The Brains Behind Online Casino Slots
When you play slots at a casino online, you are relying on the results of a random number generator, or RNG. It is a myth that slot machines run on some sort of “cycle” that can be analyzed to see when it is “due” for a jackpot. Anyone who purports to have some sort of system for figuring out when slots are due for a jackpot is only trying to separate you from your money, so beware.
Slot machines in online casinos contain microprocessors running special programs that randomly generate numbers corresponding to the symbols on each reel. It is constantly running as long as the machine remains powered, and new random numbers are generated every millisecond (1/1000 of a second). The random number programs generate values from 0 to 4,000,000,000 that are translated to specific numbers corresponding to the combination of symbols on the slot machine’s reels. The outcome of the spin is determined solely by the number chosen by the RNG, and is selected as soon as the user clicks on “Spin.”
The specific algorithm, or mathematical formula used to generate random numbers must have its accuracy confirmed by auditing agencies to ensure that the numbers generated truly are random. This ensures that players are not being cheated by the casino.
To give you some idea about how the RNGs in “reel” type electronic slot machines work, consider the following. Each reel contains 22 stops. In a three reel machine, there are 22 times 22 times 22, or 10,648 different combinations. So the probability of your winning the top jackpot on a three-reel machine is 1 in 10,648. But keep in mind that previous spins do not affect future spins, so it does not mean that there’s definitely a jackpot once in every 10,648 spins. There is no cycle of winning and losing on slots.
The RNG selects the combinations of numbers a thousand times each second, so there is no way to time your spin so that it selects anything other than a random combination of random numbers. Hence, the game is purely one of chance.
To make sure that the random numbers behind your favorite casino online slots games are really random, independent analysts will subject it to rigorous testing. One testing system used in the testing of the RNGs behind online slots is known as FIPS 140-2, and is a US government standard for hardware or software that encrypts and decrypts data. FIPS 140-2 specifies the security requirements that have to be satisfied by cryptographic modules, and is used to test that RNG output streams are genuinely random.
Online slots not only have higher payout percentages than do bricks-and-mortar casino slot machines (due to lower overhead), they also have some great bonuses. When you choose an online casino for slots, look for one that gives regular bonuses. You can find web casinos that offer daily and weekly bonuses, weekend bonuses, and VIP bonuses if you’re a big spender. You can be eligible for up to 400% in bonuses if you spend anything up to $2,000 as a regular online slots player, and far more if you’re a bigger spender. Big bonuses plus regularly audited RNGs and payout reports are what you should look for when you choose a place to play slots online.
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Marvel & DC Comic Book Casino Guide
It seems you can’t go to the movies these days without seeing a trailer for yet another movie based on a comic book. Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk, Spiderman, The Avengers, Batman and Thor are just some of the many movies that have made their way to the big screen in the past few years, or will be coming within the next year or two.
The comic craze is at an all-time high, and it’s no surprise that online casinos have also decided to try and capture the magic, making deals with both Marvel and DC to provide casino game players with comic book based casino games to play.
At this time, the only comic book casino games you can play are slot machines, although the majority of slot machines also have a special bonus game that is true to the comic book character. For example the Spiderman Marvel Slot machine has you chasing Venom through the city, while the Incredible Hulk slot machine bonus game will have you seeking a secret weapons lab and destroying it using Hulk Smash.
The Cryptologic Casino software is host to the majority of the comic book slots games. They host the DC Comic Slots Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman. While these are fun games, if you are a jackpot hunter and like your progressive jackpots, you’ll be disappointed to know that none of these games have a progressive jackpot.
You’re in luck however, if you are a fan of the Marvel Comics, because all the Marvel Comic casino games have their own jackpots. These are all slot machines based purely on the comic books, and have not one, not two but three separate jackpots.
All three jackpots are progressive jackpots. The first jackpot is the Hero Jackpot which is usually a small amount in the low hundreds of dollars, and is won rather frequently. The next jackpot is the Super Hero jackpot, which can go into the thousands of dollars. The biggest one is the Marvel Hero Progressive Jackpot, which gets into the tens of thousands of dollars.
All these jackpots are available on the Marvel Comic Book slot machines which are on the Cryptologic Software. The Marvel Comic slots on this software platform are: Blade, Captain America, Daredevil, Elektra, Fantastic Four, Ghost Rider, The Hulk, The Hulk: Ultimate Revenge, Iron Man, The Punisher, Silver Surfer, Spider-Man, Spider-Man Revelations, Sub-Mariner, Thor, Wolverine and X-Men.
There are also casino slot machines based on a few comic book movies. The Marvel comic book movie slots are Blade, Daredevil, Elektra, Fantastic Four, Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk and X-Men. These are based on the Playtech Software Platform and feature multiple tier progressive jackpots, free spins and special features exclusive to each game.
Unfortunately none of these comic book slot machines are available for Americans yet, but with the popularity of them there is no doubt we will be seeing some Marvel and DC slot machines for the US gamblers in the very near future.
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Mobile Casinos Are the Next Big Thing in Online Gambling
If you thought it was convenient to play blackjack online 24/7 at home, just wait till you try mobile gambling. The mobile casino is the next logical step in the online casino industry, bringing your favorite online games right to your iPhone, iPad, or Android phone. There are even a few older model phones that support mobile gaming, but for the most part, it’s geared toward today’s smart phones.
Mobile web casinos mean that you can play wherever you can get a 3G connection. Until recently, it was a big enough deal that you could gamble any time using your computer at home, but now you can pretty much gamble anywhere as well. There are three basic approaches to using your mobile device for online wagering: using the mobile version of the site itself; using an iPhone app; or using an Android app.
In many cases, you can use your smart phone simply by going to the mobile version of your favorite casino’s website. If it doesn’t already have a mobile version, it probably will soon: the market is just too lucrative to ignore. You would play on your handheld device just as you would on your computer at home. Everything’s smaller, but you have access to the same games, same prizes, and same bonuses.
iPhone apps are slow in coming, though they do exist. The UK’s Betfair, Ireland’s Paddy Power, and Austria’s Bwin are three European sites that offer iPhone betting apps specific to their sites. Betfair and Paddy Power apps work only in the UK and Ireland, while Bwin’s only works in the UK and Austria, as of late 2010, though other countries are expected to be added rapidly.
Android mobile casino apps look like they will be more abundant, due to the non-proprietary nature of the Android operating system and the growing popularity of Android phones in Europe. The Irish Betdaq is staking its fortunes on Android apps, on the belief that while the iPhone has fueled the expansion of smart mobile devices in general, Androids may be the better long-term option, not least because getting an app approved for the iPhone Apps store is not easy.
There is little doubt about the future of mobile gambling. While currently only about 5% of the bets placed online are done on mobile devices, this number is expected to rocket to more like 50% over the next three to five years. A recent survey by Juniper Research on mobile gaming markets shows that mobile casinos are expanding rapidly, and could see mobile wagers exceeding $48 billion by the year 2015!
For the most part, the most popular games on mobile devices mirror the most popular games in internet gambling in general: slots, poker, and blackjack. An Android app titled “Video Poker,” which is not a web casino game, did not take long to garner 50,000 downloads. Another non-casino game, “Cherry Slot Machine,” is a free Android app and is also one of the top Android gaming apps. Clearly there is a hunger for these games, and it’s just a matter of time before online casinos embrace mobile casino apps en masse.