While gambling is one of the widest spread activities in the world, Australia is still leading the list of countries with pokie lovers. Almost 80% of citizens are involved in the gambling activity and as far as it seems, pokies have brought the Australian gambling industry the success and most of the revenue counting $24 billion annually.
Lucky With The Choice
The main point in pokies being one of the most successful activities is that Australians generally love to gamble, and moreover they love slots and slot machines. Consequently, Australia operators offer the customers a great variety of slots that attracts even more attention from the citizens.
The country has the biggest pokies-to-population ratio in the world with currently more than 200.000 separate machines placed all over the country. This is definitely one of the most impressive pictures in the whole industry. And this is only about offline pokies and not even about the online pokie industry that is raising with the drastic speed as well.
Some of the most successful operators and developers have been working in order to develop the most interesting slots. One such developer is Play’n Go which has been releasing thousands of pf games with different backgrounds, advanced features, and immersive graphics.
First Steps
The slot game was initially invented by a certain arrangement of symbols and was first reviewed by the end of the 18th century. The game contained 5 drums full of 50 cards and was similar to the poker principles. The game quickly became popular enough to occupy the bars and clubs in whole Brooklyn.
The initial slot machine was invented in 1895 by Charles Fey. the machine was called Liberty Bell. It was left only with 3 reels and 5 symbols, making it easier to play and win. The attitude from the government’s side was very strict and in the 90s they banned it from the country.
The same happened in Australia. Though, it did not hurt that much because the whole gambling industry was banned in the country by that time.
Soon after they legalized it, the game became one of the most popular activities in the whole country. And while this oppressive legislation persisted for decades, the industry still managed to create its very own pokie called the Clubman. The Australian company Aristocrat is the originator of this idea which saw its fruition in 1953. Soon after it was first legalized on the territory of NSW.
After this success in the regulatory framework, pokies received a massive impetus in all directions, becoming an even greater success in Australia. And as the new era of online casino gaming hit the world, the country was prepared. From the early 2000s, the online pokies emerged in Australia. The first game called Thunderstruck was released by Microgaming in 2004.
And Why Pokies?
The actual report, when the name pokie was first used, does not exist. Though, there have been certain observations that give us a clue. Almost every pub, club, and bar had slot machines and video poker machines side by side. And whether a customer played one or another they always would have combined those two together. Consequently, there was a slot machine and video poker. It made it simpler to imply to the games via the pokies. Though the pokie does not have anything to do with the poker, it was the common name for both games to mention at once.
Now, there is no doubt that this game has one of the best histories in Australia. This perhaps can be the reason why so many people are so deeply attached to the game and the whole procedure. There is no difference for them whether they play it online or offline, the game still delivers the best feeling for the Aussies. Despite the great popularity, this also is one of the worst habits of Aussies, which causes addiction, which is the problem not only in Australia but worldwide.