Slot
machines are one of the most
popular and entertaining games
in both live and online casinos
around the world and many players
wonder how these machines operate
when played. The
basic premise of a slot machine
is quite simple - the reels
spin and if they land on a pre-determined
payout reel, the player wins
the corresponding prize. While
the actually game play from
the players point of view is
quite straightforward and easy
to understand, the actually
way that slot machines work
are an entirely different matter
and are really quite complex
in design. Below is an
overview of how slot machines
work in casinos.
Random Number Generators
Before we look at how an actual
spin of the slot machine works,
we first need to understand
what a Random Number Generator
(RNG) is and how it works. A
random number generator is basically
a computer program that generates
a series of numbers constantly
without stopping. The
range of these numbers goes
anywhere from 0 to several billion
and this information is an integral
part of determining the outcome
of slot machines. The
idea is that using a random
number generator provides a
tool whereby results are completely
randomized and there are no
predictable outcomes from the
machine. If you could
imagine a program generating
billions of numbers every millisecond
it’s easy to see how these
piece of software can create
a series of random outcomes
in a game.
From Spin To Win…..or
Lose
Now that we know what an RNG
is, let’s take a look
at how the actual play of a
slot machine works. The
setup of slot machines is rather
simple and is basically down
by creating a the reels in the
game along with an associated
payout table. The payout
table determines which symbols
pay out what prizes and when
a winning combination lands
on the payout line the player
will win the prize associated
with those symbols. The
payout lines on a machine are
different depending on whether
you are playing a 3-reel, 5-reel
or video slot machine however
the basic premise of winning
the game is the same across
the board.
Modern slot machines are entirely
computerized and have come a
long way from the old mechanical
reel slots in the early days. These
days the entire process is run
through computer chips from
the moment the player spins
the reels to the actual outcome
of the game. Each reel
within the machine has a series
of stopping points for various
symbols on the reel as well
as blank points with no symbols. When
the player presses the spin
button or pulls the lever, the
slot machine uses a series of
information to decide where
the reels will stop the second
the player has initiated the
game.
Right after the spin begins,
the machine will take three
separate values from the random
number generator which correspond
to each of the reels on the
machine. These numbers
are them put through a formula
which ultimately determines
where the reels will land for
that particular session of play. To
get a further understanding
let’s take a look at an
example of how this would work
in a typical slot game.
Play beings once the player
has inserted their bets into
the machine and pressed the
spin button. Next three
values are taken from the RNG
say for example 115, 732 and
632. Each of these numbers
corresponds to one reel on the
machine from the first reel
to the third reel and each will
be used to determine the outcome
of that particular reel.
Next the computer will divide
the RNG generated values by
multiplied values of 32 up to
512 for each number selected. The
resulting value will be some
fraction of the value with a
remainder which doesn’t
divide equally into the assigned
number. Using this information
the machine will assign a stop
point for each reel but since
there are always less positions
on the actual reels than the
computerized ones, stopping
points on the actual reel may
be assigned to more than one
number. By using this
method of determining slot machine
results, operators ensure that
slot machines will be completely
random to the player and can
be set to give mathematically
precise payouts and profits
over time. |
