Five Parameters That are Important While Choosing a Slot Machine
Yuriy SheremetThere are numerous slot machines — every developer has a huge collection of various games in the assortment. To choose a slot in online casino, gamblers evaluate it visually at first, not everybody looks at technical characteristics. The best slot machine, according to the experts, is really difficult to be found as all criteria differ for each player. Let us consider the main parameters that are different for all slots objectively.
1. Amount of Reels
Most modern slots have five reels and each of them has three pictures. There are slots with four, six, and even another amount of reels. But such slots are rare. Another spread category of reels is three-reeled slot machines. The number of reels makes them resemble one-armed bandits that appeared more than one hundred years ago. If you find the simplicity of a game and its clear rules the most important, the best option here is to choose a slot with three reels. They rarely have free spins or mini-games but sometimes you can find special symbols. Prize symbols are usually fruits.
2. Presence of Special Symbols
Not all symbols of slot machines have standard functions — to form prize combinations after matching within the paid prize line. Some symbols have priority and special functions. More often slots have three types of special symbols: wild, scatter, and bonus. Wild has deserved its name due to its ability to substitute for other basic symbols in order to form a prize combination. Sometimes wild may be used for the whole reel and also double the sum of profit of the combination formed with it.
As for scatter, its main advantage is the ability to form prize sequences without any relation to prize lines on the reels. Usually, scatter triggers free spins: they appear when there are at least three scatter symbols on the reels.
Bonus is not paid itself but there is a definite number of bonuses appearing on the screen that results in a mini-game. The mini-game is usually related to the slot theme and may be held in several stages.
3. Theme
Here everything depends on gamblers’ tastes and interests. The developers offer slots with various themes. For example, fruits, money, jewels, often slots are devoted to a plot of a popular movie or a TV series. Sometimes gamblers choose slots only with the definite theme — this is not right, you should pay attention to peculiarities of slots. It is good that many developers present functionally various slot machines that are devoted to the same theme.
4. Risk Games
Some players do not have enough emotions and adrenaline that is provided by the main game. So developers included risk game into the functionality of many slot machines. More often, it represents a simple poker game where you have to guess the highest card. As for the slot line, you have to guess the color of the card but not how high it is. You may find slot machines where you have to guess the suit of the card but such machines are rare. You should remember that the bet at the risk game is a reward for the gambler at the previous round. If a gambler guesses it wrong, the whole prize will be taken by the casino.
5. Amount of Prize Lines and Ability to Choose Its Number
Most of the five-reeled slot machines have 15-20 prize lines, the gambler is usually allowed to choose the number of its active sequences. As for three-reeled slots, the number of the available prize lines may be limited to five. Most new slot machines have a tendency to fixed prize lines when the gambler has to play at all available sequences at the same time.
Developers refused to use a traditional set of prize lines in many slots. There is a definite number of combinations in the game, for example, 243 or 1024. The scheme of its location on the reels is not depicted, and you may play only at all sequences simultaneously. The gambler if asked to choose only the bet which will be made only for one spin of reels.
Yuriy Sheremet – Expert in mobile gaming and esports among shooters and MOBA games.
At EGamersWorld, Yuriy, as in 2020 when he joined the portal, works with content, albeit with adjustments to his area of responsibility.