If you like a little gamble, but you don’t know too much about sports, playing slot machines is an excellent alternative. Slot machines are super intuitive to play, and they’re so much more interactive and engaging than betting on sports matches, where you’re just a passive spectator.

In this article, we’re going to break down exactly how to play slot machines for optimal results. It’s only a brief guide, but it’s more than enough to give you a good head start. Here goes!

Choosing What Slot Machine To Play

The first thing to decide is what slot game to play, and there are two main factors that will affect your decision.

RTP

RTP stands for Return to Player rate, which is expressed as a percentage. The higher the RTP, the greater the odds of winning most of your money back. For example, If you gamble $100, and the RTP is 96%, on average you could potentially win back $96.

Cautious gamblers prefer slot games with higher RTP rates.

Volatility

A slot machine’s volatility describes the nature of its payouts. If a machine has low volatility, you will win small amounts of money on a frequent basis. In contrast, a machine with high volatility will pay out much larger but on a much less frequent basis.

If you like to play for bigger stakes and are on for the long game, you will favor high volatility machines, but if you would like to see your money back sooner rather than later, low volatility machines would be more for you.

The Basics

Slot machines usually have between 3 and 5 reels adorned with all kinds of fun symbols. You spin the reels, and you can win money by the reels showing a matching pattern of symbols when the reels stop spinning.

Depending on what game you’re playing, you can not only win money by matching symbols horizontally, but also diagonally, and even on a zigzag.

A slot machine can have multiple paylines, where a payline is the line on which a payout will be awarded based on winning combinations. You can play on as many paylines as the machine will allow. And the more lines you play, the more chances you have to win. But, playing more lines costs more money. 

Each credit costs one denomination. You can play as many credits as you like on as many paylines as you like. And this determines how much each spin of the reels will cost.

Tips For Playing Slot Machines

Beating Slot Machines 101

The first thing to understand about slot machines is that the results of the spins are determined by a random number generator. Which means that where the symbols land with every spin is entirely random.

And due to this, there is no real overall strategy you can take to win the Jackpot. If you were to win the Jackpot it would be entirely by chance.

But that doesn’t mean that we can’t provide you with a few tips for playing, which brings us onto our next section.

Tip Number One: Head Online For More Variety

As much fun as it is to head out to a real casino, it’s far more convenient to play online at home. Besides, there’s now a wide variety of fun online slot games you can play with huge Jackpots and multiple ways to win.   

Tip Number Two: Gamble Responsibly

If you want to play slots online for real money, you should bear in mind that you’re gambling with your earnings and that you have a finite amount of money. Decide on your budget and stick to it as best you can.

Try not to spend money that you don’t have. Remember, credit cards charge interest and if you go over your bank’s overdraft limit you will be fined.

Tip Number Three: Ensure You Bet Enough For Progressive Slots

If you want to win big, you may want to try out a progressive slot machine. On these machines, a percentage of each wager is added to the jackpot. This means that if you don’t make enough wagers, you will not be able to win the jackpot.

Tip Number Four: Take Advantage Of Bonuses

If you’re offered a free bonus spin, take it! You have just as much chance of winning some money on a free spin as you would on a paid for spin, since every single spin is determined by a random number generator. 

Tip Number Five: Check Out Game Demos

Before you put down any money for a game, it would be really sensible to check out a demo of the game first. If you’re in an actual casino, this may mean watching someone else play (if they will let you). But if you’re playing online at home, you can watch videos of the game being played.

Simply head over to YouTube, and search for the game you want to check out. Many players upload their gaming to YouTube, so you can see how the game works. Some players even give away their secret strategies for winning big.

Wrap Up

With this brief guide to hand, you should be able to not only choose which slot games to play, but also have some great fun doing so, even if you don’t manage to win big.