The origin and history of slot machines
The history of slots began 140 years ago, when engineers with a pioneering vision discovered the potential of betting assisted by automatic physical terminals. In this article we expose the most important details of a technology, design and symbols in constant innovation .
The automation of the game
Gambling has accompanied man since the beginning of history, but unlike the current features, an administrator was previously necessary to participate in the game. The invention of automatic machines (first mechanical and then electrical), facilitated the extension and employment of the games. Let's look at its evolution in detail.
The first automatic poker from Sittman & Pitt
Since the mid-1800s there were mechanical machines that offered to bet as the red or black colors appeared on the spins of a disc-shaped roulette wheel. Entrepreneurs Sittman and Pitt took the idea and replaced the colored plate with five rollers
with images based on the poker deck
. The winnings depended on the value of the combination of the cards, as in a poker hand.
Texas Hold'em
. The 10 of spades and the jack of hearts were excluded, which reduced the chance of getting a royal flush - and with it the jackpot - by half. The prizes consisted of drinks, cigarettes and other products. These machines became popular all over the East Coast of the United States.
Charley Fey and the first slots
Although the Sittman and Pitt machine was created in 1891, the innovation made by Charles Frey in 1897 is seen as the birth of Moderna slots. Frey reduced the number of reels from 5 to 3 and replaced the poker deck with the horseshoe, spades, heart, diamond and bell symbols. The prizes corresponded to the correct alignment of the rollers, a minor advantage for the players, but with
the possibility of getting money in retribution
. The jackpot was to get three bells in line. The machine quickly became popular, and the nickname “one-armed bandits” spread throughout the United States. Frey did not patent his invention and it was used by different manufacturers all over the country who introduced some innovations.
The twentieth century and fruit symbols
In order to combat addiction to gambling and other substances, some local boards introduced a ban on gambling and alcoholic beverages, which had an impact on the production of slots, the location of them and the prizes they awarded. Nail
solution to avoid legal problems
it was to replace the symbols used by images of fruits as well as the winnings, obtaining the users sweets, chewing gum or the like, corresponding to the flavor or color of the winning line. In 1908 the producer Herbert Hills included the distinctive “BAR”, the same one that still appears today in many slots.
For many years little changed. The slots worked 100% mechanically and it was necessary to pull a lever to activate the turn . A spring made the rollers slow down. This operation gave players the feeling of directly influencing the outcome of each round, which is why these types of devices were extremely popular.
The first electromechanical slots
After the prohibition era, the first novelty occurred in 1964, after the public announcement of the company “Bally”, referring to the movement of the rollers in a completely electric way in
Money Honey
(although the activation of the turn was still dependent on the manual lever). A tray was added to contain coins and could award up to 500 chips in payment for a winning combination. The success of the new product
led to the disappearance of the crank
.
The video slots
In 1976,
Fortune Coin
it worked completely electronically and the turns and results were viewed on a 19-inch screen. The machine was first presented in California and later at the Hilton Hotel in Las Vegas. The new technology
it brought with it skepticism
by the authorities and users, but after a thorough inspection fraud or any trick was ruled out. The Nevada State Gaming and Betting Commission authorized its use.
The future is already here
The WMS consortium introduced the split-screen videoslot in 1996, which separated the game into two sections: one with the normal reel and the other with the bonus edition, once activated through the appropriate combination of boxes. Thanks to this new feature, all users had
access to jackpot prizes
, increasing their participation and therefore, the profits of the casinos. It didn't take long for slots to occupy about two-thirds of the total area of each licensed premises.
The splendor of online slots
In the mid-90s a new phenomenon gained worldwide strength: the internet. Gambling was no exception and with new technology novel systems finally had a chance. In 1996 the first online casino was launched (InterCasino), which added several slots to the blackjack and roulette offer.
The online slots they started with the symbols, game mechanics and even prizes of the physical machines. With the development of the programs came new features, themes and animations. Today five or more reels are common, with countless squares, characters, bonus stages, multipliers and progressive jackpots or accumulated.
Manufacturers and programmers
they grew as demand increased
, so much so that, while the creative companies of
conventional slots
have remained the same for 40 years (between 10 and 15, considering the most important), the
responsible for providing software
they have multiplied.
Although some are small and have a limited service, others are companies with hundreds of slots and supply portals from all over the world. The general offer is immense and difficult to cover. It is estimated that there are thousands of online slot machines .
The jackpots reached come to exceed the largest prizes awarded by physical slots. The guinness record of winning in an online slot it is almost 18 million euros and it was the British player Jon Heywood, who in the Mega Moohla machine of Microgaming he accomplished such a feat. Fortunately slots with progressive jackpots there are more and more, so it will only be a matter of time before another millionaire jackpot is surpassed.
Frequently asked questions
🎰 When was the first slot machine invented?
The the first slot machine in history it was invented and launched on the market in the year 1891 . This was the successor to the first poker machine that had been invented four years earlier. The novelty was that this slot was the first to offer automatic payment to its players.
❗ What is the oldest symbol used in slots?
The first symbols of slots they were not so different from the ones we know today on the machines of physical casinos. Since 1889 it they used the poker classics such as the heart, diamond, spades, horseshoe and bell, which about fourteen years later changed to the classic fruits that we all know.
💻 Who was the creator of the first videoslot?
The first videoslot was created in 1976 in California USA by Fortune Coin Co, who was later bought by IGT . Then, with the explosion of the internet in the mid-90s and the emergence of online casinos, in the year 1996 the first online slots appeared .
💰 What has been the biggest jackpot delivered by a slot machine?
One of the the most famous boats in history , was the one who delivered the casino Betway in October 2015. The winner was John Heywood from the United Kingdom, who won almost 18 million euros playing the Mega Moolah slot. There are many slots with jackpot in New Zealand which you can play.