Slot games have come a long way since they were first invented at the end of the nineteenth century. While traditional slots are still popular in land-based casinos, with the arrival of online gaming, more and more people are now playing slots on the internet. After all, you can access online casinos instantly on your desktop or phone. So, wherever you are in the world, and regardless of the time of day, you can enjoy playing your favorite slot games. But have you ever stopped to wonder how the games you play began life? Every slot goes through a vigorous development process. And it all begins with brainstorming.
Step 1: Brainstorming
Any project begins with brainstorming, and creating a new online casino slot game is no different. Game developers start by deciding on the theme of the game and its mechanisms in relation to the target audience. A team with different skill sets will get together to pitch ideas and eventually come up with a production plan. Once the type of slot game has been determined, such as a classic fruit slot with an Egyptian theme or a video slot with a basketball theme, the timeline of the game production can be planned. It typically takes a full year to develop a slot game.
Step 2: Developing
Once the conceptual elements of the game have been determined, they need to be stripped down and analyzed layer by layer so that the game developers can work out the mechanics of the game. Frontend parts of the game like the user interface and the game layout are worked on in parallel by different departments of a game development company. Graphics also need to be synced with audio, which is when the slot begins to resemble a real-life slot game. After the frontend aspects have been developed and polished, system developers piece it all together with a programming language. HTML5 is usually used, as it enables slot games to work seamlessly on multiple platforms, such as desktop and mobile. Once the prototyping, design, and development have taken place, the slot game is passed over to testers to find out if it plays in the way the developers have planned.
Step 3: Testing
Testing is first performed internally to ensure all backend elements are in place. Once the nuts and bolts are working to the satisfaction of the development team, the game is passed onto independent testers. Those reviewers are highly qualified and have global recognition to ensure the games meet the required standards. At this stage, the independent reviewers also focus on the two most important parts of the slot game: its Return to Player and Random Number Generator. The variance of the slot game makes a difference to how lucrative the pay-out is to players, while the Random Number Generator is a computer chip that has the sole purpose of generating random numbers within seconds, again and again, to ensure the game is completely fair to play.
Step 4: Promoting and Launching
After the game has been developed and fully reviewed by an independent body to ensure it is fair to play and gives a standard return, the game is ready to be unleashed onto the world. Typically, game developers announce their new slot months ahead of the release date, so that there is ample time to market it. Game studios typically team up with PR to create in-depth promotion plans. By generating a buzz around a new slot game, developers can ensure it is popular when it finally arrives on well-known online casino platforms.
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