Skill-Based Slots Online
The casino industry is one of the most highly regulated markets in the world, with countless laws dictating precisely what can and can’t be done in casinos, slots, blackjack, roulette, and of course – our own forte, online casino (as well as online bingo, online poker, online betting and all the other online gambling ventures that involve real money). Honestly, it’s really not hard to see why all of these laws and regulations were put into place – I mean, if I’m going to essentially be putting a coin into a machine that may either steal it or spit out two coins, I’d very much want for there to be some pretty strict rules in place to ensure that the machine actually has a very real chance of spitting out coins and isn’t just a glorified thief. With that in mind, regulations are great… But some of them don’t exactly make a whole lot of sense. One of the more infamous rules, at least as far as online slots is concerned, is that gambling must be an entirely luck-based venture – any gambling activity that prioritizes skill over luck isn’t allowed in the casino, with a special exception being made for poker (which doesn’t really count as a casino game, since you don’t play against the casino). It’s a ridiculously idiotic law not just because there are already games that rely on both luck AND skill being played in casinos (you go ahead and tell me blackjack isn’t at least partially a skill-based game), but also because it has MAJORLY hurt slots, which are forced to recycle the same luck-based bonus games over and over again.
But it looks like, against all odds, the law may actually be on its way out, as several states in the US, like Nevada (of course) and New Jersey already repealed it – with the latter having just placed its very first skill-based slots in several physical locations mere days ago. In addition, New York and Pennsylvania are also currently considering repealing the law, which means that, within a year, 4 out of the 22 states in which gambling is legal will have skill-based slots in them, which isn’t a lot by any stretch of the imagination, but it’s something. And considering the fact that the US’ next president just so happens to own a chain of casinos, I’ve got a feeling that a lot more states might want to jump in on the whole “legalizing skill-based slots” game. But enough about the US, what about the UK and the rest of Europe? That’s what really matters to us, right? Well, sadly, so far there’s really no concrete plans to legalize skill-based slots. As far as I could find out, the suggestion has been brought up several times, but was never discussed in any serious capacity.
So, can we ever expect to find skill-based slots in our friendly neighborhood online casinos? I’d say not any time soon, but I’m optimistic that it’s bound to happen at some point – it’s not an idea that people are just going to drop. And besides, online casinos are constantly looking for new hooks and gimmicks in order to attract new audiences to them. First we got live casino, which bridged the gap between physical and online casino, then we got mobile, which allowed you to play slots on your phone… Some people have speculated that the next big gimmick is going to be VR, which makes sense if online casinos figure out how to run their software properly on cheap VR headsets like the Samsung Gear, but afterwards, who’s to say skill-based games won’t be the next draw designed to entice a whole new generation? As soon as the legal hurdles are clear, we can expect to see skill-based slots in our online casinos within a year. It’s not a matter of if, it’s a matter of when.
