Casinos, both online and “live”, love to host tournaments. Originally these events were built around popular card games like poker and blackjack, but today they focus on all kinds of casino games, and one of the most popular are slots tournaments.
To play in a slots tournament of any kind requires an enrollment fee. These add up as part of the awards given to the winners. Tournaments in either environment happen only in real time, and for a set period during each session or day.
The purpose of a slots tournament is to pit a pool of players against one another to see who lasts the longest. A slots tournament begins by issuing the same number of coins or credits to each of the players who then set out on their day, or weekend, of play. Because players are not using their own money, many say it makes for a great deal of truly competitive fun. In fact, many say it is not the prize they are looking to win, but the competition itself.
Some tournaments allow spectators to watch how the players wager their coins and credits, and see if there is any specific strategy or tactic that they successfully use. Many new slots players enjoy watching these events in order to see if they are playing to their own best advantage. For example, during a slots tournament a conservative player will be pitted against a very daring player, and the results for both styles of play will be easy for all of the audience to see immediately.
Casinos of both kinds like to host tournaments because they promote the game and bring a great deal of attention, as well as potential revenue, into the casino itself. Some casinos host “free” tournaments for members of their slots clubs, which encourages them to play more frequently.
While live casino’s and online casino’s slots tournaments are fundamentally identical in the way they are managed, the online slots tournaments eliminate all of the social interaction of the live events. Some casino tournament players are so successful that they make a living travelling from casino tournament to casino tournament. These people form their own little social set, and many have hysterical or fascinating stories about their time on the tournament circuits. The “upside” or benefit of the online slots tournaments is the complete absence of distractions of any kind, where a player can really focus on their strategy.
The popularity of these tournaments is increasing every year, and many of the larger casinos will actually make an entire weeklong event around the activities. There will be preliminary and qualifying rounds where numbers of players face elimination, and a lead up to a final weekend of heavy or high stakes competitive playing.
Currently most tournaments deliver a cash prize to the winner, as well as the second and third place finishers. These prizes can come from registration fees, corporate and casino sponsorship, and any fees paid by those who attended the events simply to watch the players win.