Since the late 19th century, slot machines have been one of the favorite American and world’s pastimes. They became popular in bars throughout the world at the beginning of the 20th century and in some countries were an essential part of the gaming houses. In the United States, in some cases when gambling was outlawed, the bar owners had a slot machine that would give you candy instead of money but the bar tender would then just exchange those for cash under the counter. Every bar in most countries of Europe has a slot machine or two, while in France and Spain they have become indispensable for any of their famous corner bars and have become part of the local culture. However the real slot machine frenzy began in the late 1950’s and early 1960’s with the popularization of Las Vegas. Since “Sin City” began to evolve, through five decades the slot machines have been and have remained the most popular pastime just after blackjack. As a matter of fact, those slot machines are still the backbone of both Las Vegas and Atlantic City. Many people are confused, thinking that mostly senior citizens play land based slot machines; they are in fact very popular amongst all legal age groups and - due to new technologies and the advancement of telecommunications and high speed internet - they are becoming more and more popular by the minute.
Since the invention of the internet and online gambling, the popularity of slot machines has doubled or even tripled, as well as having one advantage over its number one rival blackjack and other online games. The revolution in software technology has not only revolutionized online games but it has also made a significant breakthrough in classic slot machines. Namely the new software technologies have allowed slot machines to include a multitude of diversified themes and features.
