Even three decades ago, slot machines were ubiquitous around the world. While they differ by name, they often share a similar mechanic. Travelling from country to country, you will notice small differences in how they’re presented, perhaps the type of games too, but most stark is simply the terminology surrounding them. Free spins offers, though, may be changing the regional ways we refer to slots as newcomers are introduced to the game via international sites, not local establishments.
The British “Fruit Machine”
In Britain, slot machines are known as fruit machines – or fruities. It’s far from a modern term, as it’s essentially the only way they will ever be referred to. The name comes from the classic symbols that were on early British slot machines – cherries, lemons, oranges. These machines were mostly played in pubs, and still exist today, even if modern machines use different symbols.
The fruit machine naming reflects the UK’s unique regulatory approach to gambling. British fruit machines traditionally operated under different rules than their American counterparts, often incorporating skill elements and offering different payout structures. This distinct gaming experience warranted its own terminology.
Australia and New Zealand’s “Pokies”
In Australia, “poker machines” become shortened to just “pokies” – these are the two officially termed gaming machines, with Australian-style gaming machines often using video displays now instead of physical reels. Like fruit machines in Britain, pokies is pretty much the only way you will hear them referred to in Australia and New Zealand, again showing how the same game can have different cultural impacts.
“Pokies” is somewhat of an affectionate term – not just devoid of meaning like “slots”. The term comes from “poker machines,” though modern pokies bear little resemblance to these traditional poker games. Like in Britain, they had widespread acceptance early on, and now much of the world’s slot machines exist in Australasia.
The classic “One-Armed Bandit”
Although modern slots are passed the point of using levers, one-armed bandit is still often used. You might hear this in American casinos, or perhaps casinos in highly globalized capital cities.
It’s a colorful term that comes from the early mechanical days when players would pull a large lever on the side of the machine. This physicality is missed by most, making it a wonder why more retro machines aren’t fitted today.
One-armed bandits were also a useful pejorative in how they empty pockets and the “bandit” being the machine itself. But, today it’s mostly an affectionate term, in part because education is now at a level where we all know the risks involved.
Japan’s “Pachisuro” and “Pachislot”
Japan presents is perhaps where we deviate a little more, which is in-line with other aspects of Japanese culture – it’s very isolated. Japanese slot machines are known as pachisuro or pachislo. These come from the Japanese pachinko game. It’s somewhat of a fusion of traditional Japanese gaming culture with Western-style slot concepts.
Pachinko fills that demand for a low-stakes slot game when one doesn’t exist. It’s originally a way around the law, as they have a different legal status to traditional slots. In other words, it’s somewhat of a loophole grey area.
The impact of technology on terminology
Different regions have developed their own unique names based on local languages and cultural references – legality is just one cause.
Modern digital slot machines have largely moved away from mechanical components, yet many traditional names persist. We would expect that new terms are birthed from younger generations as they first interact with modern machines, but as of yet, these are not culturally prevalent. Linguistic conservatism is profound, but it differs between cultures, so we can expect these changes to occur at different rates around the world.
Global gaming culture
These naming differences offer insights into how different societies approach gambling. But now that online casinos are so globalized, we often see Australians play at British casinos and vice versa. This leads to a melting pot of terminology, where it wouldn’t be uncommon for players to adopt other cultural references outside their own. What we’re waiting for, then, is globalized, mixed terminologies to birth out of different linguistic inspirations.
“Video slots” and “iGaming” are new terms that we hear, so these are potential contenders. iSlots isn’t common but we do hear it from time to time. What may occur, perhaps, is a transition to “digital fruities” or “digital pokies”, but this is unlikely to be a catch-all term for the rest of the world.
But whether you call it fruit machines, pokies, one-armed bandits, or pachisuro, these gaming devices are now truly global. Gen Z, who are increasingly adopting casino games and gambling culture, will be first introduced to slots not in the pub or casino, but online. And it’s hear that we see the erosion of different gaming cultures around the world to a single melting pot, served by international online casino sites.
