Big Bertha and Other Slot Machines

After the slot machines were introduced, their popularity grew very soon. Realizing that this may become rather lucrative business, manufacturers of the slot machines were competing to make much better machines and increase their chances of making more money with them. Again, the manufacturers were now competing to see who can make the world’s biggest slot machine. The result of these competitions was the birth of Big Bertha slot machine. This slot machine measured six by ten and its cost of manufacturing was over $150, 000. The slot machine was powered using an electric motor which had 5 horsepower. This amount of power was needed for driving the 21 inch chain wheels. Big Bertha slot machine was manufactured by Bally Manufacturing Company with the first machine of this kind being released in 1931. Of course, going online these days allows you to experience even more fascinating slots – just take a look at http://www.williamhillcasino.com.

Big Machines – Big Profits

The machines with 20 symbols each had eight reels and could create up to 25.6 billion different possible combinations. Among these billions of combinations, there was only one combination that could lead to a jackpot win which was 1 million dollars. The make the importance of these numbers more understandable, let’s analyze them. According to these numbers, players who wanted to win jackpot at Big Bertha was supposed to pull the machine’s lever for about 205 billion rounds at $1 rate per spin. From the point of view of casinos, the Big Bertha slot machines were not just big in their size only but also big in terms of profits.

Payouts of Big Bertha

Since the reels of the Big Bertha slot machines had 160 symbols, the degree for randomness was very great. During this period, existing slot machines were only limited to 3 reels and this meant a limitation of 15 reel symbols. As such, the maximum possible payouts with the slot machines were just a few hundred dollars. Casino owners intended not only to offer players more jackpots but also larger ones. That was a perfect strategy of attracting more players. If the Big Bertha slot machines were still a part of casino game, they would have enjoyed great popularity at the casinos. Unfortunately, the successfulness of Big Bertha slot machines was short lived because lately it was replaced by Super Big Bertha.

Super Big Bertha and Other Followers

This new slot machine was even bigger compared to its original predecessor. The new machine featured a total of 8 reels with each reel having 20 symbols. This machine was also very limited in its availability. Most Las Vegas casinos had this machine in their establishments and their ultra large jackpots attracted many gamblers. Big Bertha slot machines had a few disadvantages which meant that these machines were destined to become obsolete sooner than later. Their high cost of production meant that most casinos couldn’t afford them and the astronomically high odds of being able to hit a jackpot meant that most gamblers opted for other alternatives. Making more than 15 billion seems unrealistic in every way. Other slot machines produced in the same era that the Big Bertha slot machines debuted include Wall Street, 42nd and Broadway, Single Coin, Reward Time and the Bamboo.