When Did Slot Machines Come to New Zealand, And What Were They Like In The Beginning?
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The government in New Zealand first legalized mechanical slot machines (aka fruit machines) at legally permitted land-based gaming venues in 1989, but the machines were already widely available in the country for many years by the time they were made legal.
In Australia and New Zealand, land-based mechanical slot machines, online slot machines, and even video poker gaming machines are more commonly referred to as pokies or online pokies.
The world’s first mechanical slot/pokie was invented in America in 1889, and it was very basic in design compared to modern pokies.
On this page, we will be taking a quick look at what some of those older pokies looked like, how they were played, and the main differences between the traditional slot machines and the online pokies of today.
How do the original mechanical pokies compare to today’s pokies?
Today, you can play a collection of online pokie games which have alternative themes, stories, and mechanics. iGaming developers routinely seek to pay homage too and innovate from the traditional basis from which pokies grew to their enormous popularity. New themes and stories embracing the latest film franchises. New mechanics that mean players have a wide variety of potential winning combinations. New technologies such as AR and VR become more mainstream and developers understand and adapt online slots to a new medium.
What is the traditional basis? In 1894, the very first slot machine was very simple. There were no electronics involved, and all you had to do was pull the mechanical lever at the side to spin the three-reel slot which had seven winning combinations. It took a decade or so for the popularity of the Liberty Bell game to inspire variations, which began the history we trace to today.
The earlier pokies only had 3 reels and used iconic symbols, such as bells, horseshoes, and various fruits (e.g., lemons, watermelons, cherries, plums, and oranges).
While these symbols are still commonly used today, more reels were added to slots, which meant more symbols arrived, such as bars (single, double, and triple bar symbols), 7s, and various other symbols. You will also find that symbols on pokies today are often unique to that pokie.
The basic aim of winning has remained unchanged. You must land three or more matching symbols across any active paylines to receive a payout. Each symbol has a different value. For example, the 7s might be worth far more than the 7s, and so on.
Back in the day, slots usually only had 1 payline, but over time, more paylines were added (spread vertically, diagonally, and horizontally from the leftmost reel to the rightmost reel).
Today’s pokies are also packed with exciting in-play bonus features (mainly Wild Symbol features) and other bonus rounds, such as progressive jackpot money wheel features, simple picking bonuses where you tap/click objects to reveal hidden prizes, and free spins bonus rounds.
Modern online pokies also come with HD 3D-rendered animated sequences, brilliant accompanying sound effects and background audio, and a variety of themes to appeal to a wide audience, not just the traditional fruit theme.
Today’s most popular online pokies are the progressive jackpot pokies and Megaways pokies. In most Megaways pokies, there can be up to 117,649 (or more) different ways to win per spin. In the progressive jackpot pokies, multi-million-dollar jackpots can drop on any spin.
Also, today, you can play pokies from pretty much any modern Wi-Fi/internet-connected computing device, such as a smartphone, smartwatch, desktop computer, laptop, and even from video game consoles and certain smart TVs.
Back in the 80s-90s, for example, no land-based pokies were connected to the internet. They used their own unique motherboard systems.
What are the most popular pokie themes in 2023?
There are many different online pokie themes, and some of the most popular in 2023 are Ancient Egypt-themed pokies, Norse & Greek Mythology-themed pokies, Branded/Movie-themed pokies, and Leprechaun/Irish-themed pokies.
Other popular themes include the following:
- Sports-themed pokies
- Ancient Civilization-themed pokies (e.g., Aztec, Inca, Roman, etc.)
- Horror-themed pokies
- Wild West/Cowboy-themed pokies
- Science Fiction/Alien Invasion/Space & Stars-themed pokies
- Fishing-themed pokies
- Animal-themed pokies
- Asian/Oriental-themed pokies
- Gold & Diamond Mining-themed pokies
There are many other popular themes, too, including action & adventure, love & romance, luxury lifestyle, war & military, and fantasy, to name just a few.
How old do I have to be to play online pokies?
The minimum age requirement to play online pokies for real money varies worldwide. For example, in New Zealand, it’s 18 to play pokies at licensed casino sites. In the United Kingdom and most other countries, it’s also only 18.
However, for players in US states where it’s legal to play at online casinos (e.g., Delaware, New Jersey, Nevada, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Michigan), it’s 18. In certain Canadian provinces, it’s 19. Always check that you are of legal age in your region before attempting to sign up anywhere.
- As per the Public Gambling Act of 1867, all Indian states, except Goa, Daman and Sikkim, prohibit gambling
- Land-based casinos are legalized, with certain guidelines, in Goa and Daman, as per the Goa, Daman and Diu Public Gambling Act 1976
- Land-based casinos, Online gambling and E-gaming (games of chance) are legalized in Sikkim under the Sikkim Online Gaming (Regulation) Rules 2009
- Only some Indian states have legalized online/regular lotteries as per and subject to the conditions laid down by state laws. Kindly refer to the same here
- Horse racing and betting on horse racing, including online betting, is permitted only in a licensed premise in select states. Kindly refer to the 1996 Judgement by the Supreme Court Of India here and for more information
- This article does not endorse or express the views of Qrius and/or any of its staff.
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