It seems like I’ve seen more slots innovations over the last decade than at any other point in time. From adding detailed bonus rounds to storylines, slots-makers know that players need more than just spinning bells and BAR symbols these days.
A writer from PopMatters – an online international culture magazine – is fascinated with how far slots have come, particularly in the role-playing game (RGP) sector.
The slots RPG in question here is Tower of Fortune, a mobile slot that sees you spin reels to defeat warriors, sorcerers and dragons. Here’s one excerpt from the article:
“Slot machines aren’t even fun to watch, like a sports game or a race. They’re the purest embodiment of abusive Skinner Box manipulations.
“And yet, I’ve put countless hours of play and thought into the Tower of Fortune series, the whole time marveling at how these slot machine RPGs manage to combine player progression with a gameplay system that seems designed to prevent progression.
“… I’ve written about Tower of Fortune 2 before, but to summarize: It keeps the odds in the player’s favor. On every slot machine, there’s only one symbol that’s truly bad: the skull. It represents failure, a total absence of progress or positivity. In combat, it results in an enemy attack. During exploration, it results in setting off a trap. During forging or cooking or any mini-game, it results in a loss.”
Tower of Fortune 1 & 2 provide slots players with a unique RPG experience that many other games don’t. In fact, we have’t seen any true RPG slots at real money online casinos.
But there’s a very good chance that this could be yet another angle online slots developers pursue to continue attracting players. We’ve seen soap opera-style slots at Bovada and detective-themed slots at Drake Casino. So why not an online RPG in the near future?
It would be especially nice if such slots contained a skill element, much like we’re seeing Las Vegas casinos work on these days.