Traditionally, most online casino games have never required any level of skill to play. If you consider slot machines, for example, you choose a game, pay your bet and spin the reels. Slot machines have worked this way for decades, though over time, the game has changed with added paylines, more reels, realistic graphics, and inspired storylines. What hasn’t changed over all this time is that there has been little to no connection between skill and slots.
A few years ago, however, software providers, in collaboration with online casinos such as ICE Casino started to roll out skill-based casino games. This allows you to play games where you have control during bonus rounds and how much money you can win. You can see an excellent example of these in crash games such as JetX, Aviator, and many more. These games combine elements of video games with regular slot games. By doing so, they create a more interactive and competitive gameplay experience.
Difference Between Skill-Based Games and Regular Games
Skilled casino games still rely significantly on luck – the design and development of the game haven’t changed that much. You still place your bet, adjust other necessary parameters and hit the play button. The Random Number Generator (RNG) software will then proceed and do its magic and determine the game’s outcome – randomly. Over the past few years, there have been games with provably fair technology, which lets you verify that, indeed, the game’s outcome was random.
What the regular slots and other casino games lack is the skill-based element. Games with skill-based elements will let you physically play for a bonus round by landing the required symbols in the game. In other instances, they let you determine how much you can win in the game. This has to be done by timing the right moment to cash out your wins.
Just to let you have a quick insight into these mechanics, let us quickly look at two examples of skill-based games that require you to play through the bonus rounds physically and also cash out to determine how much you can win in a game.
Space Invaders (Scientific Games)
One of the best online slot games with a bonus round that has to be triggered using skill in contrast to the conventional way is Scientific Games’ Space Invaders. The game is based on the classic arcade game widely played in the late 70s. Like any other slot game, the bonus round is triggered by landing at least three scatter symbols anywhere on the reels. After that, you are required to pick between an interactive bonus round and free spins game. Of course, the free spins game will take you to an easier and RNG-controlled round.
If you select the interactive bonus round, you’ll see a swarm of space invaders. You must stop them from advancing by shooting as many as possible using the small spacecraft. The more you shoot, the better the wins.
Aviator (Spribe)
Aviator is a game designed and developed by Spribe. For those not versed in this game, it belongs to a special group of “crash games.” They are called crash games because once you place your bet, a “jet” takes off to the skies. It’s up to you to become an “aviator” and successfully guide it through the skies. As long as the plane remains in the air, your bet amount keeps growing, but not for long. You must cash out before the jet crashes from the screen. This is the only way to win money while playing Spribe’s Aviator game.
How Do Skill-Based Games Affect Online Casinos?
To a new player, beating a skill-based casino game requires years of experience. But the truth is that even for a more experienced and skilled player, winning is not guaranteed. This is because these games still rely on the RNG software to generate the results. The best you can do is play the game well enough to earn bigger payouts compared to regular online casino games.
Another way that skill-based games will affect online gambling, particularly casinos, is increased gaming. This is because there will be increased interaction between the player and the game as more players look to beat the set high score and win more money.
In addition to bringing out the competitiveness in players and creating a fun environment to play in, skill-based games in the online gambling niche have made it possible for players in heavily regulated areas to play the games. This can be seen in certain states in the United States and India where skill-based gaming is legal – both at the online and land-based level.
The Future of Skill-Based Gaming
The future of skill-based gaming seems geared toward the younger generation of players. How the games have been designed, and the features they included are meant to attract the younger audience accustomed to playing video games. The increased levels of competitiveness and interactivity and, importantly, skill-based gameplay are all selling points for Gen Z.
