Comparing Charles Fey’s “Liberty Bell Slot Machine” of 1883 to today’s online slots may seem like an absurd, but they have more in common than you think. The most obvious is the word “slot,” coined (literally) by Fey and still in use today.
However, what are the common aspects? If you want to diffuse the hunger, then you should keep reading the article. We have compiled a guide on why do slot game designs increase user satisfaction, along with explaining the differences.
What is Charle Fey’s Slot?
There is also something interesting going on thematically between both Fey’s slot and today’s slot. From the outset, Fey’s machine had symbols designed to set the tone of his game. In this instance, a diamond, heart and spade have associations with poker, a horseshoe and a star for luck, and the Liberty Bell logo was simple branding.
Unfortunately for Fey, the diamond, heart, and spade designs had hidden meaning with monetized gaming. This was outlawed shortly after the release. To sidestep these laws, the machine was re-jigged as a gum dispenser, so new symbols were designed relating to a much more wholesome activity to increase user satisfaction.
What is Today’s Slot?
Fruit was chosen to represent different flavours of gum, with a bar to symbolize the pack of gum pretty much setting the thematic tone for the following seven decades. Even today, slot machines are known as “fruites” in some areas. Also, this is despite the huge advances made in the 1960s and 1970s.
Now, machines don’t need to have just fruit symbols or card suites, anything could be employed to catch the gaze of users. In addition, 3 in 4 users get disturb and announce that their day is bad when they get cheap user satisfaction from brands.
Electromechanical and Video Slots – Comparison
First came the electromechanical slot machines in the 1960s, and themes found in games like the immortal romance slot started to diversify away from the traditional themes of yore. Popular themes included wildlife and westerns, but luck/fortune-based concepts were never too far away to enhance the user satisfaction.
Themes took a dramatic and literal turn with the advent of video slots in the 1970s. The most obvious topics for slots in these days were, of course, based around TV and movies when Hollywood was enjoying its heyday. Further, the advantage of video slots is that they could be created to provide themes that are currently popular. This may explain the proliferation of sharks in slot machines at the end of the 70s.
Music is also in use increasingly. Pop and rock stars began to crop up on machines, which invited the attention of a younger audience, but the fruits and lucky symbols were never too far away.
Branded Slots
Entertainment franchises saw slots as an easy way to make a bit of money on the side of their artists/shows/movies, etc. While promoting said feature. This also incorporated sports promotions for games and themes that involved hobbies. For instance, fishing or hunting to appeal to more general gamers.
However, various symbols representing luck were never far away. In many respects, this is reflected in mystery and fortune-based slots with storylines revolving around fantasy and adventure.
Online Slots: Part One
Before online slots, slot machines existed in physical form. The most accessible machines are found in bars and clubs, and punters are drawn to whatever is offered. Most of the time, players had little choice over the theme. This may explain why most of our earliest encounters with slots would have a theme revolving around some archaic blockbuster, Jaws (again).
In an arcade or casino setting, slot machines would be, in effect, competing with each other for your attention. However, machines was still limited by the sheer physicality of the venue, which, in turn, limited the number of themes.
But all of these machines had one thing in common: they used lights and sound to complement the thematic graphics to grab your attention. It’s the same story online but on a far more sophisticated scale.
Online Slots: Part Two
Technology is now front and centre of the online slot experience and it’s in trend to enhance the game experience. But first and foremost, they have to arrest your attention from the competition -just as they always have- but on a vast scale.
The eye-grabbing theme is carried right into the game, because of eye-popping graphics, 3D animations, and sound technology. Artificial Intelligence (AI) can monitor interactive features to complement the mood of the player. Further, all within the context of the theme, while gathering precious data for the casino company.
This data has allowed casino companies to offer themes that have a proven track record of whetting the juices. And while slot themes cover a range of topics and designs depending on what’s currently popular. There is a fundamental hardcore interest that is still remarkably traditional.
The most popular slot of all time is star-themed, followed closely by themes. These themes deal with mythology or fantasy to put it another way. So, it would seem the most satisfactory slot themes are still based around motifs. They take users out of the day-to-day and into a world of imagination.
Conclusion
Today’s slots or electromechanical slots are way too common between them to satisfy end users’ experiences. Further, the above section deals with such differences and common aspects to give you an overall understanding of old and today’s slot gaming.
Neither the electromechanical nor video slots have difficulties, but what makes them a unity is their user experience.
