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Fruity Slots: The Story of the Fruit Machine Symbols' Origin
By GamblersPick Apr 18, 2020Why do many slot machines use fruit symbols, even with different themes? We look at the colorful origins of fruit machine slots and how they became commonplace.Many people know that slots are the most popular social casino game, with 53% of social gamblershitting the slots machines above all else. What most people don't know, however, is that slots is a game with a rich history that spans over a century.
In order to understand where slots machines come from, it's important to look into the fruit symbols that they boast on their screens. Here, we're going to talk about slot machines, their evolution into something called fruit machines, and the revival of their original purpose- placing monetary bets. Read on to learn more about the history of your favorite casino game so that you can better appreciate it (and wow your friends with some awesome trivia!)
Basic Slot Machine History
In the beginning, slot machines were called 'one-armed bandits.' This is because you placed a bet and activated the machine by pulling a handle. There were no buttons that could be pushed yet since machines weren't automated.
These came into being around 1907. Coins, tokens, or even cash would be entered into the machine to make a bet, and the reels on the machine would spin. These machines were almost exactly like the slot machines that we know and love today- the only real difference was that the symbols were card suits (diamonds, clubs, hearts, and spades) rather than fruit symbols.
Some machines did use different symbols, too. Stars, moons, bars, lines, and numbers were all possible symbols for an early slot machine.
In 1909, these machines were outlawed in the UK, which rocked the gambling-loving Brits to their core.
Evolution Towards the Fruit Machine
After slot machines were outlawed, people were saddened. They had loved the games and wanted to keep playing.
Because of the high demand, those who manufactured the machines began to turn their slot machines into dispensers of chewing gum. In doing so, they replaced the playing-card reel symbols with images of fruit. Any wins that were made on the machine corresponded to a different flavor of gum that was determined by the fruit symbol shown on the machine.
After a while, it became the case that every bet made on these machines resulted in a win. This meant that the machines had undergone a full transition from being slot machines to something else: a dispenser of chewing gum that could be enjoyed by everyone who took a spin on them.
These machines were simply called 'fruit machines.'
Convenience Stores vs Casinos
Fruit machines eventually became completely divorced from the original slot machines that had now gone out of popularity. The line between a slots machine and a vending machine became nonexistent.
They moved into convenience stores where children and parents alike would play. Walking away with fruity gum was a fun and age-appropriate reward for everyone. This ultimately evolved into the gumball machines that you can still see today in the lobby of basically every department store.
Gumball machines are so incredibly popular with children, even today. They've been separated so much from the concept of slot machines hat they're talked about in public schools where the discussion of gambling is prohibited. The same, of course, applies to vending machines, which line the halls of pretty much every high school cafeteria and commercial building out there.
However, as you can guess, this didn't end the history of slot machines- it simply diverged down another path than the path that the fruity gum went down. Slot machines moved forward into a new era and became the casino game that you now know and love.
Into a New Era
Having forked off in another direction from gumball machines, slots machines moved back to their original place in casinos. Once again, chips were used for gambling at slot machines, and the payout became money.
In 1963, Bally and Williams, two of the biggest slot machine developers in the 20th century, began to adapt early models to a modern audience. They created the first fruit machine- which was now a real slots machine- that worked electromechanically. The images on the slots were fruits like oranges, lemons, cherries, and melons, a throwback to the fruity gum that its predecessors dispensed.
A machine called Big Bertha even emerged in the late '60s. This machine needed a 5-horsepower engine to power the reels within it!
In any case, though, slots machines in casinos began to be equipped with chairs that people could sit at. In fact, since slots machines often lined an entire wall of a casino, there would be dozens of chairs lined up so that multiple people could try to strike it big at once. The new electronic system that Balty and Williams had worked on was also harder to cheat at, so larger casinos that couldn't monitor everyone at once bought them out.
Online Slots and Beyond
Even in the era of online slots, the fruit symbols that were popular over a century ago still make their appearance. While you can get apps that feature all kinds of slots machines- animals, fashion items, and even movie characters- the fruit symbols are by far the most popular.
If you imagine a slot machine, the first things that will come to most people's minds are the fruit symbols. Now you know why!
Start Playing fruit slots
While you likely didn't previously know that there was a relationship between vending machines and slots casino games, you do now!
Since knowledge is power, it's time to exercise your newfound powerful gambling skills. Check out the 'casinos' tab on our home page for more information on the places that you can play slots online and in-person near you. This is a game that everyone's sure to love, and now that you know the history of fruit machines, you can fully appreciate where these games came from!
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