Slots History
While you can find slot machines in mass quantities in casinos all over the world and online, few people give much thought to how the "one armed bandit" got its start.
Here is a little history on slot machines.
Early Slot History:
The precursor to the modern slot machine was a poker machine derived by two entrepreneurs, Sittman and Pitt, in Brooklyn, New York in 1891. In this way, video poker actually predates slot machines, as the machine operated by creating a five-card poker hand when pulling a reel.
While the Sittman and Pitt game was popular, it was inefficient. In 1895, Charles Fey, a car mechanic from San Francisco, improved the game. Fey simplified the concept to a three-reel machine with five symbols that had to match.
One of the symbols was a liberty bell, and the machine came to be called a Liberty Bell machine. The limited number of combinations allowed Fey to develop an automatic payout system, a feature not available in the Sittman and Pitt machine.
Slot Advances:
The Bally Company was the first to develop a fully electromechanical slot machine, which is the basis for the mass-produced slot machines that appear in row after row of casino floors today. The slot games quickly branched out to include various themes and methods of winning, including multi-line payouts and multiplier machines that pay more per spin the more you put in.
Modern Slot Machines:
Today, slot machines are fully computerized. Many no longer take metal money, requiring patrons to put in paper money for multiple spins or to use a pre-paid card. Online casinos also have no shortage of slot action, with countless variations on slots according to theme, style and payout structure.
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