Classic slot machines once dominated the casino landscape. They were so popular, in fact, that they still form the modern stereotype for slots.
The general population often envisions three spinning reels and fruit symbols when thinking of slot machines. Of course, slots technology has changed greatly from these days.
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Modern slots feature 3D graphics, entertaining features, and exciting animations. Classic slot machines, meanwhile, are more common in auction houses than casinos these days.
What happened? I’m going to discuss more on the basics of classic slots along with how they went from being the most-popular casino games to irrelevance.
What Is a Classic Slot Machine?
No standard definition exists for a classic slot. But at its very core, a classic game features three reels, one payline, and fruit symbols.
For example, a game may offer five reels and 10 paylines. But it falls into the traditional class if it doesn’t offer any features or high-tech visuals.
Up until the 1970s, all slot machines were mechanical and ran on reels. All of these slots easily fit under the classic umbrella.
Video slot machines came about in the mid-1970s. Although they introduced video technology to gaming floors, many early video slot machines were also classic.
The Rise of Classic Slots
Charles Fey developed the first slot machine in San Francisco California in 1895. His Liberty Bell machine featured three reels and five symbols, including a diamond, horseshoe, heart, spade, and Liberty Bell.
Up until this point, gambling machines were unable to make automatic payouts. Fey made a breakthrough, though, when he created an automatic payout system that delivered up to $0.50 for three Liberty Bells in a line.
Fey’s invention served as a precursor for what was to come. Slot machines began spreading throughout bars and other establishments in the US.
Entrepreneurs quickly took notice of slots’ popularity and began producing upgraded versions of the Liberty Bell. Eventually, developers produced a larger cabinet that operated through mechanical reels and made big payouts.
The slot machine’s popularity began to grow right along with the prizes. Gamblers started flocking to machines that offered jackpots worth up to 100 coins.
Of course, 100 credits is nothing special by modern gaming standards. However, this prize was quite significant to low rollers back in the day.
In 1963, Bally furthered the popularity of classic slots by introducing an electromechanical machine. Their Money Honey game became the first to offer payouts worth up to 500 coins and a bottomless hopper.
Classic Slot Machines Hit Their Peak in the 1970s
Bally’s Money Honey machine introduced new revolutionary slots features that included bigger payouts and more-unique themes. Soon, games were offering inventive concepts and prizes worth thousands of coins.
Players were previously impressed by hundreds of coins. So, they were enamored when jackpots grew even larger.
In many ways, the time period between the early 1960s and mid-1970s was the golden era of classic slots. Electromechanical machines and bigger payouts made these games more popular than ever.
Video Slots Change the Casino Industry
Things never stand still in the gaming industry for long. Just as classic slot machines were hitting their peak, video slots were being introduced to gaming floors.
Fortune Coin Co. produced the very first video slot machine in 1976. Their invention featured a 19-inch TV monitor that served as a display, and logic boards that controlled all of the betting actions.
The first video slot certainly wasn’t pretty, but it did usher in a new era for slots. This initial game served as the launching point for great things to come.
Slowly but surely, developers started taking advantage of the new technology available to them. Video slots gave game providers the ability to produce graphics, animations, and, eventually, features.
By the 1990s, multi-line video slots were hitting casinos. These games became quick hits because they offer players more chances to win in a single round.
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In 1996, Reel Em’ In would become the first slot to offer a second-screen bonus. The latter is notable because it paved the way for some of the outstanding features of today.
Online Slots Revolutionize the Casino Industry
Video slot machines already put a major dent in classic land-based slot machines. Real money online slots would give gamblers yet another option when they launched in the mid-1990s.
Internet slots essentially use the same type of programming that video slot machines do. Only, they’re available online rather than in brick-and-mortar casinos.
Gamblers don’t have to leave the house to play these games. Instead, they simply need an internet-capable device, such as a smartphone, tablet, or computer.
Online slots certainly haven’t replaced the brick-and-mortar gaming industry. But again, they do provide an alternative for those who don’t feel like traveling to casinos.
Going further, they’ve shown even more of what’s possible with slots. Online games have often started slots trends, such as cascading reels, expanding wilds, and Megaways.
Internet slots may not have been in direct competition with classic machines when they came out in the mid-1990s. But they helped show just how dated classic slots had become.
Classic Slots Are Collected Today – Not Played
The old classic slot machines, which feature three reels, fruit symbols, and no bonuses, aren’t found on many casino floors today. If they are, they’re merely some type of antique that the casino offers to a limited number of nostalgic players.
By and large, though, classic slots aren’t available on gambling floors. Everybody plays video slots these days, which makes classic games useless by the casino standards.
States have laws against owning unlicensed slot machines. However, they do make exceptions for classic slots.
Lawmakers don’t see classic machines as antiques rather than viable sources of illegal gaming revenue. That said, you can legally purchase a classic slot from an auction and store it at your house.
Classic Games Are Still Around in Some Form
The few truly classic slot machines that exist in casinos today are rarities. However, the concept of classic slots still exists in some form.
As mentioned before, a broader definition has emerged for classic games. A Slot machine can still be considered classic even if it has five reels and multiple paylines.
The defining element is that it can’t offer high-quality graphics, animations, and features. Instead, it just has to be a basic game to exist in the classic category.
Some online gaming developers today still make what could be considered classic slots. For example, WGS has produced a few three-reel, five-reel games.
Conclusion
Classic slot machines enjoyed a nice run from the late 1800s into the 1970s. However, their limited technology ensured that they eventually got passed by video slots.
A video slot simply offers developers more capabilities when producing games. Developers can add more paylines, features, and animations thanks to technology.
Meanwhile, classic slots disappeared from casinos floors due to their simple nature. Few people want to spin three reels and one line today.
Classic games are right where they belong today—at auctions and in people’s basements. Although an important part of gaming history, they hold little relevance in the modern gaming industry.
There are a variety of casino games that we all love to play in our leisure time. Some of them are chance-based games, while others require skill and dedication to reach the top. There are many reasons why someone chooses a particular type of game. The demographics play a huge role in defining that aspect. The older generation of players likes classic slot machine games while the modern casino audience is leaning towards multi-reel video slots. This article will go over the classic slot machine games and answer all your questions on the subject matter.
Classic slot machine games are considered one of the most preferred forms of online casinos and land-based gambling. It is simple and straightforward while having higher payouts and relaxing nature. It is very entertaining for slot machine fans to line up three cherries on the reel and earn high rewards.
The gameplay and the form of paylines are all simple in classic slot machine games. Cover time, they added new characteristics, improved graphics, added modern features through technology, etc. However, there is still a massive online casino audience that chooses classic slots. The demand is high like it has been till now. Let’s start by defining them and exploring the unique features that the best slots to play have to offer.
What Are The Classic Slot Machines Machine
What are the Classic Slot Machine Games?
This is one of the questions that can be answered differently depending on the person you are asking. In my opinion, classic slot machine games are the ones that use mechanical reels and have limited reel numbers as well as pay lines. On the other hand, in online casinos, the games that are imitating the look and the functionality of those mechanical slot machines can be considered the classic.
In classic slot machines, there should not be any extra effects or usage of animations. They are not offering special bonuses through wild or scatter symbols. They offer classic symbols such as fruits, the bar, numbers, letters, lucky seven, etc. There should not be a storyline or level-based gameplan in classic slot machines. If you think of a particular game that checks boxes for these categories, then that game is probably a classic slot machine.
How Do They Operate?
Whether we are talking about the classic land-based mechanical machines or their imitations in online casinos, the working scheme for classic slots is still the same. They are both working through Random Number Generators. This allows those machines to offer fair gambling chances for all the users. Each random number has an equivalent value from the symbols. For instance, let’s say the one refers to the bar symbol on the reel. If the random number generator comes up as 1 1 1, you will see three bar symbols on the reels and earn rewards for that. In land-based casinos, this was hard to pull off. The resources were limited when they did not switch to the video slot machines.
As the symbols were spinning mechanically, it was hard for developers to put many more symbols or combination options for players. Nowadays, the modern video slot machines inspired by classic mechanical slots have more to offer for players. Many classic slot players loved the intensity and simplicity of those mechanical casino games. That was the main reason to produce those games in a modern format for developers. The video slots are more safe and reliable in terms of payout rates and functionality. However, there are still players who seek to enjoy one round of classic slots with mechanical reels. Unfortunately, the number of those machines is limited. You can only find them in some of the Vegas or Atlantic City casinos.
Where Can you Find Classic Slot Machine Games?
You can find and enjoy the classic types of gambling slot machines in almost any part of the world. They are now available on most of the online casino platforms too. There are various types of classic slots. You can check those casinos where you can find the best games that are appealing to your gaming style. If you are searching for classic slot games in land-based gambling parlors, there is a high chance that you will not be able t find many examples of the mechanical slots. The reason for that is, they are considered antiques, and not many of them can function properly by today’s standards.
However, you can pretty much find the one that imitates all the design and gameplay of those mechanical slots. If you live in a place where it is accessible to go to land-based casinos. You can check them out and find the game that fits your style and has high entertainment value. Casinos sometimes change the places of the slot machines. So, if you cannot find your favorite gaming machine in the same place, just as the casino personnel to find it easily.
Do All Classic Gambling Slots Have only Three Reels?
This is one of the most common questions that comes to mind whenever someone mentions classic casino slots. It is one of the huge misconceptions about the classic slot machine games. It is good to mention that they can have five or even seven reels. In mechanical slots, it was hard to game developers to include multi reels as it could hinder the machine’s overall functionality. However, with modern sweepstakes slots, it is not that hard to incorporate many reels and pay lines and keep it simple.
Classic Slots VS Modern Video Slot Machines
This is the debate topic that goes for several years now. While the older generationof online casino players is leaning toward the classic nostalgic feel in games, modern players are all for crazy graphic effects and soundtracks. It is a subjective question that can be answered differently by various players. The one that can decide which one is better for him/herself is the player with a long-lasting experience in both classic and video slot machines. Only after playing multiple variations from both branches one can say that either one is better. However, they have unique features that cannot let us say either one is better.
Players love them for those unique features, and at the end of the day, if you are happy with the results and enjoy the games you choose, who cares if someone thinks that either one of them is better. It is not like one of them is more superior. Instead, one branch is demanded by those who love simplicity, and another one is played by those who like modern video game type graphics and higher odds.
Are Classic Slot Machines Going Away Anytime Soon?
It is one of the concerns of gambling players because the demand for classic slots is not like a decade ago. At the end of the day, it is a business, and casino operators invest in those games that help them make more money. If the Classic slot machine games suddenly tend to make less and less money for online casinos, they would be replaced with their modern counterparts.