Meister Slots - Looking for bitchin' ideas

[Casinomeister]

I'm looking for ideas.

If I want to create the most bitchin' slots on the planet, what features should it incorporate?

I'm thinking that a good base game is a Thunderstruck/Springbreak etc. with a free spin feature that can be re-triggered. That could act as a template - but I'm looking for something innovative - something tweaky, something funky.

What sort of features could you image? Something that hasn't been done yet, or something that is tried and tested? Post your creativity here. Thanks!

 

[vinylweatherman]

You could try a hybrid game, both a slot that most players will understand, but with a "Fruit Machine" style feature bank that can be triggered on occasion.
Free Spins that can be retriggered are always a hit, but they should be designed to minimise the possibility of hitting nothing, perhaps by offering a consolation prize per spin as in Reel Strike.
The bonus feature could be something saved for by the player, such as is seen on Chief's Fortune. It could be made such that the player could take a lower feature right away, or save for what could be a better one. This would be like a "personal bank", and like Chief's Fortune, would belong to the individual player. Each feature should be different, and quote possible prize ranges such as the idols in Tomb Raider, the longer the wait, the higher the minimum prize and maximum prize. Each trigger of the bonus awards one step on the feature ladder, which the player could take or leave to play for the next step.

One extra feature that UK Fruit Machines have is a "hidden bonus", where a certain action that is not at all obvious (except to a Brit) leads to a certain win. A prime example is the hold after nudge on the average Fruit Machine. The player must IGNORE the hold, and the full win will spin straight in.
This would involve some mildly non-random elements to be accepted as part of the game engine, as with Fruit Machines. Rather than looking at the current lame excuses for fruit Machines, go back to the 1990's and see how it should be done.

 

[Simmo!]

How about one symbol on each reel that is a number in the range 1 - 5. If you get two or more in view, or maybe lined up, it adds them together for that amount of free spins. The multiplier is the number of those "numbers" in view. So if you get say a 2, a 1 and a 3 on three of the reels you get 6 spins at 3x. or if you get a 2, a 4, a 3 and another 4 in view, you get 13 spins at 4x. Etc. Obviously it must be able to retrigger. If you only get one number in view, it acts as a multiplier if it fits in a winning line.

I'd suggest making it a 9-line slot, with scatters and a wild on every reel, though the wild is superfluous if you use the above idea as the number becomes a wild.

 

[EasyRhino]

- Before any arbitrary spin, the player may elect which of the slot's symbols will be wild and scatter for that spin. The change is effective until they make a change again. (at the simple level, the change would be cosmetic, and wild/scatter would have the same odds of appearing no matter what the graphic. At the fancy level, the newly chosen wild/scatter would still appear with the same frequency as the base symbol (a JQK would appear often), but the payouts for the wilds/scatters would be adjusted so that the overall payout percentage is the same).

- The ability to choose your own bonus round, judging between risk and reward (a la the hitman slot asassination round).

- Boobs.

- A non-slotlike appearance. You seen those Konami slots where they aren't aligned in reels, but little hexagonal grids? Like that, but a new shape. Maybe 3D spheres. Preferably visualized so the game looks like it's out of Tron.

 

[Rusty]

I make my own slots but I always get bored before they are finished properly

I amke 5 reel ones now that play like RTG or MG only much better

I made a horse racing themed one and instead of having a certain number of free spins you enter a virtual race.

There are race horses numbered 1 to 6 as well as other symbols on each reel and there are most of number 6 and least of number one.

When you hit the scatters a virtual race begins in seperate window at the top between 6 horses.
Each time the reels spin the horses number that shows on the reels goes faster in the race. Wins are awarded as normal.
The race should last 8 spins on average but you can get as little as 4 and there is a max of 30 (most i ever got was 22) because of the amount of each horse symol on each real.
When the race is won the free spins end.
The free spin wins are multiplied by *6 if horse no1 wins,*5 for horse 2, *4 for horse 3 etc.
This makes not only the wins on free spins exciting but the race is too!
This really adds to a slots playability and makes the themes proper themes instead of just pretty symbols.

Hope that made sense to you all

 

[hobobiker]

One untried by most online casinos is .....not sure if anyone has come across this one .... a built in program which makes the machine payout a return to player win ...say like erm 94 or 95% of the wagered money ....you know then make it average this maybe once a year or so.....crazy idea i know .... but i think its not been tried before ....
yer never know it could be popular..

oh well dream on eh...

 

[KasinoKing]

Some excellent ideas already posted above! (except maybe Hobo who needs to come to the REAL world...)

I particularly like Simmo & VWM's ideas, but how about having the choice of many different features...
Say for example, you can choose:-
* 15 free-spins @ x3 (like you-know-what)
* Choice of different numbers of free-spins with variable multiplier (Like Dolphin Tale)
* Pick-em grid for prizes only (Like Mr.Rich)
* Pick'em grid for spins & Multiplier (Like Moonshine)
* Pure skill for bigger prizes or spins & multiplier (Harder than Horoscope, but easier than Alien Hunter - maybe like Reel Renovations...?)

Just think, if MG had a slot like this they could dump 50% of the garbage slots they have now & save everyone MASSES of hard-drive space & upgrade grief, eh VWM...?

KK

 

[Simmo!]

I make my own slots but I always get bored before they are finished properly ...Hope that made sense to you all

It did but I'm intrigued. What do you make them in and what for and how do they look etc. More detail

 

[Slotster!]

Exactly like you say - nine lines, scatters to trigger the feature and re-triggerable... But here's the thing... I want the scatters to trigger "Heaven or Hell" or "Accredited or Rogue" or something, you know - two extremes... Completely at random, and backed up with graphic representation - you descend visually into either Heaven or Hell!

Scenario one: One free spin at a gazillion times multiplier! (100x, 200x, 300x whatever, however the odds make it work - but seriously high) You get a BIG F*ck off glowing button, you have to press to activate "THE SPIN!!!" Consolation is five times your bet.

Scenario two: Fifteen free spins at 3x multiplier, but when the re-trigger hits - you might get the other one!! Vice-Versa on scenario one.

Gotta have wilds with BIG potential, that multiply the win 2x or 3x - and lose the two symbol low end wins.














And boobs.

 

[vinylweatherman]

Exactly like you say - nine lines, scatters to trigger the feature and re-triggerable... But here's the thing... I want the scatters to trigger "Heaven or Hell" or "Accredited or Rogue" or something, you know - two extremes... Completely at random, and backed up with graphic representation - you descend visually into either Heaven or Hell!

Scenario one: One free spin at a gazillion times multiplier! (100x, 200x, 300x whatever, however the odds make it work - but seriously high) You get a BIG F*ck off glowing button, you have to press to activate "THE SPIN!!!" Consolation is five times your bet.

Scenario two: Fifteen free spins at 3x multiplier, but when the re-trigger hits - you might get the other one!! Vice-Versa on scenario one.

Gotta have wilds with BIG potential, that multiply the win 2x or 3x - and lose the two symbol low end wins.














And boobs.

I think Microgaming have provided enough of these for everyone

 

[Rusty]

KK
Some excellent ideas already posted above! (except maybe Hobo who needs to come to the REAL world...)

I thought he was explaining how slots currently worked

Simmo
What do you make them in and what for and how do they look etc. More detail

Long long ago I was able to program in C++ but I hated it because I wanted to work on games but never made it, so naturally I flushed my NVQ down the bog and moved on.

I used to make full games for the Amiga using a really good Basic called AMOS so because basic is easy and I don't have the skills to program in C anymore I checked out a few basic's for the PC.
I found Basic 4GL to be about the best free one although it has many limitations, so I use that.
They look pretty good (the reels spin and all that) and I steal all my artwork for the sybols (shhh) they have proper sound effects etc.
Obviously they need plenty of polishing because once I have the basic mechanics and playability in place I've had enough and want to try something new.
Also because I am talentless the animations and backgrounds are pretty guff.
I make them for fun although I had a fantastic idea for a web site where they could be played and prizes won but I don't have the finances or the resourses to get it done and some of the ideas are already being overtaken (slot tourneys for eg )
I make them so they play completely random and give around 96% payout.
They have adjustable lines and stakes etc because I wanted to compare how they play against say MG or RTG.(that's another debate )
I guess I could just make an MG clone and test that but that would bore me.

Slotster
You get a BIG F*ck off glowing button, you have to press to activate "THE SPIN!!!"

Now that's a slot
I want to press it, can I, can I, can I press it, can I? :notworthy

 

[Hihohiho0]

How about one symbol on each reel that is a number in the range 1 - 5. If you get two or more in view, or maybe lined up, it adds them together for that amount of free spins. The multiplier is the number of those "numbers" in view. So if you get say a 2, a 1 and a 3 on three of the reels you get 6 spins at 3x. or if you get a 2, a 4, a 3 and another 4 in view, you get 13 spins at 4x. Etc. Obviously it must be able to retrigger. If you only get one number in view, it acts as a multiplier if it fits in a winning line.

I'd suggest making it a 9-line slot, with scatters and a wild on every reel, though the wild is superfluous if you use the above idea as the number becomes a wild.

I really like this idea Simmo... and maybe pick you own theme - like fireMAN, policeMAN, ArmyMAN, NavyMEN, SpiderMAN... etc... or maybe just puppies and kitties (on those nights I have a headache)

 

[Simmo!]

Thx Rusty

Sorry Meister - slight derail there...back on topic

 

[aka23]

I'm looking for ideas.

If I want to create the most bitchin' slots on the planet, what features should it incorporate?

I'm thinking that a good base game is a Thunderstruck/Springbreak etc. with a free spin feature that can be re-triggered. That could act as a template - but I'm looking for something innovative - something tweaky, something funky.

What sort of features could you image? Something that hasn't been done yet, or something that is tried and tested? Post your creativity here. Thanks!

It's not exactly a feature, but I'd like to see more slots that list the expected payout of the machine and have a higher payout than typical for slots.

 

[silkprint]

Have a 5x symbol shaped like a beer can that can show up randomly on a winning combination.

 

[Rusty]

Have a 5x symbol shaped like a beer can that can show up randomly on a winning combination.

How about a 6x shaped like a six pack?

Mmmmmmm Beer

Oh sorry wrong character.

 

[silkprint]

LOL Rusty ..even better

 

[cheekymonkey]

I want, I want, I want...

Ladies Nite, but 3 scatters pays x 3 x 15, 4 scatters x 4 x 20 and 5 scatters x 5 x 100.

Also, Loaded exactly as it is but with a retrigger.

I would be eternally happy.

 

[w8n4win]

One Americans can play.

Sorry, that was my first thought!

 

[hobobiker]

i know .....how about 150 lines on a 10 reel slot ..now here's the good bit ...
all the reels are blank except one which has a picture or icon of a storm drain or grid...( there is loads and loads of different types of grid ...so could mix the grids about abit to make it more interstin )

so when you spin every reel except one shows a nice grid picture......

the grid picture triggers the bonus round....this is the good bit, when the bonus is triggered and its guarenteed to trigger on every spin... ....the screen shows a big grid ..your pile of chips or credits are shown as notes which you have to click on and this picks them up ....you move your mouse to the grid carfully an put it over a hole or gap in the grid and click again to put the virtual pound or doller note down the storm drain......this has to be done in a certain time limit which counts down .....the object is to put as many down in a certain time .......you make the time limit ...and it retriggers another extra say 15 -30 seconds to put all or as many of your credits down the grid to reach a 0 total .......if you fail to do this then back to the blank spinning reels to get the bonus grid.....

could call it "goin down the dustpipe" or

could be called " down the drain" or postcards from the gutter" .....yes

bonus every time too....... guarentees a sharp short crisp game..

 

[liquidsoap]

I like the idea about thunderstruck.
But I think 15 lines instead of 9 would be much better.
What would be the theme????
How about the many faces of Casinomeister??
That would be a pretty solid theme!

 

[EasyRhino]

I like the idea of a horse racing bonus round. Especially one where you get to pick a horse based on the odds!

 

[SlotsWizard]

My ideal slot would be an amalgam of Thunderstruck, Tomb Raider, Harveys, Hitman, a couple RTG games and a B&M game, with the following features:

Scatters

The scatters must be true scatters - that is, none of this left-to-right or right-to-left crap: that defeats the purpose of the scatter.

2 scatters would pay 2x and trigger a respin la RTG to see if you can get additional scatters (thereby triggering some real free spins).

Free Spins

I love the concept of a Mystery Multiplier which changes with each free spin, so -

3 scatters would pay 5x and trigger 15 free spins with mystery multipliers between 3x and 10x
4 scatters would pay 100x and trigger 20 free spins with mystery multipliers between 5x and 15x
5 scatters would pay 500x and trigger 25 free spins with mystery multipliers between 10x and 20x

The free spins must of course be theoretically infinitely retriggerable.

Bonus Round

There should be a bonus round similar to the green laptop bonus in Hitman. Incredibly difficult to get, but when you do it usually pays nicely. It should not be a "pick any 3 objects" type of bonus - it should be presented in such a way that the player won't get angry at themselves for having "picked" the wrong object, and it should not take more than 50-60 seconds tops to complete the bonus round.

Paylines

There should be 9 or 15 paylines.

As Slotster said, no low-end 2-symbol payouts: that takes away from other combinations and bonus rounds which could pay out more.

Also, if you win anything less than 100x your bet, there are to be no extravagant, long, drawn-out annoying win sounds that prevent the player from spinning again until they complete. If you've ever played Avalon or Kathmandu, you know what I'm talking about ("DING DING DING DING DING!" - oh look, I got four 10's - whoopee).

Wild Symbols

A unique feature I got once on a B&M slot was pretty cool - I had a spin where 3 wilds appeared scattered about, and the reels with the wild symbols were held in place while the other reels respun 3 or 4 times, with winnings accumulating with each respin. (This was not the same as the free spin feature, which that game also had.) I have yet to see this feature in any online slot. Some games hold scatters in place and respin, but not wilds.

Other good properties for the wild symbols (some of which are incompatible with each other) include:
- A 2x or higher multiplier when substituting in winning combinations
- Expanding to cover the whole reel when it appears
- Substituting for scatters as well as regular payline symbols
- Each successive wild increases the payout exponentially like 3-reel slots. For example, 1 wild pays 2x; 2 wilds pays 4x; 3 wilds pays 8x, etc.

Payback

The expected return should be between 99% and 99.5%, making it a truly innovative slot.

And if you could have this done by the end of the month, I would appreciate it!

 

[quber]

I agree with getting rid of all low paying two symbol wins.

on bonus rounds make all symbols scatters, obviously we couldn't have too many free spins but the rewards could be very good.

add extra lines during the free spins, so a 9 line could become a fifteen line during the free spins with payouts remaining the same

 

[KasinoKing]

Some great ideas SJ

Other good properties for the wild symbols (some of which are incompatible with each other) include:
- A 2x or higher multiplier when substituting in winning combinations
- Each successive wild increases the payout exponentially like 3-reel slots. For example, 1 wild pays 2x; 2 wilds pays 4x; 3 wilds pays 8x, etc.

Did you know Grand Virtual already have slots with those features?
They also have higher number of free-spins for the more scatters you get.

- Substituting for scatters as well as regular payline symbols

Quick quiz! (Might be incredibly easy!):
What MG slot already has this feature?

KK