To the uninitiated, the term “slot rules” might seem like something out of a jokes book. Aren’t slot games about luck and spins and betting money and probably never seeing it back ever again? The short answer is, no. Of course not. As with any gambling game, there’s more to slots than meets the eye, and if you follow the basic rules of the game, you can win real money and develop a strategy that is functional and proofed by winnings.
In this article, you will learn about the basics of slots, but also have a deeper look into spins, symbols, bonuses, Free Spins, jackpots and everything else related to the game that took the world by storm. Every single slot game that you play is different, but there are a set of rules that all of them must comply with when it comes to bonuses, bets, pay lines and payouts. Let’s start with the basics, and then we’ll move to the more advanced stuff as we go.
The Goal
The first and most important rule to slots is to know what you’re aiming for. Before even thinking about playing your real money on a slot, you first need to make sure you get what it is that you need to do for a win. Take blackjack for example. You simply need to have your cards add up to a value of 21 or lower, but 21 would be perfect, which will enable you to win the bet and take the house’s money.
With slots, you need to trigger a series of special symbols and combination in order to score big, but also aim for the big daddy, the ultimate prize, the jackpot of every game. How do you do that? By simply obtaining a sequence of specific symbols, on one or two or more pay lines that you are betting on. When you reach that, you are a winner and your credit score will boom.
Still, keep in mind that not all of the combinations of symbols are easy to get, so you’ll have to play more for the more valuable ones, than for the easier to catch one that still pays well, but not as much as the big ones. You will usually get a decent payment when landing on a good combination, although there are sequences that can make you a millionaire in just a few seconds.
Betting Strategies
The next important thing that you need to look after is how much you bet on a certain spin. This is highly underestimated by many players, as they just seem to think that, regardless of how much they bet, the results are going to be the same. Which is of course wrong. The minimum or the maximum bet for a certain slot is different from one game to the other, but as a rule, you are looking at $1 for a minimum and about $10 for a maximum bet on one spin.
As a strategy, you can start up by playing on smaller bets at first. After a few spins, and after you land on a first win, you can up the bet to almost 100% of the original one, as this will show the slot that you are willing to pay more while expecting more out of it. You can modify the betting amount as much as you want, but don’t do it lightly. You can play for hours on your initial $10 for example, and you can as easily lose everything in 2 minutes if you overbet or rush things.
Once you set your amount, you hit the Spin button and let yourself be dazzled at the spinning reel of the slot.
Paylines
One important aspect of the slot game is its pay lines. In layman’s terms, a payline is the appropriate line in the table of many symbols were any winning scheme will be counted as a win. There are more than a few pay lines in any game, depending on its internal systems of payments, but for as many paylines you choose to play on, you’ll have to add credit score in order to pay it first.
Getting the paylines right is extremely confusing at first. As a beginner, you’ll wonder why your spin is not a winning one, after seeing three symbols in a row that turn out a losing spin. Fortunately, this mistake is easy to avoid.
All you have to do is to always take a good look at the payout structure of a slot, regardless if it’s online or classic, before starting to play. If you want, you can start the game with bets on all of the 9 or 10 pay lines of the slot, and you can adjust later if you want to up your chances.
Bonus Symbols
In the old days, symbols were dominated by gems and fruits, and that was about it. Nowadays, you’ll find almost any object as a symbol in a slot game. You still have your regular symbols, but that’s nothing compared to the real deal, the bonus symbols that turn your spin into a winning one.
- Scatter Symbols – Can be anything depending on the theme of the specific slot game you land on. These are the highest-paying symbols on the screen, so you need to land on many of them for a good turnaround.
- Wild Symbols – Compared to the joker from the poker game, the Wild symbol is the one which can substitute any other symbol on the spin. This means even the paylines with just two Scatters, for example, can turn into a huge win, as the Wild will immediately change the normal symbol with a Scatter one, assuring you with a win.
- Expanding Wilds – These symbols work the same way as the normal Wilds do, and then some more. They cover the entire column of the reel on which they appear. You’ll win on more than a single pay line when that happens, and the overall winnings will be substantial.
Bonus Games
Slots include bonus games. Consider them as smaller levels that are playable in the overall gameplay. Certain combinations of symbols trigger bonus games, and the returns are higher when you land on some of them. You have Free Spins Rounds, which when unlocked, allow for you to play a longer set of free bonus spins, but while your overall credit score stays untouched and can only be added on with the winnings.
Now that you have the basics of the slot games in hand, take into consideration the biggest rule and secret of them all: moderation. As with all of the gambling games out there, we do advise you to play these games in moderation and to never bet more than you can afford. When you are under the impression that the games might turn into an addiction, consult with a professional immediately.
