The gambling industry isn’t exactly known for its enthusiasm for innovation, which is why blackjack is still essentially played the same way it was in the days of Frank Sinatra and the Rat Pack. But when the casino industry comes up with a great idea, the way casinos work and games are played can suddenly change completely. Here is an overview of the innovations in the gambling industry that have had a lasting impact on gambling and influenced our opinion of casinos.
Player’s Club Card
In the 20th century, table games were the main attraction of casinos and slots were generally seen as just a change of pace on the way out of the casino. For this reason, most comps at that time only targeted table players and slot fans were largely ignored.
By the 1970s and 1980s, however, technology had advanced to the point where slot machines, such as the new video slots, were significantly more entertaining than their predecessors. Slots quickly became casinos’ most important source of income. However, there was still no way to reward slot players with comps – at least before the revolutionary Player’s Club Card was launched.
The first „slots clubs“ appeared in Atlantic City in the 1980s, with casinos being able to observe their best slot players by simply recording players’ spending. Slot companies created a club card that could be inserted into any machine to track how much money players were betting. Soon every casino in the world opened its own Player’s Club.
Nowadays, the club card can do more than just watch slot games – table games can now also be recorded. In some casinos, the card even serves as a room key or payment method for food, drinks, and other services. It changed the way casinos award comps because the process could be standardized across the entire offering. Now, points and comps were awarded based on the actual amount played – not on the whims of the casino staff. Even players on a tight budget felt rewarded if they could claim a Player’s Club reward.
Ticket-In/Ticket-Out
When you ask people what a casino sounds like, most people immediately think of the characteristic metallic sound of a slot machine cashing out a win. Although this famous sound has been a hallmark of casinos for decades, it’s practically nonexistent these days. Instead, winnings are paid out on barcoded tickets, which players can later convert into cash at the checkout or simply insert into another slot machine.
Originally developed by „International Game Technology and Casino Data Systems“, the Ticket-In/Ticket-Out (TITO) System is one of the biggest innovations in the gaming industry. They have since become standard in almost every major casino in the world.
It is much easier for players to have their winnings paid out in the form of tickets instead of having to carry a bucket of rattling coins around with them. To take a break, go to the bathroom, or change machines, players can now simply have a ticket printed out instead of having to wait for all the coins to fall into the bucket.
From the casino’s point of view, the system revolutionized the potential of slot machines. Without TITO, it would not be possible to bet different amounts on slots, and the system also offers much more flexibility in terms of the slot machine’s payouts. TITO also increases security and prevents the machine from miscounting, giving both the player and the casino their fair share.
Video Slot Machines
Slot machines are a concept that has been around for more than two centuries. Although many people still think wistfully of one-armed bandits with cherries, bells, and the number 7 on the Reels, this type of slot game belongs to a bygone era. Many other slots you can try out at the Thunder Coins XXL Hold and Win slot.
The biggest problem with traditional slot machines is that the mechanical, rotating reels only have a limited number of combinations, symbols, payouts, and coin values. Casinos spent years looking for ways to make the games more flexible – and, of course, more entertaining and attractive.
In 1975 they found the solution: the first fully automatic video slot machine was invented. Fortune Coin was among the most important innovations in gambling in history. It wasn’t long before International Gaming Technology (IGT) bought Fortune Coin and changed slot machines forever.
Video slots, where the reels consist only of zeros and ones on a video screen, allowed slot machine makers to offer things they never dreamed possible. They were able to expand the number of reels from three to five, display more than 50 icons on each reel, and offer multiple paylines. In addition, players now had access to multiple coin values and betting options on a single slot machine, which benefited both the house and the player.
Plus, the games were much more fun now. Captivating sound and spectacular animations became the standard for video slots, and free spins and crazy bonus games became an integral part of the game from that moment on. This made players more like modern video games than slot machines. Slots suddenly became a lot of fun and became so popular that the revenue from modern slots accounts for around 80% of casinos’ profits. The ability to adjust the machine’s winning percentages allowed the casino to offer ever-increasing jackpots. This trend has resulted in other huge gambling innovations, such as progressive jackpots.
Progressive Jackpots
In 1986, IGT made slot machines change forever – and built on the slot boom triggered by video slots. The company released the first progressive jackpot slot machine: Megabucks. One of the biggest innovations in the gambling industry immediately became a sensation and the era of progressive jackpots began.
Before the release of Megabucks, the highest amount a slot machine could pay out was a fixed jackpot. Even the highest jackpots did not exceed $50,000. That’s a relatively large amount of money, but not really a life-changing amount. However, Megabucks was a slot game with a variable jackpot that was expanded by a certain amount whenever someone played on the slot machine. Instead of a grand prize of a few thousand dollars, the lucky jackpot winner could celebrate hundreds of thousands – if not millions – of dollars.
