ONLINE SLOTS AT PLATINCASINO - PLAY TOP CASINO SLOTS GAMES
When it comes to casinos, online slots are the number one undisputed top game available that players always seem to return to. Maybe it’s because of their massive unpredictability, or perhaps because of the thrill such a short game round is able to provide, whatever the case, online slots have always and will always remain a casino favourite.
If you’re still new to the world of online casino and are interested in learning how to play online slots before hitting the reels, then you’ve landed in the right place. Apart from giving a general overview of what to expect, this post will also delve into the mechanics and popular key phrases attached to these sorts of games, as well as offering in depth reviews for some of the most popular online slots in Ireland – join us as we discover more.
WHAT ONLINE SLOTS ARE AND HOW THEY WORK
Before shining our spotlight on modern online slots, we thought it would be interesting to take a look back and find out a little bit more about the history and origins of these wildly popular games.
The first slot machines can be traced back as far as the 19th century with the first slot game developed by Sittman and Pitt in New York around 1891. This game was created using five drums that held a total of 50 playing cards, and was eventually distributed to a number of bars and cost the player a nickel to play, with the aim of lining up poker hands on the drums.
In order to achieve the desired house edge, two cards were removed from the slot machine – the Jack of Hearts and the Ten of Spades, which effectively reduced the odds at hitting a Royal Flush by around 50%. This particular slot machine had no direct payout mechanics going on, which meant that players would need to seek payout at the bar, which would generally include non-monetary prizes such as cigars and free drinks amongst others.
Nevertheless, the creation of the first slot machine is attributed to Charles Augustus Fey sometime between 1887 and 1895. In this case, the machine allowed automatic payouts which required toning down the complexity of the machine. For this reason, Fey replaced the five drums with three reels as well as replacing the playing cards with five basic symbols that included diamonds, hearts, spades, horseshoes, and the iconic liberty bell which was the highest paying symbol at the time.
By 1902 slot machines were officially banned, however the Liberty Bell machine continued being manufactured, giving rise to the fruit slot that rewarded players with chewing gum in the corresponding flavours. Interestingly, the BAR symbol we recognise today from modern online slot represents the Bell-Fruit brand chewing gum packet.
Fast forward a couple of decades and here came modern online slots that rather than relying on drums or physical reels, today are governed by what is known as an RNG (random number generator) that represents a complex algorithm capable of creating millions of random sequences by the millisecond. Also, nifty to keep in mind that online slots don’t contain a tracker or any way of storing memory, which implies that its completely impossible to predict what will happen on the next spin based on your past track record.
If you’re looking to learn how to play online slots, then the good news here is that this is relatively simple. All you’ve got to do is pick any game you think you might enjoy, set a budget before loading it up, select your bet size, double check the paytable to find out more about that particular game’s special symbols and features, and hit the spin button to find out what happens next!
FIVE OF THE MOST POPULAR ONLINE SLOT GAMES TO CHECK OUT
In this section we’re going to take a look at some of the most popular slots in Ireland – five to be precise. These include:
- Gonzo’s Quest
- La Dolce Vita
- Bonanza Megaways
- Starburst
- Book of Dead
GONZO’S QUEST
Featuring the Spanish conquistador Gonzalo Pizarro, Gonzo’s Quest is an epic NetEnt online slot that comes with a max winning potential worth 37,500x your stake during the free spins feature.
With a Mayan theme, and a 3D rendition of Gonzo bouncing to your left, Gonzo’s Quest is generally considered a medium to high online slot with an RTP. Here’s a slot that’s arranged across five reels with three rows and 20 fixed paylines.
In terms of special features, this online slot is loaded up with an Avalanche Feature that will remove all winning symbols from the grid before replacing them with new boulders that tumble from above. There’s also a Multiplier attached that increases for every consecutive win up to 5x in the base game and 15x during the free spins feature, which is activated any time you land three Gold Mask symbols anywhere on the reels.
LA DOLCE VITA
With medium volatility, La Dolce Vita takes you out into the Italian countryside and allows you to experience the good life alongside a winemaker in his beautiful rural estate. Arranged across five reels, with three rows and ten fixed paylines, La Dolce Vita is loaded up with a Wild symbol that comes in the form of a handsome wine enthusiast that will substitute for all other symbols on the reels, while his gorgeous winery is your Scatter symbol that will trigger the Free Spins feature any time you happen to land three or more matching Scatter symbols in any position on the reels in a single spin.
During this time, you’ll be awarded as many as 25 free spins, with all bottle symbols on the reels will turn into Bonus Symbols, while any Winemaker Wilds will trigger additional wins for the Bonus Symbols. This Gamomat Italian fantasy also includes a Gamble Feature that’s triggered any time you land a win on the reels. Here, you’ll be able to choose whether you’d rather collect your winnings directly or gamble them in a double-or-nothing side game that includes predicting the colour of the next card drawn from the deck. Overall a highly entertaining game for those seeking a little escape out in the countryside.
BONANZA MEGAWAYS
We’ve all heard of Megaways, and here’s where it all began. Bonanza Megaways is a Big Time Gaming online slot that’s the first game ever to introduce the Megaways gaming mechanic that includes symbols changing size and shape on the reels in between each spin, apart from the multiple paylines and additional special features going on at the same time.
With a max win worth 26,000x your stake along with a high RTP, here’s one of those online slots that definitely stands out from the crowd for many reasons. Arranged across six reels that can accommodate anywhere between two to seven symbols each, and enjoy as many as 117,649 paylines, this is definitely one of the most popular online slots in Ireland of all times.
As far as special features go, there’s an extra row on top known as the Cart that adds an extra symbol to your second, third, fourth, and fifth rows. Any time you hit a win, this online slot will trigger a Reaction that will cause winning symbols to be removed from the grid to be replaced by new ones from the cart.
The Wild symbol is represented by sticks of dynamite and will substitute for all other regular symbols, while there are four Scatter symbols that spell out the word G O L D in this game. Land all four symbols in view on a single spin to trigger the Free Spins feature that comes with an Unlimited Win Multiplier, and additional Free Spin Scatters in the form of gold carts.
STARBURST
When it comes to online slots, very few are as iconic and classic as NetEnt’s Starburst that comes with a max win worth 600x your stake, low volatility, and a high RTP. Arranged across five reels with ten paylines that allow you to win both ways, Starburst keeps things nice and simple when it comes to gameplay, which is probably why it’s another of the most popular online slots in Ireland to date.
Starring a central role is the Starburst Wild that appears on your central second, third, and fourth reels only. Apart from substituting for all regular symbols, these Wilds will also expand to cover the entire reel any time they make an appearance, while granting you a re-spin up to a max of three.
Beautiful graphics and pure simplicity are what make this one of the online slots to look out for next time you head out to your favourite online casino.
BOOK OF DEAD
If you’re keen to play online slots then there’s a good chance that you’ve already experienced Play’n GO’s classic Book of Dead slot that features Rich Wilde, an intrepid explorer that has time travelled back to ancient Egypt in search of fame and fortune.
This highly volatile online slot also comes with a max win potentially worth 5,000x your bet which makes it so wildly popular. Arranged across five reels with three rows and ten adjustable paylines, here’s an online slot that makes use of the same symbol to represent both its Wild and Scatter symbols.
In this case, the Book of Dead symbol will replace all other regular symbols on the reels whenever there’s the chance of hitting a win, while three of a kind in any position will trigger the Free Spins feature that awards 10 free spins. Before this bonus round kicks off, a random symbol will be chosen to act as your Bonus Expanding symbol for the duration of the round, expanding to cover the entire reel any time it makes an appearance on the reels, and dramatically increasing your winning potential whenever you play this online slot.
SLOT RTP, VOLATILITY, RNG & MORE ONLINE SLOTS FEATURES EXPLAINED
If you happen to be a new player trying to learn how to play online slots, some of the technical jargon might appear a little confusing at first, and that’s why we’re here to help. First off, before picking the right online slot for you you’re going to want to be familiar with the concept of RTP and volatility.
In simple terms, the RTP is the theoretical return an online slot is able to pay back to its players over the course of time, the volatility is how often it’s willing to do so. Let’s say you’ve decided to play an online slot with an RTP of 96% for instance, then for every €100 real cash wagers the game receives, it will eventually pay back €96. Nevertheless, this percentage is purely theoretical as online slots are governed by an RNG (random number generator) as mentioned earlier on, which makes it impossible to predict the outcome of an online slot based on past performance.
On a general scale however, highly volatile slots are known for cashing out potentially larger wins at a slower pace, while low volatility online slots are generally known to pay out smaller amounts at more regular intervals, so it pretty much depends on what sort of budget you’ve allocated for your next game session, along with how long you expect to play for. As a general rule, low volatility slots tend to stretch your budget further than high volatility ones, however the potential wins are always considerably lower.
BENEFITS OF PLAYING ONLINE SLOTS AT A SAFE CASINO
You wouldn’t shop at a dodgy outlet, so why even consider playing your favourite new online slots in Ireland at a shifty casino? If you’re playing from Ireland, the first thing you’re going to want to look out for is a casino license that’s generally mentioned on the footer section of the homepage. If you are unable to locate any licensing or regulatory information at your chosen online casino, it’s probably safe to say that you should consider looking for another online casino where to enjoy all of your favourite slots.
Apart from that, you’re also going to want to look out for great customer service, a fantastic selection of payment providers, as well as looking at the promotions page to find out in which ways you’re able to boost your experience further next time you’re in the mood to play online slots. If you are looking for something different, perhaps live casino games, or jackpot games, you can also find those at Platincasino.
ONLINE SLOTS – FAQS
1. Are online slots rigged?
As long as you’re playing at a licensed and regulated casino, then you’ve got the peace of mind in knowing that the casino itself, as well as all its online slots, are subject to regular monitoring and auditing from the regulator’s side, ensuring full casino to player transparency throughout.
2. What is the best online slot game?
Even though we’ve highlighted some of the most popular online slots in Ireland in this post, there are hundreds of other games to enjoy. The good news here is that you’re able to play online slots for free at Platincasino, allowing you to test a variety of games before deciding which ones are your favourite ones to play.
3. What is the difference between Megaways and online slots?
When it comes to regular online slots the number of symbols visible on the reels at any given moment is generally static, while with Megaways slots symbol sizes will change on every spin allowing the opportunity to increase your number of paylines dramatically each time, generally into the hundreds of thousands bracket.
4. What is slot RTP?
The theoretical return to player (RTP) represents the percentage an online slot is able to pay back to its players over the course of time.
5. What is RNG in slot games?
RNG stands for Random Number Generator, that’s basically a complex algorithm that will eventually dictate the outcome of spins on an online slot. The RNG is completely random and there is no way of predicting what the next spin might hold based on past performance.
