Which invention was the base for the first ever slot machine? The modern version with the layout which is familiar to today’s standards was premiered in the late 1970s. These machines were lacking in some aspects, but the rising popularity made the competition more fierce. Hence, more interesting games, including offers with the progressive jackpots, began to emerge.
Nevertheless, the very first idea and the machine that started all the hype was an “ancient” game invented in the late 19th century. Namely, this primitive grandpa had fifty cards and five drums. As far as the rewards were concerned, usually lucky players were given some liquor and cigarettes. Imagine how happy they were when they got to light a cigar all because of a game! Of course, during this period, this primitive version didn’t have all the characteristics of an authentic slot machine. It wasn’t until 1891 that the first official slot was released much to everyone’s delight.
Due to its simplicity and juicy prizes, the machine was a big hit, and everyone wanted to spin the reels. And this baby operated on three of them — all of them were featured on one row only, and had five symbols. The cashout itself was automated. Bear in mind that during the course of only a couple of years, the prize evolved from booze and cigars to real money. Now, this proved to be more stimulative than a glass of beer and a couple of pulls on the cigar. Naturally, this attracted more and more players on a daily basis.
In a nutshell, slot machines became the main thing on every casino game floor. Besides this, more than two-thirds of the gambling venues featured only the latest versions of these fellows. As we previously mentioned, the 1970s brought a significant breakthrough for slots, and some twenty years later online slot games saw the light of day. To be precise, this occurred in 1991. Nevertheless, the original online gaming house that offered slots didn’t have proper licenses, as the gambling laws weren’t as regulated as they are today. However, after the government accepted this form of gambling in 1992, it was time for the first money transaction to be made.
As it happens, the competition was fierce, just like it was in the slots section when we talk about land-based casinos. The gamblers throughout the world had the option to play online slots and visit casino sites to choose their games of choice. The rest, as they say, is history.
Creation of a Slot Machine — How Hard Can This Task Be?
This all sounds like a piece of cake, but the question remains — how to easily make an online slot machine? Is it even possible to create online slots by yourself, let alone it being easy? Let’s assume you want to make a customized slot to play on your own, preferably with some symbols or photos you like. You have to think about every little detail when you try to create a game so unique and personalized. As users of online casino offers (aka customers), we sometimes don’t even pay much attention to these little things. Nevertheless, when your role turns from that of a player to that of a creator, you have a long and rocky road ahead.
The Slots’ Brain — The Random Number Generator
Before an individual dive into the coding process, which is essential, you need to know the ways of online slots. The RNG or Random Number Generator is the central machinery behind any respectable slot machines. It is a software which determines the game’s outcome. The whole slot game is depending on this to work. Thus, you need to put quite a lot of effort to develop RNG properly.
You have probably heard of this term before, but not absolutely sure what RNG actually is. It is an entirely independent piece of software which is making sure that the outcome of every single spin is in fact, random. No outside factor can be involved in this objective software. This part of the game doesn’t have any connections to any other piece of slots. Nothing can make a player’s chances of winning more favorable for either the casino or for themselves for that matter. This part of the game doesn’t have any connections with any other slot pieces.
One important fact to mention is that the Random Number Generator has no memory whatsoever. It cannot record if someone had hit the jackpot or lost big. No previous spins can have any impact on your current or future outcomes. Even when you play for free, as a part of the game’s features (as a part of bonus games), the RNG cannot be changed. Free spins or the paid one, it makes no difference to this software.
The main thing behind the slot game’s brain (the RNG) is a complicated mathematical equation, constantly in motion, stopping only when it’s time for the outcome to be revealed. That’s right — your luck depends solely on a specific combination of numbers stopping at a particular time. As such, the Random Number Generator is in motion 24/7, making it impossible for anyone to notice any pattern whatsoever. So, you can forget fantasizing about different strategies; it’s not going to happen, not in slots. After a player pushes that spin button, the RNG will stop instantly. Will you win real money or not? You have precisely a 50–50 chances to either win or lose.
So, have in mind that at the moment you click the button to start, the game is actually — finishing. It lasts and lasts until someone decides to press spin. The whole anticipation and the colorful spinning reels with appealing graphics are just for thrills. The truth is, your game ended at the very moment you clicked. As simple as that.
Do You Know What Paylines Are?
Ok, so far, we have established what the Random Number Generator really is, and how it works. When you are implementing this piece of machinery, the key to success is to make sure your software cannot be tampered with. Try to lead a transparent policy in order to be fair to both yourself and your potential players.
You need to search for safe source codes on websites. It’s not that hard to find them, and they will simulate how you can create a game and be good at it. Of course, they cannot measure with the ones the online casinos have, as far as reliability goes. The casinos have more resources and programmers to update and maintain the systems on a daily basis. They keep their Random Number Generators as secret as Coca-Cola does its formula. It’s impossible just to download a special software you like and place it in your game.
But, what’s a payline? Payline represents a pattern with slot symbols which need to align in order for a slots player to win. For instance, if a horizontal line in the upper slots row, in case of a multi-wheel game, connects five or more symbols, it is your very first payline. Naturally, you have the choice of the number of paylines in your slot game, from five to even hundreds.
This is important — if you are about to allow the options of multiple paylines, the minimum bet limit has to be significantly increased. This will make the players take more significant risks, thus, more potential money for the house, in this case — your majesty. Wrap your mind around the following idea — more paylines equals even more winning combinations… The casinos hate this.
Return to Player — From Another Point of View
RTP or Return to Player stands for the slots payout percentage. Do you know what a house edge is? It is the amount the casino cashes in. Well, the Return to Player is the opposite of this. Let’s say the house advantage is 6%. In this case, your RTP is 94%, which is considered to be really high and desirable, from a player’s point of view.
Nevertheless, this figure most certainly doesn’t mean you will win 94% of times. Unfortunately for the players, this number does not reflect the gameplay of just one participant. No, this is an average taken from millions and billions of played online slots games. This doesn’t determine your odds of winning in any way. Bad news for the player, but good news for the house, since we all know the familiar saying — the house always wins.
On the other hand, you will never attract players with a Return to Player that is low. Nevertheless, don’t overdo it though. Anything above 88% will suffice. You can determine your own RTP by figuring out how much winning combinations your video slots have. Let’s say there are a thousand numbers in your RNG, spinning constantly. What you have to do is to calculate how many of them will give the players the prizes. The lower the number, the lower the RTP will be, and the contrary.
There is a thing called the reel stop. This is a set of possibilities of which reel symbols just might come up. It’s up to you to choose the exact number of symbols, in which the number of reel stops will differ. In general, video slots, for instance, have somewhere between 60 to 250 stops.
This fact implies that the fewer stops you’ve got, the better the chances of winning are. See how much details you have to think about when you want to understand how to easily make an online slot machine? If this task were easy, casino sites would gladly pass to pay so many people in charge of the game software.
Ok, so now when you know how many stops you wish to implement, and just how many of them will be the winning combinations, when you imprint them into your RNG, you will have your RTP. Just make sure your range is competitive enough if you want to be successful.
Let’s mention one more important aspect of slots — the volatility. If your volatility level is high, this means the game is generous with payouts, but not so often. On the other hand, if the volatility level is low, the payout will be more frequent, but the amount will be meager. Either way, this is not a factor which will increase the odds. It’s more a player preference matter.
Make Sure You Provide Some Juicy Bonuses
We come to the more fun aspect of the online slot machines. You can choose the game’s layout, graphics, symbols, theme, music, and you name it. This isn’t rocket science — slots are a pretty basic game. We can find thousands of slot games, each unique and fun. Bonuses weren’t a thing many casinos would offer with both arms open. Nevertheless, as the competition became more and harsher, deposit bonuses—which offered big wins—were on pretty much any gambling websites.
Consider adding two features to your game — scatters and wilds. Wilds are symbols which can replace any symbol in a bonus round. Now, since you will be the boss, you can make it either fixed or spread out on the entire wheel. On the other hand, we have the scatter symbols, which have different functions toward other symbols and don’t need to be aligned if they show up, no matter how or where they can activate some bonus features. Most often, they bring free spins to the players, but you can choose some other options if you prefer so.
When you engage in making online slots by yourself, unless you are a programmer, a graphic designer, and a legal advisor, all in one, it is highly unlikely you’ll pull this at all, let alone easy. The simplest way someone can answer how to easily make an online slot machine topic is — you don’t. You can’t. If you’re googling it, most certainly you have no idea just how hard and expensive this can be.
Nevertheless, if you really like the idea so much, invest some money and pay an expert to do it for you. Well, nothing can stop you from becoming an expert in this area, if you have the will. Where there’s a will, there is a way, so we wish all the luck in the world to you. If it turned out that you are a genius and invent some crazy popular game, make sure to let us know. Wave to us from Silicon Valley.