From the 19th Century to Today: The Evolution of Free Slots

Image: https://unsplash.com/photos/_68ATDXuBLo

Image: https://unsplash.com/photos/_68ATDXuBLo

From the 19th Century to Today: The Evolution of Free Slots

Slot machines are the most well-known casino games of all time. Regardless of whether you are playing on the web or land-based, there are thousands of options to select from. The effortlessness of the game makes it easy for everybody. However, you should play only if you are above the legal age. Before becoming what, they are today, slot machines have gone through a much longer evolution journey of their own. Casino games have an ever-increasing number of devotees, and this is one of the areas that have been encountering the most interest as of modern time. Free slot machines are quite possibly the most famous amusement game that is appreciated by a huge number of gamblers around the world.

The Beginning 

Toward the beginning of the journey, they were machines with three discs revolving around them. It is Schultze who was the founder of this machine. It was not until the end of the 1800s and Charles August Fey, a German of emigrant’s origin in the United States, developed an automatic payout slot machine with real metal reels. By adding just five symbols to his invention, like spades, hearts, diamonds, horseshoes, and particularly the Liberty Bell, Fey's slot machine came to be known as the Liberty Bell.

The machine was produced using cast iron. This Liberty Bell highlighted a chime that would ring if the player hit a winning sequence. The one thing that stood out in this machine was its notable reel symbols. Charles Fey devoted numerous hours of his time to deliver a further developed rendition of his slot machine, which included 3 and 5-row reels. Its design depended on five drums joined by a sum of 50 cards.

The fifty playing cards used as symbols were also switched with five characters:

  • Hearts

  • Spades

  • Diamonds

  • Horseshoes

  • Liberty bell

The origin of slot machines goes back to the end of the eighteenth century when they were commercially created by the Sittman and Pitt Company in New York. These machines, which were created in 1891, showcased features similar to present-day video poker games. The slot machine seemed as though a little box comprised of five drums containing fifty playing a card game from a round of poker. These poker machines were famous in bars, and each round would cost a nickel to play. Players needed to insert a coin, pull a switch, and wait for another combination of cards to be uncovered. The game didn't work with a withdrawal device, so players needed to gather their rewards in the bar. Typically, the bars paid as free beverages and cigars rather than cash.

Why these slot machines were so famous in those days is not difficult to understand. It was because the players simply needed to move a switch and got the excitement of having the option to impact the process of the game. The popularity of the machines spread rapidly, and their presence could be seen in numerous cafes. A couple of years later, gambling was prohibited in numerous nations, and slot machines were replaced with chewing gum features. Rather than cash payouts, chewing gum was given as winnings. Since the images showed fruits the player won, they got a piece of chewing gum of a similar flavour.

Updating To the Modern Age

In the first part of the twentieth century, very little changed for slot machines, aside from the lifting of the prohibition on real money payouts in 1908. The games remained simply mechanical, with a switch as a mechanism that controlled the game. This switch was appended to a spring inside the machine, which extended and made the rollers roll until they stopped, uncovering arbitrary signs. In 1964, Bally Technologies created an improvement of past mechanical machines with Money Honey, the main gaming machine to run altogether on power. The game was electromechanical; it kept the switch as a mechanism to begin the game. It was felt that eliminating this feature would make the game excessively new for players. This game additionally included automatic payouts of up to 500 coins, which expanded its prevalence. The switch was ultimately eliminated when more electromechanical pokies were created.

The Arrival of Video Slots

Fortune Coin drove the following large advancement for pokies in 1976 when it made the first real video slot. The game was played on a nineteen-inch Sony TV. The Sin City-based organization made the game accessible only at the Las Vegas Hilton Hotel. The gadget went through various adjustments, the majority of which were pointed toward making it fraud-proof and was in the long run confirmed by the Nevada State Gaming Commission. Large-scale manufacturing started after that. Worldwide Game Technology moved in to secure Fortune Coin after understanding its potential in the business. This was another stage for these machines that were so fruitful in casinos today.

Also, it is that the combination of video permitted international suppliers to create animations and graphics. Lastly, new functionalities were added that implied that in the '90s, this kind of gaming machine arrived at the gaming clubs and was exceptionally advantageous for players; they could have more opportunities to win cash in a solitary round.

Online Uprising 

The innovation of the Internet during the 1990s was the main advance for slot games since its origin. Toward the start, in 1994, the online club concentrated on giving traditional games like blackjack and roulette. 

In 1996, Williams Interactive delivered the absolute first slot with a second screen bonus. At this point, when the move was performed, players were turned to another screen where the bonus was executed. This laid the groundwork for the popular incentives found in modern slots such as free spins, re-spins, selection rounds, gamble features, and mini-games.

Recap of the Timeline

Early-mid 1800s: Schultze founded the slot machine

1891: Commercialization

1964: Creation of machine that ran on electricity

1976: Introduction of video slots

1996: Introduction of the first slot with second bonus screen

Free mobile slots are the biggest type of revenue for online gambling. A huge change has occurred in the free slot game since 1996, from expanding software suppliers to presenting VR technologies, exceptional free spin varieties, and a large number of interesting slot game titles. Free slots have come a long way!