Foreword｜Money88
In the modern world of online casino gaming, slot machines certainly form the backbone. With thousands of titles already in existence, and with new titles coming out every month from esteemed developers like Microgaming, Netent, and Yggdrasil, the range is only going to grow. However, this popularity wasn’t always the case, as the origins of online slot machines were limited, primitive, and ultimately unimpressive.
The current level has only been possible through a series of collaborative technology and infrastructure developments and practices. From mobile phones to huge jackpots, we wanted to take a look at what cemented slot machines as the dominant player in the industry today.
First step｜Money88
The earliest online slot games were more restricted than anything else. By today’s standards, the pre-2000 Internet and the computers that could access it were pitifully small. In most cases, this computing power will vastly exceed the phones we carry around today. With browsers and slower connection speeds further limiting this potential, it makes sense that the first online slot games were simple similes for the basic physical slot unit.
New millennium｜Money88
Soon after entering the new millennium, the average speed of computers and the Internet began to soar, which opened up huge avenues for changes in the slot game, with existing companies seeing major growth and many new businesses entering the fray. Instead of basic interpretations, these slot games branched out into new themes and designs, quickly becoming a mainstay in online casinos.
Input smartphone｜Money88
The next step in the popularity of slot games is to expand the game from being locked at home to being playable anywhere. On the first generation of digital phones, this was impossible, but smartphones quickly raised the bar and set new ones. With the ubiquity of products like the iPhone, smartphones became a hugely popular luxury that quickly became ubiquitous and effectively a necessity.
With processing power rapidly surpassing computers released just a few years ago and smartphones becoming the primary means of accessing online casinos, slot games are once again one of the most popular avenues. At first, this was only possible by creating a dedicated application. Over time, advances in programming languages such as HTML and CSS have made online casinos as accessible as possible through standard browsing on PCs and laptops.
Building infrastructure｜Money88
The final part of the process is the constant development of the back office infrastructure that supports the online casino industry. Once it became clear that slot machines could – and had – huge appeal, attention shifted to putting them in the first place.
Bonus cash and free spins form the cornerstone of this appeal, and slot machines are the main way most sites incorporate these bonuses, but suffice it to say this method has been the industry standard for a long time. Now as a feedback effect, this lottery creates more demand for slot machines, and better slot machines create more lottery draws for more of these bonus types.
Next generation｜Money88
As with any major development in online slots, the next big step may reflect more powerful consumer technology. It happened to faster computers and the Internet, it happened to smartphones and the mobile Internet, it happened to everything that comes next. Whether this could be augmented or virtual reality, 5G adoption and integration, or something else entirely remains to be seen. What is certain is that as long as the internet continues to evolve, so will online slot machines.
