Slots
Slot and Online Slots machines are probably the easiest way to get into online casino gambling. There are no real rules, as the only objective is to win the jackpot. Old fashioned one-arm bandit machines required you to drop in a coin and pull the lever, or arm of the machine. Today, however, most slots machines work off a Tito ticket (card) with credits on, although some still have coin slots. Once you have credit in the machine, you usually push a button and wait to see what happens. Lights and ringing bells will let you know when you have hit the jackpot. All slot machines display pay-offs, and those that work in different ways will have instructions on them. There are many types of slot machines that are dependent on the casino. These have different betting amounts as well as different payouts.

Picking a Game

Before you play, make sure you understand the paytable of the games. Learn the symbol combinations and wagers required for each different type of win. Keep in mind your chances of winning increase with each line you play. Stick to your budget and bet with your head. Use the buttons to select the number of lines to play as well as to select the number of credits to wager per line.

How Slots Work - The Random Number Generator

At the heart of a slot machine is a computer chip, which runs a Random Number Generator (RNG). This RNG is continuously cycling through numbers at a rate of thousands per second even when the machine is not being played. These numbers correspond to stop positions on the reels of the slot machine, which display winning or losing combinations of symbols. When you hit the spin button the RNG picks the combination at that given microsecond. Therefore, the outcome of the game is randomly determined at the moment you hit the spin button. When the reels have stopped spinning the machine will check whether the reel stop numbers correspond to a wining or losing combination at which point it will pay out and/or end the game.

Progressive Online Slots and Jackpots

Online Progressives are slot machines where the jackpot for the best winning hand or combinations is not a fixed amount. Instead, the jackpot amount continuously increases as players play the linked game, based on the number of credits played. The top award resets when the top combination is hit and the progressive jackpot is won.

There are three types of progressives namely Local Area, Stand Alone and Wide Area. The Local Area and Wide Area progressives are identifiable by the signage, which accompanies such machines and displays the progressive jackpot amount(s).

The online slots progressive jackpot display represents an amount of money that can be won if a jackpot is hit while playing the maximum number of coins per bet. A percentage of the value of each credit played is added to the jackpot.

Video Reel Games (IGT)

How to Bet:

Step 1: Insert money / Tito ticket
Step 2: Using the bottom row of buttons, select the number of lines you'd like to play.
Step 3: Using the top row of buttons select the number of credits you wish to bet per line. Reels will automatically spin after pressing a bet button.

Hint 1:
Chances of winning are increased by the number of lines you play.

Hint 2:
Always take a moment to study the game's paytable. It will help you distinguish games that frequently pay small amounts from those which pay larger amounts less frequently. Most people have a preference. Understanding a paytable will help you find the type of game you enjoy most.

Video reel games have five reels that display three rows of symbols and choices of up to 10 lines. A game's paytable shows all of the ways the symbols must appear on a payline to win. Most games require symbols to be aligned left to right on a payline, with the first symbol appearing on the left reel.

When you win, an on-screen message displays the winning payline number and the number of credits won. The value of each credit equals the displayed denomination e.g. five credits wagered or won on a five cents game machine equals 25cents.

Adjacent Matching Symbols

If you achieve the required number of adjacent matching symbols on a payline with credits wagered, the matching symbols and the winning line begin to flash. Additionally, a message displays below the video reels describing the winning line and the number of credits won.

Substitutes (Wild Symbols)

These are like wild cards - they match certain symbols to form winning combinations. Substitute symbols do not always substitute for all other symbols. Look at a game's paytable for exceptions.

Scatter Symbols

These are special symbols that pay when they appear on the video reels. It usually does not matter how many lines are in play, however, the correct number of scatter symbols must appear on the displayed reels in order to win. See the game's paytable for the number of scatter symbols necessary to win.

Multiplier Symbols

When the multiplier symbols appear in winning combinations on most video reel games, the displayed multipliers are added together then multiplied by the bet per line. For example, two 10x multipliers can turn a one-credit win into a 20-credit win.

Bonus Game Wins

Bonus Games are secondary games that launch after a specific symbol combination. Theses features can be played on the video reels or in special secondary bonus screens. A game's paytable shows which symbols initiate a bonus game or games.

Gamble Feature

Should the player wish to gamble his win, he or she presses the GAMBLE button on the button panel. Two signs featuring the words BLACK and RED, as well as a face down card, will appear on a secondary screen. The player chooses a colour and presses one of the two corresponding buttons on the button panel. The face down card will flip over to reveal a colour.

If the player has chosen the incorrect colour, he or she forfeits his winnings from the game just played. Should the player have chosen the correct colour, he or she will double his or her money. The gamble feature will automatically reappear on the screen.

Should the player wish to continue gambling, he or she repeats the procedure by pressing either the red or black button. This game feature can be repeated up to five times. The player can at any stage revert back to the online slots game by pressing the TAKE WIN button shown on the button panel.

Understanding the Button Panel

Line Buttons
Every machine has five line play buttons on the button panel. Some machines have up to five paylines and others have up to nine paylines. In the case of the five payline machine, the buttons are marked 1,2,3,4, and 5. In the case of the nine payline machine, the buttons are marked 1,3,5,7 and 9. By pressing a certain button the player determines how many lines he or she wishes to play.

Credit Buttons

Every slots machine online and land based has five credit play buttons on the button panel. Certain machines allow up to 10 credits per line played and others allow up to 20 credits per line played. With the ten credit play, the player can choose to bet 1, bet 2, bet 3, bet 5 or bet 10. With the twenty credit play, the player can choose to bet 2, bet 5, bet 10 or bet 20. By pressing the credit button the player determines how many credits per line he or she wishes to play.

Once the game is over, the player can restart the game by simply pressing one of the line play buttons. Should the player wish to change his or her number of credits bet per line, he or she can do so by pressing the credit play button before pressing the line button.

Winning Combinations

It is important for the player to carefully read the paytables of the machine so that he or she understands how the game plays and pays. A minimum number of a particular symbol is required to make up a winning combination and these symbols must appear in a consecutive order (with the exception of most scatter symbols).