Slot machines are a staple of the entertainment industry. They offer a game of chance that is popular worldwide. Yet, it would be best to realize that slot machine history is long and exciting.
When was the first slot machine invented? Does this resemble the current online games offered at the National Casino? Examine the journey from the first slots to today’s games. Please consider the future of this particular genre of casino games.
The Birth of the First Slot Machine
We need to return to the late 19th century to start looking at slot history. The first slot machine was created in 1887 or 1885 (it’s up for debate!) This was believed to be when the first automated gambling machine became real.
The Pioneer Who Revolutionized Slot Machines
This concept is attributed to Charles Fey for simplification. In the 1880s, he created the first slot machine, the Liberty Bell machine. It used symbols like bells, horseshoes, and card suits across three reels. This simplicity allowed for automated payouts, which was critical to its success.
The Rise of Electronic Slots and the Advent of Progressive Jackpots
Moving forward to the 1960s, we encounter the next breakthrough: electronic slots. Bally developed a novel electromechanical slot machine. It was 70 years old and the first mechanical slot machine. “Money Honey” could automatically pay out as many as 500 coins and was a huge step in developing modern slots.
In the mid-1970s, the inaugural video slot machine was introduced in Las Vegas and quickly became popular. Fortune Coin, created by the Fortune Coin Company in Las Vegas, is widely regarded as the pioneering video slot. This was a significant milestone: slots no longer needed physical reels to spin.
The levers located on the machine’s side were no longer necessary. The games were electronic, and the manual element of pulling a lever to make them work was defunct. Some slots kept the lever to look familiar to players. The result was now determined by a random number generator (RNG). We’ll see how that software matters in online slots.
It was reported that the transition to video slots initially faced opposition during that period. People trusted mechanical slots but struggled to trust video slots, and how the results were obtained needed to be clarified. Yet, it proved to be another successful change. Video slots became a popular, modern way to play that struck a chord with players.
The Dawn of Online Slots in the Casino Industry
Ever since the late 1990s, when everything began transitioning to the online sphere, it has only been natural for slots to follow suit and go online. Any initial uncertainty about this soon cleared. This represented a significant advancement in the evolution of slot machines.
Online slot machines have made the industry more flexible. You can now play in a way that suits you. RNGs mean an utterly random result with every spin. The rules and certifications created high trust in online slot games.
There must be a clear record of the first online slot’s name or launch date. The initial online casinos emerged during the mid-1990s. They had a large selection of games that captivated players.
Some internet casinos, in their early stages, required players to download software for game access. Flash and HTML5 removed this slow, tedious step, allowing us to play slots in browsers. The games became faster and simpler. They loaded instantly. We could play demos and skip between slots.
Gazing into the Future of Slot Machines
Technology modernizes slot machines, significantly accelerating their evolution this century. Despite the changes, the original Liberty Bell game is the basis of today’s slots.
With new tech like the metaverse and AI on the horizon, slot machines are set to evolve even further. While the exact future is uncertain, one thing is sure: exciting surprises are on the way.
