Navigating the World of Online Slots: A Beginner's Guide

Slots have a way of winning over the hearts of everyone. They're a universally appealing game with a simple irresistible quality to them. They're simple, they're easy to learn, and they thrive in relatively any environment because you can bet small amounts and there isn't a lot of pressure while playing them, which can sometimes be the case with more advanced gambling options like blackjack or poker. Slot machines have been around for a long time now, having established themselves in the early 20th century. Nowadays, slots are still popular but can be found in other places besides a physical casino. You can play slots on your smartphone, or on your desktop computer without any downloading or installation. You don't need to make any big commitments to play them!

Slots diverse appeal is obvious, but if you've never played an online slot game before, you might be unsure of where to begin. Well, in this article we'll offer you a beginner's guide to playing online slots!

Starting Point: Learning The Basics

Before you begin playing, you need to know the basics of the game itself. We're going to presume you've already picked a trustworthy casino, and you've probably used a lot of different factors to evaluate whether or not a casino is considered such. You should also select a casino that might give out a welcome deposit bonus, or free spins that can be used on specific games, because you'll want to take advantage of as much free play as possible, especially when you're new and inexperienced in casino gambling.

A legitimate casino with remarkable bonus options will probably provide you with a welcome bonus on at least three of your first deposits. That means as long as you meet the minimum deposit requirement, which is usually quite low, you can claim additional bonus funds, which can be used on slots. Sometimes, the bonus welcome package will come with free spins on specific games. Another promotional campaign you'll want to look out for is no deposit bonuses. These are bonuses given out simply for signing up for a platform, and don't require you to spend any money to claim them. No deposit bonuses usually consist of free spins, or free play money.

Whether or not you've claimed a bonus, you need to understand the fundamentals of slots games in themselves. The slot game is usually played on a certain number of reels and rows. Some games will have three reels, and three rows. Some games will have five reels and three rows. Rarely, a game will offer six reels and three rows. To land a winning combination, you need to trigger a match across the reels. This match will usually be three to five matching symbols, but sometimes certain games will give out cash prizes for matches of two high paying symbols. The concept sounds simple enough, and it is. However, there are a lot of other factors involved in your average slot game that determine your winnings, such as the types of slot machines and how winnings are determined.

Terminology

Slot gambling will come with a lot of different phrases you'll have to master. You'll be lost if you don't know what a 'scatter' or 'wild' or 'RTP' is. In this section of this article, we'll discuss some key terminology you have to know to be a successful slot player.

Scatters

Many games have a scatter symbol. A scatter symbol is a symbol often used to trigger a bonus round or special feature. Commonly, if you trigger three matching scatter symbols you'll activate a batch of free spins.

Wilds

Wild symbols are important symbols used to substitute other symbols to form a winning combination, and they can make it much easier to trigger a win. Sometimes, a row of matching wild symbols might trigger another special feature. There can be numerous different types of wilds. There are expanding wilds, which are symbols that will expand and cover numerous spots on a game grid, thus increasing the payout and win potential. There are sticky wilds, which are wild symbols that will be 'stuck' in place while the rest of the reels respin. There are walking wilds, and duplicating wilds.

RTP

RTP is known as the return to player percentage. These are rewards a player can expect to win from online slots and it's calculated using a form of a ratio or percentage based on the rewards a player will get from winning a slot. RTP calculates the chances of winning a particular slot. RTP is one of the factors that can make or break a game.

Slot Volatility

Along with the RTP, Volatility is another term you'll hear often. You can use slot volatility to determine the payout and risk of the slot. The volatility is how frequently payouts occur while playing, and will measure the amount of risk associated with any given game because it'll determine how often you win or lose. There are high volatility slots, low volatility slots and medium volatility slots. What volatility is best is determined more so by personal preferences than anything else. A low volatility game will pay out smaller wins more frequently, while a high volatility slot will pay out wins less often, but the wins will be more lucrative when they're awarded. As you can imagine, a medium volatility slot rests in the middle and pays out medium level payouts on a semi regular basis.

Free Spins

Free spins usually relate to scatter symbols, usually. Free spins are exactly what they sound like, they're a batch of spins that won't cost you any money. They're usually triggered randomly, and sometimes they can even be retriggered if you land more bonus symbols

Multipliers

Speaking of free spins, oftentimes you might win random multipliers attached to other bonuses. Sometimes multipliers might be paid out on their own, but oftentimes they will complement an accompanying feature such as a Free Spins feature. The multiplier will multiply your payout, and offer huge rewards along the way.

Progressive Jackpots

Many slot games nowadays come with progressive jackpots. A slot game might come with one progressive jackpot, or multiple jackpots depending on the game. Jackpots are large sums triggered randomly while playing, but a progressive jackpot is a little different because along with the jackpot's set value, a small percentage of every bet made will be stored in the progressive jackpot until it's paid out. If a progressive jackpot is paid out, the jackpot will reset back to its original amount. Oftentimes there are minor progressive jackpots, along with major progressive jackpots, and grand progressive jackpots, for example. These terms will be used to rank how valuable a jackpot might be. As I mentioned, some games might include up to four jackpots.

Gamble Feature

When you land a winning combination, some slots will offer you the chance to use the gamble feature. With the gable feature, you can double your payout by multiple times if you guess right. With the gamble feature, you have a 50/50 chance of doubling or losing all of your winnings. Some slots gambling features will include a coin toss where a player needs to guess correctly. Some slots might offer a virtual card game where you need to guess the color or suit of a card.