The first slot machine invented in the 19th century may not have had a clear target audience in mind due to the lack of focus groups and market research that was available at the time. In fact, the slot machine just seemed to be a good idea at the time and a new addition to the world of gambling that would seem novel to gamblers of that era.
As we now know, the first slot was a huge hit with the public and this led to many more inventors and engineers creating further versions of these phone casino games, until they became a major part of the gambling entertainment industry.
Modern Times
In 1996, mechanical slots were cast into the history books of gambling forever, because of the invention and success of video slots. These brought slot games to the masses and utilized computer graphics and animation in slots for the very first time. What this did was increase the appeal of slots with a younger video game playing audience, that had a huge interest in the latest digital technology that was being used in the entertainment industry at the time. Digital technology allowed slots developers the freedom to create more complex slots that met the demands of the new audience these games were attracting.
Gambling With Mass Appeal
Today slots appeal to the masses and to a younger crowd that did not participate in gambling in the past. The reasons are many but accessibility and technology are major reasons for this. Young adults live their lives in the virtual world these days and have access to the internet 24/7. This means that online casinos have also become part of their virtual lives along with social media and other forms of online entertainment. Gambling is available 24/7 and you can choose the environment you want to gamble in. This is mostly down to mobile gaming being available on phones and this suits the smart phone generation down to the ground.
Slot Themes and Young Adults
Slot themes have proved to be a major player when attracting young adult gamblers. Thanks to technology, slots can now be based on pieces of popular culture and since the young are the biggest cinemagoers in the country, anything based on hit movies is bound to attract young adults to it. Blockbuster movies have now become successful slot games and films with a huge young fan base like Terminator 2, Jurassic Park and Ted, now sit proudly in many an online casino lobby. Another major draw with young punters are superhero films and of course, these regularly cross over into the gaming world. Slots like Thor, Ironman and Batman have helped make slots very popular among young adults in the UK and the amount of young adults playing slots continues to grow. Recent research discovered that 39% of slot players are in fact female and a large part of the female slots playing public in the UK are younger women.
