A Beginner’s Guide to Slingo – the Best of Both the Worlds

Online casino gaming has a whole array of advantages over the traditional land-based ones. One of them being the opportunity to try various new and interesting games from the comfort of your home or any location you prefer via a smartphone or tablet. With the growing interest of people in online casino games, the casino and gaming developers are constantly on the lookout for opportunities to bring something new and interesting to the table. They try to introduce various new games to lure more players to their casinos as well as keep the pre-existing ones hooked on. One of the more common tactics being to combine the attributes of two or more popular games, to come up with something you. A perfect example of which being Slingo, which combines the gameplay of bingo and the classic online slot into one innovative experience.

What is Slingo?

Slingo is a hybrid online game which combines some elements of traditional bingo within a slot game environment. Slingo was developed almost 25 years ago by Sal Falciglia, a businessman from New Jersey and was launched on the AOL platform in 1996. Though it has been in circulation since a long period, it is only as of recently that online casinos and gaming brands worldwide have begun embracing Slingo, producing dozens of different variants of the game to try your luck with. Slingo is up for grabs right now in a whole bunch of different styles, but what every variant has in common is the simplicity of its gameplay and the pure enjoyment factor.

A beginner’s guide to Slingo Bingo

Slingo games allow players to play in an online environment which mixes many aspects of the familiar 75-ball bingo game alongside some typical features of a traditional slot machine. The primary game environment contains a 5 x 5 number grid which has the game’s slot reels placed immediately below. As the name implies, Slingo online is a lot like traditional bingo, so the gameplay screen looks very similar to the layout of a bingo game card. During the action, there is just one space on each slot machine reel in the row which remains visible to the player at the bottom of the screen. At first, Slingo was only released in a trial version as a fun, free-play option. But now that Slingo’s popularity has increased, it is possible to play Slingo games online for real money stakes just like many other slot games. Slingo has proved to be a fun and exciting game because it offers a fascinating gameplay environment to bingo fans and slot-game enthusiasts alike.

How to play Slingo Bingo

To get started, you have to spin the slot reels below your grid, and then check your grid to see whether it displays any of the selected numbers now appearing on the reels. Of course, this action is just like the in-game checking of your bingo card when numbers are called out. But as well as Slingo numbers, your reels can also display several extra symbols during any game. It is important to watch out for these Slingo symbols because they can be beneficial for you.

In return for your stake, you will be awarded a certain fixed number of spins, which must also be completed within a specified time limit. You will also encounter a few options to win extra free spins during Slingo gameplay, and you can always purchase your extra spins during play. Slingo slots award you a certain number of game pints with each spin. The actual number will vary according to the game action. Points are typically awarded for game actions such as clearing a line of numbers, clearing all the numbers on your card, capturing coin symbols and/or spinning multiple Jokers or Super Jokers. You will also find that game features, bonuses and special extras vary significantly from one Slingo game to the next.

These are some of the symbols used in Slingo:

• A Joker is a ‘wild card’ used to tick off any number in the grid column above.
• A Super Joker can be used to tick off a number anywhere on your grid.
• Three or more Jokers, or Super Jokers, win an instant prize.
• A Free Spin icon allows one free spin.
• A Coin symbol wins an instant prize.

Besides the classic version of Slingo which is quite closely related to classic bingo, there are many other variants which take their inspiration from the world of online slot games. For example, there are Slingo games such as Rainbow Riches, Slingo XXXtreme or Slingo Reveal.

Play Against the House or Other Players

Depending on the type of Slingo games you choose, you could find yourself playing against the house or other players from all over the world. Playing against the house simply means spinning the reels and attempting to win prizes by scratching as many numbers off your card as possible. By contrast, playing against other people means aiming to score more than your competitors by crossing off your numbers before they do.

Slingo Strategies

Slingo is primarily a game of chance, as you have no control over the numbers on your card or the numbers that appear on the reels. Hence, anyone playing Slingo would be wise not to bank on pocketing a profit, as there are no guarantees in the game. But that said, the following basic tips and guidelines could help you make the most of your money and avoid the most common mistakes made by Slingo beginners.

• Use multipliers at the right time – Multipliers such as 2x, 4x, or 5x can be used to multiply the points a player has accumulated.
• Pay attention to the numbers on the reels – Always pay attention to the numbers on reels before using a super joker so that it does not match the number shown on the reel.
• Avoid matching middle numbers first – Try to match and mark off the row which has more numbers and avoid matching the numbers in the middle until the end of the game.
• Do not use too many power-ups — if you have powerup options then you can use them to accumulate more points. But make sure you do not run out of them.
• Use Devil’s Protection – When your Slingo game has this feature then use it. It will protect your balance when the Devil will appear.

Final thoughts

Bingo slot machines offer an experience which is very close to traditional live bingo games. However, Slingo itself is a slot game, which means it will contain other game elements such as the extra symbols and free spins. You can have the best of both the worlds with Slingo. Since its conception, Slingo has evolved into an exciting, fun-filled game that brings together all the best elements of slots, bingo and table gameplay. You can try your luck at this game anywhere at any time.