How to Play Slot Machines Articles | Casino

By: Richard Bleuze

How to Play Slot Machines

Slot machines are the most popular casino game both online and in land based casinos.  Ever since slot machines came about the basic mechanics of slot machine gaming has not changed.  As a rule, you either have three reels or five reels which present numbers or symbols and which must be lined up in different combinations to win.

All slot machines will display a payout table, letting the player know beforehand what combinations of symbols will pay based on a specific amount of money inserted.  The payback percentage on slots machines range anywhere from 80% to as high as 99%, depending on minimum bet size.  Most online experts say that the average online slot machines payout percentage is around 97%.  Just remember, these payouts will come in fluctuating and wild random amounts. 

The reason that online casinos have a high payout percentage is because they do not have to pay for expensive real estate and staff, therefore they can afford more liberal payouts on their slot machine games as compared to land based casinos.   However, I suggest that when playing a slot machine online that you know the site is verified and legitimate.  All the online casinos that we promote are legitimate and can be vertified.

As a general rule, you should know the rules on the slot machines.  Especially, the payout tables.   It is the slot machine player's responsibility to know the rules about the number of coins to insert at the beginning of the game or how many lines need to be activated in order to collect prizes.  I seen or heard it happened that a slot machine player has lined up the jackpot symbols without meeting the game's requirements, and thus, NOT win the jackpot! 

Most online casinos offer two types of slot machines for their customers.  These are known as progressive and straight machines.

Progressive machines are more sophisticated machines which pay a high jackpot that grows by a specific percentage each time the player feeds money into the slot machine.  Progressive slot machines generally belong to a network of slot machines or slot machines in other online casinos. 

The most common slot machine found at online casinos operates with 3 reels of symbols but some do feature 4 or 5 reels of play.  In the various slot machines, the odds of winning are determined by the number of reels and the number of symbols present on each reel.  The more reels and symbols there are, the less likely you are to win a game.  However, should you win, the prize is generally larger.

Most online slot machines are programmed to pay out between 93% and 98% of the cash they have stored in them from previous play.  Most online slot machines have a single payline, while others have up to 3 paylines which require a coin to be inserted in each line in order to win.  Thus, once again, know the rules of the slot machine that you wish to play.  The more coins that you feed the slot machine, the bigger the payoff! 

When playing the progressive machines, alawys play with the maximum number of coins that you can play.  Otherwise, you will not collect jackpots.  If you are not going to play the maximum number of coins to take advantage of the progressive slot machine, then why play a progressive slot machine?

In general, if a slot machine is not clearly labeled as a progressive slot machine, then the smart play is to bet the minimum.  Thus, by playing the minimum on a slot machine, you are able to make more small bets with the goal of hitting a small jackpot along the way.

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