There are basically three types of slot machines: reel-spinners, video slots, progressives, and community slots, which is usually a video slot and sometimes a progressive.
Reel Spinners
Reel spinners are mechanical slots, using revolving mechanical reels to display and determine results.
Although the original slot machine used five reels, simpler three reel machines quickly became the standard, and are now casino favorites. Blazing 7’s™, 10X Pay®, and Double Diamonds® are just a few of the classic popular reel spinner slots.
Video Slots
Video slots have no moving parts. Instead, they display a graphical representation of reels on a monitor or screen. Essentially a computer game, creative slot manufacturers offer many interactive elements in video slots, including bonus games and sophisticated video graphics and even movie clips from retro TV slot or recent movie brands.
Most video slots display five reels rather than three, and multiple lines that can pay off from top left to bottom right, or any other patterns specified by the slot manufacturer. Bonus games, a major feature of video slots, can return many times a bet. Video poker and Video Keno are also, obviously video slots and have legions of players in the casinos.
Whenever you see a slot on a video monitor, you are playing a video slot. Player favorite video slots include Jackpot Party®, Cleopatra™, JAWS™, 50 Lions™, and Super Times Pay® Video Poker.
Progressive Slots
Progressive slots are slot machines that can be either reel spinners or video slots that are linked together either within a casino or in a wide area network sometimes across the country to allow a group of machines to offer a large, sometimes life-changing jackpot.
Each slot machine in the group contributes a small amount to a progressive jackpot, awarded to a player who gets a specific combination of symbols on a regular or nine-line slot machine. In some cases multiple machines are linked across multiple casinos. In these cases, the machines may be owned by the manufacturer, who is responsible for paying the jackpot. Wheel of Fortune® is one of the best known example of this type of machine.
Other player progressive slot favorites include Star Wars®, Indiana Jones®, and Wizard of Oz™.
Community Slots
Community slots are a new type of slot machine that is always a video slot, and sometimes progressives. Players can play together in designated bonus rounds and share a camaraderie unusual for the solo pastime of slot playing.
Examples include Wheel of Fortune® Super Spin™, Monopoly Big Event™, ebay™ Video Slots, Reel’em in Compete to Win™, Powerball® Power Seat™ and Star Wars® Multi-Level Progressive™.