Here you will find quite a number of casino games that you’ll be able to play for free. We’ll give you an overview of the game and its features and provide you with a list of casinos where you can play the games, if you’re interested.
Slot machines come in many shapes and styles, but they all have a few things in common. They have reels (at least three) and those reels show symbols, which come in a huge diversity. Depending on the type of slot the machines are more or less elaborate. In the olden days you would have to put a coin into a slot (hence the name) and then pull a lever in order to get the reels spinning. Nowadays, at casinos or in betting shops, you push a button.
In online casinos you click a virtual button to get the reel spinning. Depending on the slot you’re playing, you get a set or flexible number of paylines and may be able to trigger a bonus game of some sort.
Slots are the simplest and easiest type of casino game and the game that has usually the highest house edge. Still, they make quite for an enjoyable pastime and with a little luck you could win really big.
At online casinos you’ll find slots often categorised according to type. You may also be able to sort slots according to theme or special feature, but most casinos make the following distinctions:
Classic
Classic slots are typically fruit machines and most closely emulate the slot machines of yore. Here you’ll often find only three reels with hardly more than five paylines. On the symbols you’ll encounter various fruits, BAR symbols, 7s and bells, sometimes diamonds. There are usually no free spins to be won or any kind of bonus game to be played. You simply set your wager and get the reels spinning.
Video
Most commonly you’ll find video slots at online casinos these days. They are much more elaborate than classic slots and give you often at least 5 reels with 3 rows, but nowadays more reels and rows are definitely possible. Video slots always have some sort of theme, featuring symbols that will depict typical aspects of that theme. Thus you may find pots of gold, rainbows and leprechauns on the reels if the theme is “luck o’ the Irish”.
Additionally video slots have special features and symbols such as wilds, bonus symbols, scatters. You may get expanding or sticky wilds, linked reels, free spins, re-spins, mini games and much more. Paylines can be set or flexible. There are no set rules that apply to all slots. The variations are virtually endless and slot developers constantly offer up new and innovative ideas.
3D
3D slots are a variety of video slots, simply offering more elaborate graphics, very much as if you’re watching an animated movie. The game mechanics you can expect are usually the same as with simpler looking video slots, which means you can get a variety of special features here as well. There may, however, be more animations and special effects when you play these slots, which adds to the entertainment value.
Progressives
We have a comprehensive article about progressive jackpots, where you’ll learn more about them. Progressives can be classic slots, video slots and 3D slots and the one thing they have in common is a progressive jackpot that you can win here.
The reel symbols are an essential feature of any slot game and there can be a number of different types you may encounter in video slots. Often classic slots won’t have special symbols, though more modern ones now incorporate wilds or bonus symbols as well.
Standard
The majority of symbols on the reels are pretty standard. Apart from the fact that they can show items pertaining to the theme of the slot, you’ll often find low-paying card symbols either showing the number or the suite. A themed symbol tends to be of higher value instead. Standard symbols have different values assigned to them. You’ll have to check the specific game rules to find out which ones are the highest value symbols and go from there.
Standard symbols almost always have to be matched up on one payline with at least three in a row, with some slots two matching symbols lining up from the left-most reel is an option as well. The best combination you can usually get is five-of-a-kind on a payline.
Bonus/Scatter
Bonus and scatter symbols are not necessarily the same. You may even get both in one and the same slot. Scatter symbols can often appear anywhere on the reels (hence the name) and will trigger a win if you get at least three of them. They may also trigger a bonus feature.
Bonus symbols often have to appear on certain reels (though they can also appear anywhere on the reels) and will always trigger a bonus game, feature or free spins. Bonus and scatter symbols will always stand out among the standard symbols of the game, so that they may be more easily recognised.
Wilds
The third common type of symbol is the wild symbol. A wild will often actually say “WILD” in some form, so it really is easily recognised. Wilds are joker symbols that substitute for any standard symbol. Usually they will not substitute scatters or bonus symbols, however. Thus a wild can end up making a winning combination happen, if it lands in the right place on a paylines.
There are different types of wilds as well. The standard wild will simply substitute for a standard symbol. Expanding wilds are able to expand in one or more direction across the reels, depending on the rules of the slot. Sticky wilds will stick to their position on the reels for at least one additional spin, sometimes even more. And stacked wilds are just that: they cover multiple symbols stacked on the reels.
Paylines are an essential part of slots. In classic slots you may only find one payline, which is usual the central row on the three reels. Only three matching symbols landing on that row will pay out a win. With video slots you usually get as few as 10 paylines and as many as 4,096 (depending on how many rows and reels you have). On a 5×3 slot the maximum number of paylines would be 243, which means any three matching symbols on adjacent reels beginning on the left-most reel will yield a win.
Since the set-up of paylines