For anyone familiar with slot machines at online casinos, some common phrases are probably embedded into the brain. Things like volatility and RTP (Return to Player percentage) are two of the most popular ones, both of which help players gauge the level of risk on a particular title.
But other, less well-known phrases apply to all gaming platforms, no matter if they make up a selection of £5 deposit casino platforms or require a higher deposit. It’s good to get a working understanding of the casino lingo and slang like the classic ‘One-armed Bandit’ name, just to get a deeper understanding of what you are playing.
The following is a look at some of the unfamiliar casino slot terms.
RNG
A fairly common one, but it means Random Number Generator, part of the game mechanics that helps determine randomness and eliminate streaks.
Hit Frequency
The frequency of how often a slot machine will hit is simply the balance between the number of payout spins against dead spins from a count of 100. A machine with a hit frequency of 35 for example would hit 35 times out of a hundred and the lower the number, the higher the volatility will be.
Second Screen Bonus
Video slot machines have come a long way, and some will take you beyond the initial grid by launching a second screen. These are added features where something like a prize wheel, or a game where you pick from a selection of shamrocks to try and reveal a leprechaun for a prize, will occur.
Ways
Depending on the grid, machines without pay lines use a set number of ‘ways’ to determine wins. These are symbols that match on adjacent reels, so for the most common layout of 5 x 3, there are 243 ways to win with each spin.
Hit and Run
A gambling strategy is where a player stakes a maximum bet on a specific pay line and then moves on to the next payline if it doesn’t hit.
Win Both Ways
Most casual players may be more familiar with machines that pay from left to right. But when it’s a win-both-ways machine, it can also pay from right to left.
Dead Spin
This is a spin of a slot machine that doesn’t yield any kind of reward, so it’s deemed to be dead and it is linked with Hit Frequency. The more dead spins on a slot, the lower the hit frequency.
Nudges
Not as common as they used to be, and typically found on game machines in the pub rather than a casino, nudges will shift a reel up or down to help try and land a winning combination.
Poke
Quite simply a push of the button to give the reels on a slot machine game a spin. In Australia, electronic gaming machines are called Pokies.
Expanding Wilds
A feature of slots where a wild symbol doesn’t just replace a symbol, it expands to take up an entire reel, giving a greater chance of a payline hitting.
Cascading Wilds
Another bonus feature of slots is cascading wilds, which is where, after a wild has triggered a payline, the symbols disappear (usually in an explosion) and more fall down raising the potential of bigger payouts. It’s also known as an avalanche or tumbling reel.
Sticky Wilds
Another creative variation of the wild bonus is Sticky Wilds, which is where a wild symbol will just stay in place on a reel for a set number of spins.
Gamble Feature
If you are using a slot machine, then you’re gambling. But some slots have a specific Gamble Feature, which is where, after winning a prize, you have the chance at perhaps doubling the payout, with the risk being that everything is lost if the gamble doesn’t work out.
Scatter Symbols
A certain number of scatter symbols that appear on the grid from a spin, will trigger a bonus round. That could be something like five pots of gold to claim 10 free spins.
Learning the Lingo
Is it vitally important to know every slang term about slots? Not really. You can sit and play a slot machine without getting into the technicalities of certain phrases, and there’s certainly no need to get overwhelmed by it all if you are new to online casinos.
It’s just a good idea to get familiarised with as much as possible, because the more you know, from RTP to RNG, pay lines and hit frequency, the more confident you are likely to feel when playing because of understanding immediately what you see on screen.
Article written by Chloe Ashford
