Progressive slot machines were introduced into casinos around 1986 and were an instant hit with players due to the large jackpot payouts which could be won. For those of you who don't know, progressive slots are just like normal slot machines however a portion of each bet (usually 10%) is pooled into a large overall prize for the machine. When the jackpot is hit by a player, the machine resets to a base starter fund and then starts building the progressive jackpot again as it is played.
Progressive slots can be setup as individual machines, linked within one specific casino or linked across multiple casino properties with different owners. These are the three main types of machines that you would expect to find both online and in your local casino. To gain a further understand for each type of machine, let's take a look at the typical structures of progressive slots and how they are implemented.
Single Machine Progressive Slots
This type of slot machine (also known as a stand alone progressive) is not
linked to any other machines in the casino and has its' own jackpot which is
managed within this one specific game. Typically stand alone progressive
wins are on the lower end of the totem poll and you could expect a single
machine progressive prize to range anywhere from $2,000 up to $25,000 depending
on the machine. Prizes will be displayed to players on a digital
progressive board (updated in real time) on the top of the machine and the
payout chart will show which symbols win the jackpot.
With this type of progressive slot, the jackpot is built on a fixed percentage basis for all bets placed only on this machine. It is very similar to a regular payout schedule for non-progressive machines however will configure the top prize based on bets placed rather than a fixed coin payout.
In-House Linked Progressive Slots
These progressive machines are exactly the same as described above however
they will be linked to a series of machines within the same casino. The
advantage to this is obviously a bigger prize pool since each machine will
contribute to the overall prize which can be won by players. Typical
jackpots from in-house linked machines can range from $25,000 up to $500,000
depending on the casino. These types of progressive also tend to be won
more often than multi-casino machines.
Multi-Casino Progressive Slots
With multi-casino progressive
slots, a network of machines is linked across
many different casino properties and can even be country wide. These types
of machines offer the biggest payouts and jackpots usually range from $1,000,000
up to and over $35,000,000 in some cases. With multi-casino progressives
all the games are linked together and a portion of each wager in all the casinos
funds the overall prize which can be won. This is the most popular type of
progressive slot as you might imagine since the prizes while hard to win offer
life changing sums of money.
What Is The Biggest Progressive Slot Jackpot Ever Won?
The largest single win on a casino slot machine ever recorded occurred in
the Excalibur Casino in Las Vegas in 2003. The jackpot on the popular IGT
slot machine MegaBucks had reached a staggering $39,713,982.00 a lucky 25 year
old ended up hitting the winning combination after dumping about $100 of play
into the game. The story goes that he was thinking of getting up from the
machine when he was distracted while placing a bet only to look back at the
machine and see that he had lined up the jackpot symbols. Needless to say
this type of huge win is not as frequent as one might hope, however since the
introduction of progressive slot machines in casinos, 250 people have become
instant millionaires from IGT slots.