Slot Game Types

Slot machines come in various types with many sub-classifications. These distinctions are important because in most cases they indicate how a game should be played for maximum return. I’m goingBasil Nestor is the author of the new Playboy Complete Guide to Casino Gambling. This wonderful book teaches players how to avoid sucker bets and win more when playing gambling games.  He is also the author of The Smarter Bet Guide series for video poker, slots, craps, and many other books about gambling.  Basil's website is www.smarterbet.com  to list them briefly here, and then cover them later in detail.

The casino-industry term “slots” includes reel-spinners (often called traditional reels) and video slots. The latter is subdivided into video reels, video poker, video keno, and other video-machine games.

Contests that pay a fixed amount for the top prize are known as flat-top or non-progressive machines. In contrast, progressive games have a top jackpot that grows incrementally each time the game is played.

Many reel games these days have multiple paylines, but you can still find some that have single paylines. Video poker games come in single-hand and multiple-hand versions.

The latest whiz-bang slots have a basic game and a bonus game. One or more of the reel combinations in the basic game will bounce you into a bonus level, and you get to choose something, spin something, and so on.

Every game has a gimmick, something to separate it from the crowd. A typical gimmick is one or more bonus levels. A player hits a particular reel combination and the game goes into bonus mode. It can be as simple as a spinning wheel for Wheel of Fortune, or as complex as a round of Yahtzee.

Another common gimmick is wild symbols that double, triple, quintuple, or otherwise increase the payout of any reel combination. Wild symbols also sometimes nudge; they hit just above or below the payline, and then they click into position. Hurrah! But of course, this cliffhanger is just for show. The winning combination was predetermined when you pressed the button.

Some machines have wild symbols that make them go bonkers; the game spins and hits many times without requiring extra credits.

And finally, some video machines contain multiple games. You can play five different slot games, six different video poker games, blackjack, or keno at one terminal.

Yes, it’s a breathtaking cornucopia of options and types. And it’s even more amazing when you consider how similar these machines are on the inside.