History of Slots

History of most gambling games is covered with a cloud of mystery. On the contrary, the history of slot machines is quite modern. Slot machines are one of the newest addition and we can trace the evolution of this game, taking place right now before our eyes. The development of slots machines is closely tied with the development of modern technologies and innovations.

Slot machines have become one of the most popular real money casino games. Both land-based and online casinos offer about two hundreds of different slot games. But besides it, casinos constantly invent new slot games to keep gamblers interested. But it was not always this way. Slots machines were originally vending machines. Actually, the term slot originated from the slots on the machines for inserting coins.

The first slot machine was invented by a car mechanic Charles Fey in 1895, in California, U.S. He invented a slot with three spinning reels with five symbols painted on them – diamonds, horseshoes, spades, hearts and a Liberty Bell. This machine also gave away cigarettes or sweets as prizes. Slots were usually located in cigar shops and bars. The new invention quickly gained popularity as slot machines were easy to use, offered a chance to hit the jackpot and didn’t require any specific skills, but pulling the handle. Because of this handle slot machines were ironically dubbed “one-armed-bandits”. Soon playing slot machines became a favorite pastime throughout the United States.

The first slot machines were made of cast iron and were very heavy. As the popularity of slots grew, the manufacture of different machines also grew accordingly. In the late 20th century electronics transformed the slot machines. Since then it was more difficult for players to cheat and easier for owners to control.

Slot machines are an important part of casinos. Casinos wouldn’t be complete without slot machines. Technological progress has fostered the appearance of modern types of casino – on the Internet, with common casino games turned from real into online. Obviously, online slots became very widespread due to their convenience.

Of course, today’s slots differ greatly from Charles Fey’s original machines, but they still preserve the magic of the genuine game.