Slots Evolution

The slots genre has been around for a long time, and it has become the most popular category in the entire casino industry. At land-based casinos, slot machines take up most of the space on the gaming floor and make up the bulk of the gaming libraries at online gambling websites. In both land-based and online gambling, slots are at the top of the food chain and generate the majority of gambling revenue.

This is despite the fact that it is one of the newest game genres in the industry, developed much later than blackjack, roulette, baccarat, or craps. So how did slots conquer the gambling industry and rise to become the dominant gaming genre? In this article, we will look at the evolution of slots through their century-long history and see how they have progressed from the first iteration to the latest versions.

First Version of Slots

It all started at the end of the 19th century in Brooklyn, New York. Though it was not exactly the game we know today, Sittman and Pitt developed a machine with five reels that spun and stopped at random. The machine resembled modern video poker more than slots, featuring 50 playing card faces, and the goal was to form a poker hand. Players would insert a nickel, spin the reels, and receive a reward if the outcome was successful.

The game was quite primitive by modern standards, and because it was mostly featured in bars and drinking establishments, players would receive their rewards in the form of drinks or cigars. Despite its shortcomings, the game became a hit with customers, and many establishments installed at least one machine.

Watch Video About First Version of Slots

Liberty Bell and Operator Bell

Though popular, the poker machine had some significant drawbacks. For example, poker had too many possible winning combinations for a practical automatic payout mechanism, and this impracticality was a real hurdle. As it happens, there was another inventor on the opposite end of the country who had just the solution.

Charles Fey developed his own version of the slot machine before the turn of the 20th century in San Francisco. His invention was a simple 3-reel game featuring five different symbols: horseshoes, diamonds, spades, hearts, and a bell. Named after the bell symbol, the “Liberty Bell” machine was the first of its kind, and everything that came after it drew inspiration from it. The reduced number of symbols allowed the machine to pay out automatically, and it became the standard for the genre.

After the Liberty Bell took the world by storm, the next notable addition to the slots scene was the Operator Bell. Created by the Mills Novelty Company with the contribution of Charles Fey, the Operator Bell introduced some changes to the genre, though nowhere near as drastic as the Liberty Bell. The Operator Bell mostly included quality-of-life changes, making the experience more enjoyable. Moreover, it is thought that the Operator Bell is the first slot machine to include the fruit and BAR symbols that we now know and love. It is estimated that about 30,000 of these machines were manufactured and sold.

Crackdown on Slots

As slots became increasingly common in bars and similar establishments, they drew more attention from the authorities during the Prohibition era. It was not long before the government came down hard on slot machines and their proprietors, with gambling bans issued in many states. Still, this deterred neither the player base nor the operators. Instead of offering cash rewards, manufacturers configured the machines to pay out in food, gum, and other edibles. The only slot machines that paid out real money were in illegal drinking establishments, which did not care about the new laws to begin with.

However, the supposed loophole in the gambling laws was not always effective. In Iowa, even slots that paid out in edibles were considered gambling for all intents and purposes and were therefore banned from public use. Over time, Nevada would establish itself as a haven for gambling and it soon became one of the few places where players could enjoy proper gaming.

Bally Introduces the Money Honey

It would be decades before any significant changes came to the slots genre, and the 1960s saw the introduction of the Money Honey by Bally. It was the first fully electromechanical slot, with reels operated solely by electricity. Despite the new changes, the manufacturer still kept some key features of the old machines, namely the lever. Another major feature of the Money Honey slots was the bottomless hopper, which meant that the machine could pay out up to 500 coins at once. This was a significant improvement over the Liberty Bell, which could only pay out up to $0.50 in nickels.

The large payout potential made Money Honey an instant hit with players, and games of the same kind quickly gained traction in the gambling industry. As a result, future slots also incorporated the same electromechanical principles as Money Honey.

First Video Slot Game

While the Money Honey was a remarkable improvement to the slots genre, the 1970s would bring about even greater changes. As computer technology became more advanced, it was only a matter of time before it was used in other industries. In 1976, the world was offered the first video slot machine, courtesy of Bally. This new game used a 19-inch display and showed a broad range of colors.

Though still a prototype when it debuted, the game was placed on trial in the Hilton Hotel, after which it was reviewed by the Nevada State Gaming Commission. Several tweaks were made to make cheating harder, and the slot was soon all over the Vegas Strip, quickly becoming popular as more machines of the same type followed.

Internet Slots

With the passage of time, casino technology became more and more advanced. The land-based industry was thriving, and many new slots came out for gamblers to enjoy. But a new form of gambling was on the horizon, and it would offer bettors an exciting prospect: Internet gambling.

As the Internet became a bigger part of everyday life, companies tried to capitalize on it, and a new online gambling industry soon emerged. Soon, the first wave of online casinos hit the market, offering novel ways for people to place wagers. The first online slots were made available to the public and players could not get enough of them. After only a few years, the industry had grown exponentially and was on its way to becoming a global phenomenon. Gamblers could now enjoy top-quality slots from the comfort of their own homes, with the only requirements being a computer and an Internet connection.

Companies like Microgaming and WMS Technology were first to hit the scene and release the new online slots, with many more to follow. Not only did these games capture the feel of traditional slot machines, but they also pushed the gambling industry to new heights. Furthermore, with physical space no longer a factor, software providers had the opportunity to develop and offer many more unique games than any land-based establishment ever could.

Online slots quickly became more advanced, and with more companies entering the casino software development scene, fierce competition began. This, of course, worked fully in favor of players, as they now had a plethora of games to choose from. The online era saw many new themes and aesthetics being featured in slots, making the genre much more appealing to everyone. Moreover, the intense competition meant that the genre was advancing at breakneck speed, introducing high-definition graphics and many more features to new games.