Slots Skill Stops

The Skill stop is a special feature which allows slot players to control the machines and stop the spinning reels at any moment of the game. This is a button by pressing which the player stops the reels on his own and therefore influences the game.

History of Skill Stops

New Jersey road sign
First skill stops were added to slots in New Jersey

The Skill stop feature was added to slot machines back in the 1920s. The first skill stop buttons were added to slot machines produced by the well-known Mills Novelty company of Chicago, one of the leading manufacturers of coin-operated machines at that time. This was the first time in slot machine history when skill became an essential element in playing slots.

In the early 70s buttons were added by Zacharias Anthony in order to satisfy New Jersey gaming laws which required that players would be able to control the gaming process. About 50 models of Bally slot machines were modified with skill stops. Those buttons located near each reel allowed the player to separately stop every reel of the machine. As before the reels were spinning for approximately 10 seconds, weights were added to prolong the spinning. Soon the machines featuring the new slot buttons were so popular that the other manufacturers added skill stops to their slots.

The skill stop slots were a huge success, even before the news about the New Jersey Alcoholic Beverages Commission was out. The remaining Bally machines which were out of date and obsolete by that time were destroyed.

The Mills Novelty Company was founded in 1891 in Chicago, USA, as a cigar vending company. It produced different machines such as jukeboxes, vending machines, and later on slot machines. The company owner, Herbert Mills, cooperated with the father of slot machines Charles Fey to produce the Mills Liberty Bell machine.

Bally Technologies, Inc now situated in Las Vegas, Nevada, was founded back in 1968 in Chicago. Originally the company was known as a producer of pinball games and later it became one of the biggest manufacturers of gaming equipment. Today Bally's products include reel slot machines, video slots, and casino management systems.

Skill Stops at Modern Casinos

Casino sign
First skill stops were added to slots in New Jersey

Nevertheless, machines with skill stop buttons are not easy to find in land casinos these days. This is because casinos still make a lot of money from traditional slots and they are not interested in providing players with an extra edge from mastering the skill slots. That is the why you will probably not find these machine in the USA.

If you choose to play slot games online, there are lots of chances to find slots with skill stops. Some software providers offer slot games with additional skill stop features that can be of great benefit for those who want to influence the game and also save time. Usually the skill stop is not an additional button at online slot games. The Spin button usually turns into Stop button during the spin allowing the player to stop all the reels at any moment the player wishes.

In fact, skill stop is not an additional button at online slot games. The Spin button usually turns into Stop button during the spin allowing to stop all the reels at any moment the player wishes.

Skill Stops Scheme

Here the reels stop simultaneously rather than one by one as in common slot games. In fact, the chances of hitting the biggest slot payouts when mastering the skill stops are not much higher than without this feature as the games are programmed in such a way as not to produce the same results. It is impossible to track any game patterns even when using the skill stop button. If you want to try slots with a skill stop button you can try our free slots that are available for fun money.

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