A lot of my family members play mobile games now, and right now it seems like the current addiction is slots. Obviously, slots have been around and popular for a long time now, and Vegas slots are a gambling staple. However, it seems like recently they've been big on phones and tablets. In this series, I'll take a look at the most popular slots games, starting with my Slotomania guide.
Intro to Slotomania: Machines & Coins
Slotomania has a ton of different machines you can play with. Most of the machines are available for free, if you play long enough. Some, though, require you to buy them. Also, paying for coins will help you unlock the "eventually free" machines faster.
Slotomania Tip You unlock new machines as you level up. You level up faster the more you bet. So, if you're bored of the machines you have now, start betting big! You'll level up and unlock new ones in no time.
Slotomania slot machines run on coins, which you can get for free or pay real money for. Paying real money will obviously get you more coins faster than just waiting, but it can get really expensive really quickly!
Slotomania Tip Some of the coins you lose when you're playing slots will end up in the "piggy bank" which you can break for a small fee. If you're considering buying coins, check to see how much is in your bank and how much it would cost to get them back out, compared to the fees for buying them directly.
Depending on what machine you're playing, the game plays slightly differently. It's all slots, but there are subtle changes with each machine. For instance, the maximum number of lines and where the lines run on the machine changes.
Which machine you play is mostly a matter of personal preference. Is there a particular theme you like? Does one machine "feel lucky" to you? There's also different bonus games for every machine, and you may enjoy one machine's bonus game more than another. My suggestion would be to try new machines as they unlock to find out if you like the way it plays. You can always add or remove machines whenever you want - once they're unlocked, they're yours to keep!
Slotomania Tip Slot machines take up space on your phone/tablet. If you run out of space and can't save new apps, photos, or other items, you'll want to pare down your slots collection. If you forget how to do this, you can remove a slot machine you've installed by tapping and holding.
The game itself is pretty straightforward - just adjust your bet and the number of lines (if the machine supports it), and then hit the big green button.
Slotomania Tip If you want to let the game play itself for a while, hold the big green button down, and then tap one of the Auto Spin options to set up a number of spins to play. Note that you have to let up off the Spin button before you can tap one of the numbers. I found this very confusing!
"Winning" Slotomania
Slotomania is a slots game. Anyone who has played slots in Vegas or elsewhere knows that slots are about the fun of seeing the reels spin and the possibility of beating the odds and winning big. In the long run, though, everyone loses at slots. Luckily, Slotomania isn't (usually) about losing real money, so losing is more of a "aww" moment rather than a "OH # $*&" moment.
You are going to find a lot of sites online that advertise "free Slotomania coins!" or "guaranteed Slotomania cheats!" These are scams, designed to exploit your desire to game the system. Don't fall for them! They just want you to click on ads or give your personal information so that they can make money off of you.
One important thing to note - Slotomania must be online in order to work. The game contacts the Slotomania servers in order to determine whether you win or lose. This means two things - one, the slots will just spin endlessly if you're not online, since they can't connect to get the results. Two, any program that says it can help you cheat is lying - they'd have to change the Slotomania servers, and they (more than likely) can't do that.
Free Slotomania Coins
Free Slotomania coins are available from a variety of methods. Stocking up on free coins in Slotomania can save you from having to pay your hard-earned money on them. As with all "free to play" games - patience is a virtue! Play short amounts and take frequent breaks, and as long as luck is on your side you'll always have free Slotomania coins.
The most straightforward source of free Slotomania coins is the "special bonus." This is just a free pack of coins you get from waiting a few hours and then checking back in. If you check in daily for several days in a row, you'll get the "Lotto Bonus" which can easily earn you thousands of free Slotomania coins - if you're lucky! This is the most reliable way to make free coins, but it's also the slowest.
Another easy way to get free Slotomania coins is to connect to Facebook. Doing this the first time nets you a big coin bonus, and then you can harass your friends for free gifts. Harass responsibly - everybody has that one friend on Facebook who constantly bombards them with requests for games they're playing. You know the one... don't be that person :)
Slotomania Tip You can change the settings for Slotomania in Facebook so that it can only post things you can see, instead of posting things publicly on your timeline. This essentially makes all the "share this for free coins!" stuff Slotomania wants to do a lot less annoying to your friends.
Slotomania's "Total Rewards" network is also a source of free coins. However, it's really geared towards rewarding people who spend a lot of money on the game. It doesn't hurt to keep track of it, and to exploit it when you can, but it's not a large source of free Slotomania coins for people who are trying to play on the cheap.
Slotomania also features live tournaments, which you can participate in for free. You only get free Slotomania coins from tournaments if you place high enough, but honestly what do you have to lose? You can check the tournaments tab to see what slot machines currently feature tournaments. I suggest picking a slot machine you like which is featured in a tournament so that you're always taking advantage of the possible free coins from these sources.
Slotomania Tip Tournament winners appear to be determined by the amount you bet on the machine - the more you bet and win, the more your points go up. Thus, bet big during tournaments, if you can!
Conclusion
Slotomania is one of those games that you can leave on your phone for times when you don't want to pay 100% of your attention to a game, but you still want to feel like you're playing. If you're a Vegas slots addict, being able to gamble fake money whenever you want is a big bonus! There are also so many different free machines that there's always something new to try if you get bored. Just don't get carried away with the in-app purchases! Remember, this is all fake money - you can't ever cash out!