Slots 101: Basics, Strategies, and Discussion (with poll)

[mu_enrico]

Slots, the poor man's favorite game, is probably the most straightforward yet most diverse game to date. This thread is for those of you who aren't a grammar nazi and won't cry if you lose your gambling budget. Anyway, let's take a more in-depth look at this "killing time" machine.

Grid setup

The reel is the vertical part of the grid, or simply, the column that spins vertically. Nowadays, online slots use RNG instead of mechanical reels, but the term "reel" has been used for centuries, so it is still widely used around the world. From my observation, most online slots games use five reels or more, but legend says some also use three reels (see figure 1).




In 2015/2016, there is a new setup called Megaways.

Megaways was created by Australia-based slot development studio Big Time Gaming and first hit the market in 2015 with its Dragon Born title. But it wasn’t until Bonanza launched in 2016 that Megaways entered the mainstream and took the online slots world by storm.

Source

Megaways is a slots game with rows that varied for each spin. See figure 2 for the Megaways example of a 5-reel slot.




Oh, there is also a puzzle-like setup similar to Candy Crush et al.

Wild and Scatter

* Wild: the symbol can turn into any symbol except scatter.
* Scatter: collect three or more will trigger a bonus level; this symbol doesn't have to be aligned (see figure 3).
* Bonus level: you will get x free spins added with various multipliers, the layout, number of the grid, mechanism, etc., will be different for each game. Gamblers usually play to get into this bonus level. In some games, you can use "buy feature" to immediately trigger the bonus level.



RTP and Volatility

* RTP: it is like a fee for slots operator in the long run, let's say for $1 bet, the operator will earn $0.05 and $0.95 will be put in the pot. Rule of thumb: search for slots that have more than 95% RTP.
* Volatility: it is like a risk for slots game. In low volatility slots, action will occur more often, but it pays lower than high volatility slots.


Strategy

Well, there is no "strategy" per se for this one click spin and pure luck-based game. However, you can use several playing styles for various scenarios you may encounter in this game.
(1) You can play using a fun balance (not real money) to get familiar with the game you choose;
(2) Start with low volatility slots if you are new to the game;
(3) If you play in a progressive slot, you can play until you hit the bonus level. Or use the "buy feature" since it will become cheaper.
(4) You can use the martingale strategy to buy features, but keep in mind this is like high-roller stuff. You can lose all of your money if you are unlucky.
(5) You don't have to stay in the same game and waste all of your money there. Remember, the probability of winning the next spin will remain the same. However, you will lose your progression doing so, thus always save your last money to buy the feature before you quit.
(6) If you manage to salvage some of your initial balance, don't play until it becomes zero. Call it a night, and use it next weekend.


Recommended Game

This list is pure my judgment based on the gaming experience (sadly, I didn't get paid for this lol), so you may not like it. But please don't cry since you can give me suggestions here, and I will try it, then, if I agree, I will put it on this list. (Note: information from slotcatalog.com & myslotsworld.com)

Admin Pick:
* Rich Wilde and Tome of Madness (96.59% - High) | Rating: 4.4/5;
* Frozen Gems (96.36% - High) | Rating: 4.2/5;
* Reactoonz 2 (96.20% - High) | Rating: 4.2/5;
* Gates of Olympus (96.50% - High) | Rating: 4/5.


Community pick:
* Jammin' Jars (96.83% - High): puzzle;
* Reactoonz (96.51% - High): puzzle;
* DOA2 (96.82% - High): a popular 5x3 slot;
* Grim Muerto (96.51% - Med): collect two wilds to activate "second chance," a 25% chance to get the third wild;
* Wild Wild Riches (96.77% - High): God gamer's favorite game;
* Rise of Merlin (96.58% - High): God gamer's favorite game;
* Provably fair slots.


Disclaimer: gambling is for adults who understand the risks involved with this game. Plus, OP wouldn't take responsibility whatsoever if you then become slots addict and lose lots of money after reading this thread.
More information visit: https://myslotsworld.com/

Feel free to suggest your favorite slots here!

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[SyGambler]

am I the only one who finds high variance slots can be much less money burner ?
kinda find that if someone plays low variance slots that has frequent low wins tends to lose more for simply not winning enough of money even with same RTP , like if you win 200x or something similar you may just keep wagering and wagering  ( 200x of spin of course not bankroll  )

while in high variance slots you will either lose fast or win big at someday , and usually when someone hits big he will make a cashout instantly unlike the hits with low variance ones
so you kinda save your luck for the big hits to cashout , while with low variance players tend to play much more and wager more amount of money

probably that's why I like jammin jars and dead or alive 2 but I rarely play slots

[Bitinity]

Slots, the poor man's favorite game

I cant fully agree with this statement to be honest, as far as I can see most Slot players has big bankroll to play because the minimum bet for most slots cant be considered as low for poor. Poor man's favorite game is lottery imho.

Megaways is a 5-reel slot with rows that varied for each spin

It can be more than 5 reel. Example is Aztec Gold Megaways and Majestic from Isoftbet, Great Rhino Megaways (Pragmatic). They are 6 reels slot games created by Big Time Gaming in a collaboration with those 3rd party providers.

Coming up to Grid setup, basically there are some more different setup aside from what you have explained above. Slot like God Temple Deluxe from Boongo for example, it has 6 reels with 2 rows for the 1st reel, 3 for 2nd, 4 for 3rd till 7 for the last 6th reel. Once we hit the bonus game (free spins), the layout will be reversed. So 1st reel will be 7 rows, 2nd with 6 rows and so on.

Feel free to suggest your favorite slots here!

Here are my favorite slots:
- CoyWolf by Play n Go
- Wins of Fortune by Quickspin
- Mega Moolah by Microgaming: the huge jackpot is the most attractive thing
- Reactoonz by Play n Go
- The slot game on Stake

[mu_enrico]

am I the only one who finds high variance slots can be much less money burner ?

It depends on your luck mate, as always, perhaps you didn't play long enough to notice how quickly your balance got depleted when you had bad luck. In high volatility slots, winning is rarer than the low one, so that's why "buying feature" often used like all-in before gamblers go home empty if he didn't have a big bankroll. Otherwise, gamblers usually have a big bankroll as @Bitinity said, so even they are in the losing streak, they still can recover.

most Slot players has big bankroll to play because the minimum bet for most slots cant be considered as low for poor. Poor man's favorite game is lottery imho.

Lot's of games only cost $0.4 (minimum) per spin mate.

Megaways is a 5-reel slot with rows that varied for each spin

It can be more than 5 reel. Example is Aztec Gold Megaways and Majestic from Isoftbet, Great Rhino Megaways (Pragmatic). They are 6 reels slot games created by Big Time Gaming in a collaboration with those 3rd party providers.

Coming up to Grid setup, basically there are some more different setup aside from what you have explained above. Slot like God Temple Deluxe from Boongo for example, it has 6 reels with 2 rows for the 1st reel, 3 for 2nd, 4 for 3rd till 7 for the last 6th reel. Once we hit the bonus game (free spins), the layout will be reversed. So 1st reel will be 7 rows, 2nd with 6 rows and so on.

Correct! Thanks for a more detailed explanation.

jammin jars and dead or alive 2

Here are my favorite slots:
- CoyWolf by Play n Go
- Wins of Fortune by Quickspin
- Mega Moolah by Microgaming: the huge jackpot is the most attractive thing
- Reactoonz by Play n Go
- The slot game on Stake

Jammin Jars, DOA2, Reactoonz are popular games. Perhaps I'll put it on my list based on the community suggestion if more members mention it. Thanks!

[Bitinity]

most Slot players has big bankroll to play because the minimum bet for most slots cant be considered as low for poor. Poor man's favorite game is lottery imho.

Lot's of games only cost $0.4 (minimum) per spin mate.

Yap, know about it very well. Even there are some slots with lower minimum bet than that. Probably $0.4 per spin is not that big for you but it can be something big for poor. I do believe poor will prefer to spend $0.4 btc for lottery instead of playing slot games. All in all, it is big or small is about preferences and depends on our pocket condition .

[SyGambler]

It depends on your luck mate, as always, perhaps you didn't play long enough to notice how quickly your balance got depleted when you had bad luck. In high volatility slots, winning is rarer than the low one, so that's why "buying feature" often used like all-in before gamblers go home empty if he didn't have a big bankroll. Otherwise, gamblers usually have a big bankroll as @Bitinity said, so even they are in the losing streak, they still can recover.

I know but it's more like a theory , I mean assuming someone is playing with only what he affords to lose ( pocket money most of the time ) he will most likely have a point where he hits a decent multi with high variance slots and most likely it will be followed by a cashout
unlike the slots with small wins , I see players there tend to continue gambling even if they hit what's considered a good payout comparing it with the variance level since the payout won't be that much of satisfying so I see they tend to wager much more with these slots

[ralle14]

most Slot players has big bankroll to play because the minimum bet for most slots cant be considered as low for poor. Poor man's favorite game is lottery imho.

Lot's of games only cost $0.4 (minimum) per spin mate.

Yap, know about it very well. Even there are some slots with lower minimum bet than that. Probably $0.4 per spin is not that big for you but it can be something big for poor. I do believe poor will prefer to spend $0.4 btc for lottery instead of playing slot games. All in all, it is big or small is about preferences and depends on our pocket condition .

For fiat casinos I think slots is one of those games with the lowest minimum bet that's why it can be called as the poor man's favorite game. But in bitcoin casinos it depends as some of them set the minimum to at least $1.

Out of all the different setups the best experience I had was mostly on the 5 reel slots. The slots similar to candy crush was good as well I remember you'd get a free play whenever you get a lot of pairs. The megaways is the worst one for me played it multiple times and never hit something good.
 
Few slot games I like are:
Grim Muerto(playngo) if you hit 2 scatter you have a second chance to get the third by picking 1 out of 4 book

Tesla(GameArt) the free spin feature lets you choose between 3 levels (low med high multipliers)

Bitcoinvideocasino's slot

[mu_enrico]

unlike the slots with small wins , I see players there tend to continue gambling even if they hit what's considered a good payout comparing it with the variance level since the payout won't be that much of satisfying so I see they tend to wager much more with these slots

Yes, it also affects the psychology for sure, so they will play more. However, I still find it difficult to go zero in a low-variance slot like Starburst, just try it mate... Fun mode is okay for an experiment

Grim Muerto(playngo) if you hit 2 scatter you have a second chance to get the third by picking 1 out of 4 book

Very good game! But the RTP is pretty low though, at 94.57%
I would pick it if it has >95% RTP since I like the "2nd chance" and Coco (2017) movie like theme.

[Kakmakr]

I just want to check something quickly... are you only concentrating on Slot games in Brick n Mortar (land based) casinos or do you include games that are being used in online gambling sites too? The reason why I am asking, is because some of the online gambling sites are setting their own house edge on their games, for example the Slots in Stake.com.

I like the games being developed by NetEnd and Betsoft. (Games like Gonzos-Quest & Good Girl/Bad Girl & It came from Venus and 3D slot games)    I do not have a specific strategy, other than just playing for the bonus and just enjoying the sights and sounds.  

If they are linked to a Progressive Jackpot, then I enjoy it a little bit more.  

[mu_enrico]

are you only concentrating on Slot games in Brick n Mortar (land based) casinos or do you include games that are being used in online gambling sites too?

Online, since I (and slots lovers here) cannot try it talk about it if it's offline/local stuff.

Slots in Stake.com.

Added in "community pick," I don't know about its RTP and volatility though, any info guys?
Usually, slots games with modest graphics/animations have high RTPs.

(Games like Gonzos-Quest & Good Girl/Bad Girl & It came from Venus and 3D slot games)

*Gonzo's Quest (95.97% - Med/High);
*Good Girl Bad Girl (97.79% - Med) and It Came From Venus (95.8% - Med) need Flash Player... These games look too old mate.

I'll add Gonzo if more people mention it

[Saint-loup]

Most of people have no clue about that but there are important mathematical researchs about the N-armed bandit problem

In the problem, each machine provides a random reward from a probability distribution specific to that machine. The objective of the gambler is to maximize the sum of rewards earned through a sequence of lever pulls.[3][4] The crucial tradeoff the gambler faces at each trial is between "exploitation" of the machine that has the highest expected payoff and "exploration" to get more information about the expected payoffs of the other machines. The trade-off between exploration and exploitation is also faced in machine learning. In practice, multi-armed bandits have been used to model problems such as managing research projects in a large organization like a science foundation or a pharmaceutical company.[3][4] In early versions of the problem, the gambler begins with no initial knowledge about the machines.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multi-armed_bandit

[mu_enrico]

^Obviously exploration vs exploitation is an interesting topic, but I'm not sure if the problem will still be relevant with a random number generator in modern slots. Hence:

Strategy

(5) You don't have to stay in the same game and waste all of your money there. Remember, the probability of winning the next spin will remain the same.

This is the most general advice in slots since you don't have to do a statistical analysis while playing.

[buwaytress]

Nice thread OP! First of all, I'd like to say I don't play slots. When I do, it's just for a few satoshi at a time, or if it's free spins.

But slots is truly, for me, the underrated game on crypto casinos. I know people disagree with me (I've had this conversation) but it has yet to fully evolve to fulfil potential. Remember that Space cadet pinball machine game on Windows? It was a normal pinball but it had missions allocated into it, so involved some level of skill. I always imagined a really good slot game could incorporate story and puzzle elements (which is why I voted for Puzzle) and even XP settings, where you can upgrade skills and tactics. Anyway, I digress.

I think the list should include all those crypto gambling sites who've spent time to design their own original slots. Personally, I think Bitvest's slots was one of the originals in that you could set up your own winning lines.

Some of the best minimalist slot games I can recall Bulletproof Babes... but the same developers bombed with a really odd striptease slot A Night with Cleo, which is actually worse than the 1980s Strip Poker.

[slaman29]

I know this doesn't apply to slots online with RNG but I was told that some operators design their slots to collect a Jackpot and then as it gets higher, the chance to hit it also becomes higher. Because in the long run, they want people to win the jackpot and encourage more people to play it.

This is different from online where Jackpot is based on size of bet, right?

Oh also I didn't know that we have grammar nazis in this forum?

[mu_enrico]

^Thanks @buwaytress, the problem (or perhaps the blessing) with the "original" crypto casino with provably fair and stuff is that they put too much focus on the fairness of the slots. Unlike big operator slots, they designed their game to be highly addictive entertaining so that "ordinary" gamblers are just don't care if they are losing money every night.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bny1qgKO46A

If you didn't play slots then it's great since most likely you'll be addicted if you play
The good thing is, these highly addictive slots games can be played without any real money, it helps a lot IMO to overcome slots addiction.

Yea I tried BitVest slots years ago and too complicated for my style, but I'll put it on OP if more members like it.

I know this doesn't apply to slots online with RNG but I was told that some operators design their slots to collect a Jackpot and then as it gets higher, the chance to hit it also becomes higher. Because in the long run, they want people to win the jackpot and encourage more people to play it.

This is different from online where Jackpot is based on size of bet, right?

AFAIK the chance hitting jackpot will remain the same, but the value in it will grow since it takes some portion of HE into the pot. The more people bet, the more it will grow.

Maybe @Bitinity can tell more since he seems to like Mega Moolah.

[mu_enrico]

Bump!

Removed:
* KingMaker (96.65% - Med/High)

Added:
* Tomb of Nefertiti (96.19% - Med/High): great animation/gameplay.

[Mauser]

am I the only one who finds high variance slots can be much less money burner ?
kinda find that if someone plays low variance slots that has frequent low wins tends to lose more for simply not winning enough of money even with same RTP , like if you win 200x or something similar you may just keep wagering and wagering  ( 200x of spin of course not bankroll  )

while in high variance slots you will either lose fast or win big at someday , and usually when someone hits big he will make a cashout instantly unlike the hits with low variance ones
so you kinda save your luck for the big hits to cashout , while with low variance players tend to play much more and wager more amount of money

probably that's why I like jammin jars and dead or alive 2 but I rarely play slots

I agree, higher payout ratios with less variane is definitely more relaxed to play. I played slot machines in Europe and in USA and prefer the ones in the States much more. The buy in is not as high and also the variance seems overall lower. So in the end it's more time you can play.

And in Europe, if you only play a couple of rounds and all your money is gone, it's kinda sad. I would never expect a huge win from a slot machine it's more about fun playing the game.

Playing slots is always a nice way to get rid of your pocket change

[muslol67]

I try these slot games for luck for years, but I have never seen such a wide guide before. This topic will remain a great resource for my future bets.
I think it has been a great guide for newbie.

[swogerino]

There is no real strategy in slots although your tips are great for beginners.I like playing slots in which the bonus feature falls often in the reels.If this is paired with some extra like making your bet multiply up to 100 or wilds becoming a full figure in the three reels this is even better.As for the RTP almost all big slot providers offer more than 95-96% for the players.

[muslol67]

There is no real strategy in slots although your tips are great for beginners.I like playing slots in which the bonus feature falls often in the reels.If this is paired with some extra like making your bet multiply up to 100 or wilds becoming a full figure in the three reels this is even better.As for the RTP almost all big slot providers offer more than 95-96% for the players.

I am not already good at strategy. But at least it's a resource to help you decide which game I can win. This is exactly what I wanted to talk about. If I could do the strategy well, I would prefer poker.