out what modern innovation has to offer and maybe check out one of today’s unbelievably creative i-slot’s for yourself at some point.