Behind the Scenes: How Online Slots Are Created
For years, millions of people around the world have enjoyed playing online slots, which combine skill, luck, and the possibility of winning enormous sums of money. But have you ever given thought to how these feats come into existence? It’s a unique process.
We’ll explain what goes into designing an online slot game, from ideation to layout. Let’s start with the basic procedures and then move on to the technical tasks.
Understanding the Rules, Concepts and Logic
The birth of an online slot game begins with ideas exchanged between game designers and planners. During this stage, the aesthetics, user experience, and concepts of the slot game are finalized and designed.
You can take ideas from popular online slot themes, songs, and storylines from books and movies and adapt them to your gameplay.
Business Studies and Theme Determination
For every process to work, planning must be done first. So, before venturing into the development of a slot, proper research is necessary so that slot development endeavours aren’t wasted. Some things that you should look out for in the market are:
- See if your slot idea is already implemented in the industry
- Check if your slot game idea is following a recent trend
- Find out which type of slot is popular amongst your target audience
- See if you can build the slot on your planned budget
Start your market research by doing an interview with a slot developer, or a survey. You could select a combination of several slot themes or settle on just one. You’ll need to devote enough time to choosing the theme properly since it affects the entire outcome. Your choice of symbols, visuals, and sounds will be directly influenced by the theme of the slot you choose.
Idea Brainstorming and Online Slot Game Mechanics
This is the time to consider unconventional thinking. You discuss the colour, the graphical texture of the game, and the entire design with your dev team. Keep in mind that the primary aim is to come up with a nice-looking concept that appeals to your target market.
Select RTP percentage, volatility, and hit frequency. At this time, you also determine the online slot characteristics, such as bonus rounds, free spins, or progressive jackpots.
Pick the right tech stack and reasonable implementation calendar for the completion of the slot machine software development.
How Online Slots Work
Standard slot game machines have three or more rotating reels, each displaying different symbols. Depending on the games, these images can be as few as 256 or as many as a few million.
The symbols are considered pay lines. In this case, a mix of them will pay out a certain amount of money if you wager on them.
For every online slot machine, random number generators (RNG) are always running, producing hundreds to thousands of number codes for different symbols. The RNG gives you a chance to win or lose at gambling. It’s what ensures that any new spin outcome is not linked to previous spins or future spins. The fun here is usually in staking and making many spins, as each spin is unpredictable and different.
Development Stages
Here’s where your real work begins, and the slot comes to life. Start by creating a wireframe and developing the actual game.
Ideas
Let’s start with a wireframe. This is an outline rather than a concept design phase. This stage presents a low-fidelity framework, concentrating on slot type, core structure and features rather than the visual aspects.
The wireframe should contain all elements, such as buttons, reels, and pay lines, and indicate the positions of each element on the frame. This stage is beneficial in ensuring the gaming logic works.
Theme
The next step is to give the theme a graphic representation. Visual appeal plays a significant role in the success of an online game. To bring the slot to life, you can work with talented graphic designers and start with sketches, mock-ups, wireframes, and themes.
Programming
Programming involves using various digital languages. HTML5 is essential for developing your slot’s mechanics, but other languages are equally important.
Python, C++, PHP, and JavaScript are the most commonly used programming languages. They help you make the rules, mechanisms, and algorithms that regulate your slot game.
We’ll cover online slot programming in more detail in the technical development stage below.
Technical Development Stages
This phase of building an online slot involves using front-end and back-end technologies to ensure smooth gameplay, security, and easy user interaction. It’s here that coding languages in online slots are used.
Front End Development
The front of a slot machine is the visual interface and structure that players interact with. It involves the slot layout, design, graphics, control, and spin button.
Front-end development includes:
- Unity and Unreal Engine: For slots with 3D graphics. They’ll help you create stunning visuals and intricate animation.
- SVG and Canvas Graphics: For high-quality 2D slots that are compatible with all devices using HTML5 Canvas and SVG.
- Sound Design and Effects: You can use audio middleware like FMOD and WWise for real-time sound manipulation. They’ll handle everything from background music loops to dynamic sound effects that react to in-game events like jackpot wins.
- JavaScript: Develops the slot’s user interface and interaction. React.js and Vue.js can build a responsive and highly interactive slot that adapts across devices.
- C++: For fast processing of complex algorithms and heavy compilation, like RNG calculations.
- HTML5: This helps the online slot run on desktops, tablets, and smartphones.
Back End Development
The backend architecture of a slot game is where the heavy lifting happens. It’s where you’ll handle the game logic, user authentication, payment processing, and data storage. You must ensure security and scalability to protect players’ data and handle millions of transactions.
Key components of back-end development include:
- Node.js: Handles simultaneous connections. It creates real-time communication between the server and the player, ensuring a smooth gaming experience.
- SQL and NoSQL Databases: Controls information, game data, and financial transactions. The database will help you include player interactions and game results.
- Blockchain Technology: An emerging trend you can include in your slot game. It can help you with fair game outcomes and secure and anonymous payments.
Integration and Testing
Use tools like Selenium and Appium to automate the tests and check your game’s responsiveness, speed, and bugs across different devices and browsers. Additionally, ensure that your slot complies with regulatory requirements like third-party audits, game mechanics, and payment options.
Once your game passes all tests and follows with regulations, it can be integrated into online slot sites. This stage involves collaboration with various online casino operators who host games on their platforms.
The integration stage can be very technical, given that you must ensure the game is compatible with the casino software and functions seamlessly.
How Is RNG Related to RTP?
RNG guarantees a game’s fairness and randomness, while RTP measures the potential return to the player. Here are detailed explanations on return to player (RTP) and RNG in online slots.
Random Number Generator (RNG) Explained
RNG creates sequences of numbers or symbols that cannot be predicted through any strategy using the games’ patterns. It allows for randomness, unpredictability, and fair play.
RTP in Online Slots
RTP refers to the calculated average return a gambler can expect from wagers on a specific game. It tells you the odds of winning an online slot and typically falls between 90% and 98%. This percentage is computed based on millions of spins using worldwide slot gamers’ data.
Conclusion
From conception to technical development, there are essential processes involved in creating a good slot game. You have to work with a group of professionals during this process, particularly when coming up with ideas for the game’s technological development.
Conduct in-depth market research before deciding on your slot’s type and topic to ensure that you will impact the gaming business.
How Slot Machines Can Be Engineered in the Future
In the history of online slots, these games have evolved from basic features to dynamic and complex casino sensations. However, the real question is what the future holds for online slots.
Here’s a look at what slot machines might be in years to come:
- Virtual reality slots: Virtual reality is already in the industry, with many casino games following the trend. With the advancement of technologies like Unreal Engine 5, slot developers will soon be using them for more realistic gaming experiences.
- Personalized gameplay mechanics: Developers can now use advanced AI and data to modify gameplay based on individual player preferences and behavior.
- Integration of blockchain technology: We can anticipate an increase in the integration of blockchain technology in slots. It offers players more ownership, security, and transparency over their in-game assets.
The Role of Game Studios and Providers
Although we’ve taken you through the process, game studios and providers are still essential in your slot development journey. They’re the creative minds behind slot machines and are technically responsible for bringing these games to life.
Online slot game providers can help you with the customization of software, instant access to the market, and tech-advanced solutions. You can also consult them on end-to-end development and certified 3rd party tools.
FAQ
How long does it take to develop a slot game?
How much does it cost to develop a slot game?
