ONLINE (VIDEO) SLOTS

Online slots are very popular casino games that come in a lot of different varieties. Online video slot games are based on classic reel slots like old fruit machines. Although video slots are based on the same idea as fruit machines there are many differences between the games. Most fruit machines have only a few paylines and not a lot of special features. Modern-day online video slots are a bit more complex and can offer multiple bonus features, free spins feature, jackpot features, more paylines and unique sounds and themes.

Walt Fraley developed the first video slot game in 1975 and since then a lot of innovations came to the market. Because of this video slots games are now very popular in almost all online (and offline) casinos. On this page I will explain more about online slots, video slots, types of video slots, and the difference with fruit machines.

What’s fun about online slots?

Almost all video slot games have a unique design, unique bonus features, a certain amount of paylines and unique sounds. This make playing video slot very fun. You never know what’s going to happen and when you trigger a bonus feature. And that’s not the only reasons why we like video slots. Some video slots offer a fun theme based on for example a movie, game or cartoon. This theme will be transferred into great designs and unique game sounds. This makes playing video slots sometimes even a bit nostalgic for its players. And since the technology behind video slots improves every day new games stay exciting and fun. More and more slots come in mobile versions, high (HD) resolution, 3D and Virtual Reality. Because of this we think video slots will keep a strong place within todays (online) gambling market.

Popular online video slots in the US

Most game providers including NetEnt, Microgaming, Big Time Gaming and Play’ Go launch new video slots every month. Some of them are bad, some of them are entertaining, and some of them are great. Slots from the last category will become very popular in the online gambling community and will take the top spots at most US online casinos. Curious which slots we currently see as the most popular online video slots? Then have a look at the table below! In this table we display the top 15 most popular video slot games.

For beginning players Starburst might be the number one choice. This slot is entertaining, pays often and is easy to understand. For more experienced players Jammin’ Jars will be the top slot at this very moment. Other relative new slots that are very popular are Rise of Olympus, Extra Chili, Buffalo Rising MEGAWAYS and Genie Jackpots MEGAWAYS. Games that are already around for a while but remain very popular are for example Dead or Alive, Book of Dead, Bonanza, Thunderstruck II and Pimped. Visit one of the top-rated online casinos to try out any of these games!

Types of online slots

In today’s market there are a lot of different types of video slots. Some offer small prizes (but a lot), some are very volatile (and offer not a lot but high prizes) and some offer huge Jackpots. Depending on your preferences you can start playing on or more of these types;

1. Regular Video Slots; Most regular video slots offer special bonus features including free spins and unique bonus features. These type of slots offer most of the times between 9 and 1024 paylines and for example random or stacked wilds.
2. Jackpot Slots; While playing one a Jackpot Slot you will compete with others for one standard Jackpot prize. Besides the Jackpot you can win coins by making combinations or for example triggering a feature.
3. Progressive Jackpot Slots; While playing a Progressive Jackpot Slot you will compete with others for one top prize. This Jackpot grows with every spin a player makes. Because of this Progressive Jackpot Slots can offer huge prizes (millions!).

When you want to start playing video slots it is smart to learn how most video slots work. Below I will explain which variations of video slots there are available.

Variations

At the moment there are thousands of video slots online to play. And almost all of them are different. We recommend all players to learn how all slots work before starting playing with real money. Otherwise you might sometimes think you win something, while you don’t win at all. Before starting playing we think it is important to know how the following things works;

1. Reels; Most online video slots offer three or five reels. Some game can offer more reels.
2. Rows; The amount of rows will depend on how many lines you can make a win. Most video slots offer three rows but this can vary.
3. Paylines; Depending on the amount of reels and rows you will have a certain amount of paylines. Most games offer between 9 and 1024 paylines to win on. A lot of popular video slots offer 243 ways to win. It is also important to know that some games offer paylines that also pay from right to left. You will find more information about the paylines in the game explanation that each game offers.
4. Features; A lot of video slots offer special features which increases your chance of landing big wins. These features can be for example Expanding Wilds, Multipliers, Re-Spins, Stacked Wilds, Sticky Wilds or a Gamble your Winnings feature.
5. Bonuses; Almost all video slots offer unique features. During most games you can hit a Free Spins Bonus or Bonus Game by landing Scatter Symbols and Bonus Symbols. Most of these feature give away big prizes.

At a lot of online casinos you can also filter games based on for example the amount of reels, the amount of paylines and the type of features. In this way you will always find games you enjoy!

Betting on slots

While playing online slots at an US online casino you can decide how much you want to bet per spin. During most games you can bet from a low as $0,20 per spin. Depending on your budget and appetite for risk you can decide to play with a higher stake per spin. You can raise your stake by betting more coins per line and by raising the coin value. After doing this you can easily bet $1, $2, $5, or even up to $100 per spin. And the more you bet, the higher the final prizes will be. But stay smart and bet with your head!

Depending on your preferences you can play with small bets or with high bets. Playing with high bets means more risk, but the returns will be higher. Playing with small bets decrease the risks of losing money, especially when you play on a low volatile slot. The less volatile a game is, the more often it pays.

If you have an appetite for risk, you can also go for the volatile slot games. Normally slot games can pay up to 1.000 or 2.500 times your bet. Volatile games can raise this limit up to 5.000 times or even 10.000 times. On top of this you have a category with maximum volatile games. These are games that can deliver monster wins. Especially games by Nolimit city, Push Gaming, and Relax gaming are known for paying massive wins. These providers have games online that can pay up to 300.000 times your bet!

Online slot game providers

Today’s international gambling market gets dominated by a few large game providers. But more and more new game providers pop up. And some of the most popular video slots casino you will now find game by maybe 15 to 25 game providers. I think the following are the most popular in today’s market;

• Amaya
• Aristocrat
• Bally Wulff
• Betsoft Gaming
• EGT
• IGT
• Merkur
• Microgaming
• NetEnt
• Novomatic
• Play ‘n Go
• Playtech
• WMS (Williams / Scientific Gaming)

Besides these brands there are a few new upcoming game providers which do really well. I think the following game providers will grow quickly within the next years;

• Big Time Gaming
• Push Gaming
• Pragmatic Play
• Quickspin
• Red Tiger Gaming
• Thunderkick
• Yggdrasil

But not only these companies do well. There are plenty of other game providers that are rising in popularity.

• 1×2 Gaming, 2 by 2 Gaming and 2By2.
• Ainsworth, Amatic
• Bally, Barcrest, Bet Digital, Blueprint Gaming, Booming Games
• Casino Technology, Cayetano Games, Chance Interactive, Core Gaming
• ELK, Endorphina
• Fantasma, Felt, Foxium, Fuga Gaming
• Games Warehouse, GamesLab, Gamomat, Genesis, Genii, GVG Slots (Grand Vision Gaming)
• Inspired Gaming, Iron Dog Studio, iSoftBet
• Just for the Win
• Konami
• Leander Games, Lightning Box
• Magic Dreams, Magnet Gaming, Multislot
• Nektan, NextGen, Nolimit
• Old Skool Studios, OpenBet
• Playson, Push Gaming
• Rabcat, Realistic, Realtime Gaming, Relax Gaming, Rival
• Shuffle Master, Side City, Sigma Gaming, Skillzzgaming, Stakelogic
• Sunfox Games
• Wagermill

From time to time casinos will add new providers to their casino which will add a lot of new games to the casino. This keeps the game portfolio interesting for new and current players.

How to win – How do slot pay out prizes?

While playing video slots you can win money by making combinations and triggering features. What prize you win is most of the times based on the RNG principal. RNG means Random Number Generation. This principal makes sure the outcome of each spin is totally random. And since each spin is totally random you can be very lucky, or very unlucky. Because of RNG it is possible to lose many spins in a row, or to win a lot in a short time. While playing video slot you cannot have an effect on the outcome of a spin. But you can have a look at the RTP rate of a game. The RTP rate, return to player rate, indicates how much money the game will certain on average. When a game for example offers a 95,6% RTP it will return on average €95,60 per €100,- bet by players. Video slots with a higher RTP rate will return more money on average and are better for the players. On the Videoslots.com website you will find information about the RTP of every game in the casino.

Although you cannot change the outcome of a spin we do have one good tip. When you are in a unlucky streak stop playing! Especially when one game doesn’t pay simply switch to the next game! Sometimes this strategy works very well. For example, when you hit a bonus very quickly you are very likely to make a profit on a game. When you are not lucky at all when recommend to stop playing. Maybe you will be luckier the next day!

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