When players think of online slots, they invariably associate them with an individual activity that takes place irrespective of the activities of others. Land based slots in particular are not a good primer for multiplayer activities as the action almost exclusively takes place with the player on their own – it is man versus machine, one on one. The closest that most land based slots come to a multiplayer format is the progressive jackpot on offer on linked banks of machines, although this is simply a case of others contributing to the overall jackpot – gameplay and strategy works exactly the same in most cases. There are multiplayer slots tournaments in some land based venues, but they are few and far between, particularly in Canada.
How Do Slots Tournaments Work?
Before we go into the mechanics of slots tournaments and how the action differs from traditional online slots play, it is important to point out that while the idea of competing with others on slots may be quite a scary thought, there is little to worry about and they are a lot of fun. While numerous players contribute to the overall action and prize standings, there is still a large element of solo play and you do not need to be concerned with others ruining your winning combinations or jumping in and snatching your jackpot away. Tournaments are competitive, but not that competitive!
With that out of the way, the best analogy that many of our readers will be familiar with is that of the poker sit and go tournament. In such activities, players pay an entry fee and take their seat. That fee is divided into a cut for the casino and a prize pool which is offered to the best performers after a set period of time – in the case of poker that being when one player has all of the chips. Slot tournaments are similar, whereby players are all given a set number of credits based on their entry fee and must then undertake rapid slot action to try and turn their starting cash into the highest amount possible. Again, just like poker, players can be eliminated if the reels do not fall their way and they run out of cash altogether, although many slots tournaments operate a rebuy format where the player’s entry fee is taken once again and added to the prize pool, with their reward being the standard number of starting chips to try again.
The few slot tournaments that do take place in land based casinos are generally confined to Las Vegas. Players are issued with a time to be at the machine and a player number to aid in tracking. The time was due to the fact that the limited number of machines and relatively large number of entrants would mean taking turns to work out the overall standings. Of course, online casinos have no such restrictions and can render as many versions of the same game as necessary, so players typically log in to the casino at the designated start time and get the action underway. They receive their set number of credits and proceed to play the slot as normal, implementing any of their favourite strategies and with full control over win lines and coin bets. This is where tournament tactics come in to play and see players either aiming for early, big wins by betting more, or slowly and steadily building a larger cash amount over extended periods.
Rather than ending when all players have been eliminated, slot tournaments are based on time limits. It would take weeks for all players to lose all of their cash, so they end after a pre-determined period that can range from an hour to several days. At the end of the time limit, all slots are automatically locked and no further play is possible. At this point, the server quickly assesses how much cash each player has and ranks them accordingly. The more cash the player ends with, the higher they appear on the ladder in the hope of finishing in the prize winning places.
Slot Tournament Strategies
By their nature, there is not much by way of strategies in place during slot tournaments as winning or losing on such games is often random and based entirely on luck. The typical means of gaining an edge in online slot play are often independent of the machine itself, such as strict bankroll management and using bonus cash to eliminate house edges.
One way of improving the odds in a tournament is simply to throw more money at the problem. Virtually every tournament gives players the option to rebuy credits at the original rate and many tournaments come down to who has invested the most, as they have additional opportunities to hit the biggest prize amounts. There are also various bankroll management techniques in play. For example, experienced players will have a good idea of how much overall cash is required for the highest prizes and tournaments give players the opportunity to stop playing altogether at any point. If they hit the largest jackpot, they are under no obligation to risk it further, and many players choose to either quit or reduce their stakes for extended periods. Of course, others feel that the best form of defence is attack and raise their stakes in an effort to take down even larger prizes.
Where to Enjoy Online Slot Tournaments
Online slot tournaments are actually something of a recent addition to the world of online casino gaming in Canada in spite of their simplicity. It is therefore absolutely not guaranteed that a certain operator will give players the option of taking part, even if they use the very same software as a competitor that does. Fortunately, some of our most highly recommended casinos for Canadian players offer regular competitive slot action, including ComeOn Casino and Jackpot City Casino. Best of all, they both offer freeroll tournaments with real cash prizes available alongside the higher value games, meaning that even absolute beginners can get a taste for competitive slot action without risking any of their own money. They can then proceed to avail of first deposit bonuses to enjoy the really competitive version, again with no risk to their own capital.
Online slot tournaments are set to grow in popularity as more and more players find out about the benefits. Our readers can get in on the action right now and become experienced in what is required to level the competition as the games continue to take off.
