Slots and pokies are some of the oldest gambling games in the modern world. bonanza saw their beginnings at the start of the 20th century, and have attracted a vast audience since. Here is a synopsis of slot machine history and how they will have developed over the years.
The initial ever version of the slot machine was observed in 1891. Pittman and Sachs created a machine with five drums, each showing poker hand symbols. When players would win at these games, the device would not pay out; rather, the bar housing them would provide players with drinks.
It might be four more years before Charles Fey would create the version of the slot machine game with which we have been most acquainted today. The device provided players with cash payouts when it revealed matching symbols. The popularity of the games caught on rapidly, until anti-gambling groups enacted a ban on slot machines in the early 20th century.
The ban only lasted a couple of years, and it wasn’t a long time before slots became popular again in casinos. It had been during the 1950s that slot machines started to become popular around the world. In 1953, Australian gaming company Aristocrat took note of the brand new trend and decided to manufacture its own make of electronic gaming machines called pokies. The company’s first machine was called the ‘Clubman’.
Although it would be quite a while before we’d see online slots, casinos in NEVADA started making electronic slot machines, moving away from the normal, mechanical slot games that had become popular over the years. These machines were more secure than mechanical slots and managed to get more difficult for individuals to cheat casinos. During this time, electronic slots also saw the invention of the random number generator which made playing slots even more unpredictable.
Over the next few decades, slots would remain exactly the same. It wouldn’t be before turn of the Century that we begin seeing the advent of online slots. The first online slots games were seen around 2001, when the first internet casinos went live. Companies like Microgaming got on the floor floor, creating a few of the first online slot machines available to the public.
For the past ten years, slots have become some of the most popular games at online casinos, as well as creating over 80% of land-based casino revenue. In the internet, players can find a huge selection of different online slots games, a lot of which feature fun and inventive themes. Players can also find a wide variety of branded and themed slots games, featuring innovative gaming technology.