Varying degrees of skill can be used when playing blackjack, roulette, poker, and various card games. By contrast, slots are not games that been traditionally dependent on skill, but there are signs that this could change in the coming years.
Skill Based Slot Machines in Las Vegas
In Nevada, legislation has been introduced that allow for slot machine manufacturers to develop games that integrate skill elements. Scientific Games is one example of a company that has made a skill based slot. For anybody who plays Space Invaders, it is possible to launch a bonus round where alien spaceships are shot in exchange for winnings.
Moving forward, Las Vegas will gradually introduce skill based slot machines as software providers begin to make new games. With the emergence of the new machines, it is likely that skill based slots will find their way to online casino sites.
For starters, the machine makers already develop content for the online realm, with the leading examples being Scientific Games, Bally Technologies, and IGT. Companies like those will be primed to lead this new era in online casino gaming.
Why Make Skill Based Slots?
First and foremost, innovation is exciting. Without innovation, casino sites would not have live dealers or mobile gaming, among many other great improvements. By innovating, slot game developers can continue to deliver better and better experiences to players.
A more interesting reason for integrating skill based gaming into video slots is the changing face of digital entertainment. Millennials represent a major demographic, but their tastes are drawn towards skill games, social slots, and console gaming. To stay relevant, slot developers need to connect with millennials.
The younger millennials have not grown up with slot machines like their older counterparts have, so they feel less of a connection. As a result, it makes sense to try and appeal to them by giving them new elements that they will enjoy, such as video games.
What Exactly Are Skill Based Slots
The beauty of skill based slots is that software developer will not have to make any dramatic changes. Admittedly, it will take more time, effort, and resources to create skill-driven bonus rounds, but there will be developers who are willing to pursue this avenue.
These slots will be an evolutionary step up from video slots that have bonus rounds. Compared to video games, these are much more basic, with players often selecting random boxes and using spinning wheels to determine their winnings. By comparison, skill-based round would offer another level enjoyment to the experience.
Going back to Space Invaders, it seems that retro arcade gaming is the obvious way forward. Retro games are not data intensive and would be the obvious test strategy before going grander in the future.
Moving forward, there is immense potential with the rise of skill slots. Fundamentally, software developers will not remove the elements that slot players love, but will focus on introducing skills in to the bonus rounds, which will actually give players the ability control in determining their own winnings.
