The world of online slots is one of the most highly competitive in the online casino industry. Slots are still the casino's biggest earner, in both the real world and online and as such, software developers and casinos are always on the lookout for a slot game that will give them an edge over the competition.
In the past, that has come from introducing new elements into the typical slot games, such as free spins, bonus games and of course, the ever popular progressive jackpot and these games have certainly proven popular and help to maintain the slots preeminent position as the most popular of all casino games.
Pokies such as MegaMoolah.com, Major Millions, Avalon, Thunderstruck, Girls With Guns, Tomb Raider and many more still retain huge popularity with slot enthusiasts thanks to a combination of enjoyable game play, top jackpot prizes and immaculate presentation.
Yet there is no doubting that despite the fact slots remain hugely popular within the online casino realm, there is a real thirst for something new and exciting to come along to lift slot gaming onto a new level.
Fusion Slots, as they have come to be known, could well be the answer.
What is a "fusion slot"?
Before we can look at what potential impact fusion slots could have on the slot and online casino industry as a whole, we need to first identify what a fusion slot is and how this term has come into usage.
In much the same way that 'fusion food' tends to take the delicacies of one cuisine and fuse them with another (for example in the way popular Texan staples have been blended with Mexican cuisine to produce the fusion 'TexMex'), a fusion slot combines the elements of a typical slot machine with another type of game.
Now, what this secondary type of game can be is the really interesting, and to some extents crucial, part and the process. The key factor being that the decision about which games to 'fuse' with a slot game is often based on the popularity of certain games, especially on popular social media sites.
The Facebook factor
If you possess a Facebook account then you will no doubt be well aware of the popularity of some of the free-to-play games on this form of social media. In recent years, many millions of people have enjoyed games like Zynga Poker, Farmville and perhaps the biggest social media game of them all, Candy Crush Saga.
While these games may appear to have little to do with online casino gaming, it is without doubt that the sheer number of people who not only play these games, but also do so on a regular basis often involving their friends and relatives in the process, has certainly attracted the attention of online casinos, who realise that this is precisely the kind of appeal that they would like their most popular games to hold.
However, the problem casinos have is that the design of Facebook games is so that players will log in and play them (and in some cases, make in-game purchases). They are not necessarily set up so they can effectively be monetised in a way that would make them viable in a casino.
This is not a new thing; when video games first gained in popularity games such as Space Invaders and Pacman were hugely popular and slot manufacturers of the time wanted to incorporate these games into some form of gambling game, but the simple fact is that these arcade-style games were just incompatible with a method of gambling that was either (a) effective and (b) didn't expose the casino to too much risk.
For example, if you were a talented Space Invaders player, then you could easily use your skills to play at a casino continually and make a lot of money at little or no risk to yourself, but with all the risk on the side of the casino. That isn't a profitable or sustainable business model.
However, these new generations of games and the fact that slot technology has improved dramatically over the past 30 years, means that it is now becoming possible for developers to take a non-casino game, give it a twist and add a gambling/random element thus making it appeal to both casino players and, hopefully, fans of social gamers.
Hence, the notion of Fusion Slots.
How fusion slots differ from cash-in slots
There is one important aspect to note about how proposed fusion slots would differ from what I would term "cash in" slots. By cash in slots, I mean slots that are 'about' a certain game or film, but which have no different form of gameplay inherent in them other than typical slot gaming.
For example, the Marvel Heroes series of slots was released to cash in on Marvel's recently released series of hero films. Yet the gameplay was simply that of a modern slot.
A fusion slot would be very different. In a fusion slot, you would combine slot gaming elements with elements of the original game, in order to produce a game that was a hybrid of a typical online slot and a popular social game, or arcade game.
For example, if you were to use Candy Crush Saga as the basis for a fusion slot, the game would have typical slot elements such as reels, wild symbols, bonus games, free spins etc, but the game would also feature a strategic element where the player could earn money or other bonus features by playing in the same way as they would on Candy Crush Saga.
In the cash in slot, you can only win by playing the game as a slot. In a fusion slot, you can win by playing as a slot and/or by playing the game as you would on your choice of social networking site, or in an arcade or similar.
Are fusion slots a reality?
Several companies have already attempted to release a number of fusion slots already with mixed and somewhat limited success. The problem that developers are addressing at the moment is how to incorporate gaming elements into the slot, without putting the casino at too much of a risk of a high quality player winning considerable amounts frequently.
Yet, they must also strike a balance to ensure that players who are good at the gaming aspect of the slot, are rewarded for their proficiency. It is a delicate balance and the only way you can achieve this is to have a random element involved, when it comes to awarding prizes/bonuses.
This does negate some of the impact of being proficient at a game, but casinos hope that fusion slots will still appeal to both slot fans and social gamers.
If they do, then the future of the slot may well be fusion-based and the line between gaming and gambling will become even more blurred.
Next Post: Bigger jackpots and more bonuses - It's the future of slots
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