Deemed to be one of the most popular slot machines, the Wheel of Fortune has many success stories associated with it. The spinning reels have brought a load of good fortune not only to many players but also to the creator of the slot machine. International Game Technology (IGT), a global leader in designing popular gaming machines, launched the Wheel of Fortune slot machine series in 1996. With the new concept of themed slots, IGT revolutionized the gaming arena.
Even though the Wheel of Fortune slot machine competes with many other themed slot machines in the casino, it has been a player’s favorite through the years. With every new version of the slot machine, the creators have improved the design in innovative ways to create a more exciting gaming experience for players. They have managed to keep the concept of the themed game show fresh and have attracted casino customers toward the spinning reels successfully. The new improvements to each series have contributed to the players’ desire to spin the wheels over and over again.
Wheel of Fortune Slots Machine: Attention Grabbing Design
The Wheel of Fortune has many versions, the most recent being the Wheel of Fortune Triple Extreme Spin. The machine has an unusual design with a physical installation of three mechanical concentric wheels to provide the player with the exciting chance to spin the three wheels. With this new feature, the designers at IGT have added an entirely new appeal to the gaming experience.
The machine also has 103-inch and 70-inch plasma overhead screens; there’s a surround sound system embedded in the slant top machines to provide a stage effect. Depending on the version of the machine, it has a 32-inch liquid crystal display screen at each play station. The visual appeal of the system is captivating with unique lighting effects around the gold trimmed wheels.
The slot machine offers MultiPLAY interface where three different games can be played simultaneously at each play station. It also has a rapid reload feature that enables the wheels to re-spin and generate larger wins when the four symbols at the center are locked.
One-of-a-kind Game Plan
The base game runs of the theme of the famous Siberian Storm video. An aspect of this game incorporates the concept of the fortune wheel. When there are more than three scatter symbols on the reels, miniature wheels are formed, which spin to generate winning points.
A feature called triple extreme spin bonus activates when more than three bonus symbols occupy the reels. Immediately, the player would get the feeling of being teleported to the actual game show with the sound and light effects emanating from the slot machine.
There are three wheels: red, blue, and yellow. The red and the blue wheel display the credit awards; the yellow wheel is the multiplier. A player is confronted with many envelopes to choose categories for a word puzzle. Upon picking one, the diamond pointers show the awarded points on the red and blue wheels. Once all the pointers are in place, the wheels begin to spin and the total values on the pointers determine the bonus award.
Features that Bring Big Wins on Wheel of Fortune Slot Games
The slot has 5 reels and 5 paylines. Every spin has potentially 730 winning combinations. A minimum wager can start at a penny and go up to $5. The highest winning prize is 50,000 credits and the second highest is 2,500 credits. A player can win a huge jackpot of $500,000 credits at the Wheel of Fortune slot.
The slots pay up for symbol combinations from either side – left to right or right to left – on the adjacent reels. The symbols are random like fruits, objects, or awards that you may win at the game show like a vacation, cars, etc. The wild multiplier symbol is the Wheel of Fortune symbol that replaces other symbols to create winning combinations and double the payout. This wild multiplier symbol will not replace the scatter symbols.
The symbols that appear on the reels include fruits, diamond rings, gold bars with prizes like a car, a beach, a cruise ship, etc. There are three bonus jackpot symbols, one on each of the wheels that allows the player to accumulate bonus awards. There is also a Wheel of Fortune bonus feature that enables the players to spin the wheel (in this case, three wheels) and win the accumulated bonus prize awards. To activate the bonus feature, the player would need to wage a maximum bet. The main aim of the game is for the player to continue answering the word puzzle and spinning the wheels to win the bonus jackpot prizes.
Accolades to the Wheel
The slot machine has bagged awards in the players favorite categories every year since its launch. Its recent success story includes two awards in October 2011 – Best Progressive Slot and Best Reel Slot in “Best of Southern California Gaming Reader’s Choice Awards” by Southern California Gaming Guide. Earlier in August 2011, it also bagged four awards based on a reader poll conducted by Casino Player magazine.
The Story Behind the Inspiration of Wheel of Fortune
The slot machine derives its theme from the greatest known American television game, Wheel of Fortune, created by Merv Griffin. First aired in 1975, the show replaced Jeopardy!, another popular game show created by Griffin. Unlike any other game show, Wheel of Fortune still has the same charaters as it did in 1975 – Pat Sajack who hosts the show and Vanna White, the hostess.
The main game is based on Hangman, where a player has to guess the letters in a word puzzle. Each puzzle in a round is based on a category. The contestants take turns to spin the wheel to earn a dollar value and guess a letter in the puzzle. The number of letters correctly guessed multiplied by the dollar value would be the contestants’ earnings.
With earnings over $250, the contestants can buy vowels and keep control of the wheel. The game has had many new rounds and aspects added to it over the years. There is a bonus round at the end of the game where the contestant spins the wheel to win a jackpot.
The Wheel of Fortune slot machine incorporates many game features, theme music, and sound effects associated with the TV show. The sound of the cheering audience heard through the booming speakers gives the players a realistic feeling of being at the original game show itself.
List of IGT Slots
- 100 Ladies Slot
- 100 Pandas Slot
- Alice's Adventures in Wonderland Slot
- Betti the Yetti Slot
- American Idol Slot Game
- Breakfast at Tiffany's Slot
- Black Widow Slots
- Plinko Slots
- 100,000 Pyramid Slots
- Dolly Parton Slots
- Billy Goat Bucks Slot
- The Beverly Hillbillies Slot Game
- Judge Judy Slots
- Wolf Run Slot Machine
- The Frog Prince Slots
- u-Spin Slots
- The X Factor Slots
- Zuma Slots
- The Family Guy Slot Machine
- Chain Reactors Slot Machine
- CSI Slot Games
- Top Gun Slots
- Cleopatra Slots
- Jeopardy Slots Machine
- The Dark Knight Slots
- Dangerous Beauty Slot
- Da Vinci Diamonds Slot
- Double Diamond Slots
- Elvis Slots
- Star Trek Slots
- Texas Tea Slots
- Van Helsing Slots
- Wheel of Fortune Slots
- Twilight Zone Slots
- Rainbow Riches Slots
- Enchanted Unicorn Slots
- 5 Times Pay Slot
- The Frog Princess Slots
- Ghostbusters Slots Game
- Golden Goddess Slot
- Greenback Attack Slot
- The Hangover Slots
- Godzilla Slots
- Indiana Jones Slots
- Lobstermania Slots
- Little Green Men Slots
- Monopoly Slot Machines
- Pharaoh's Fortune Slot
- Rocket Man Slot
- Sex and the City Slots
- Siberian Storm Slot
- Fort Knox Slots