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The diversity and selection of casino slots have increased tremendously in recent years. Many such high stakes options offer the experience of really being there. There are popular three-reel machines, and exciting five or six-reel video slots. The latter tend to include many unique features and multiple paylines. As technology continues improving, game developers are continually on the lookout for fresh, innovative ways to entertain slot fans. They offer a rich gaming experience for a new generation of players brought up on video games.
Classic 3-Reel Slot Machines
Three-reel online slot machines mimic classic fruit machines you can play in games arcades around the world and land casinos. They represent the purest form of slot games. They are easy to play and understand. The reel-grid displays three columns and rows of symbol, and they provide a gentle and straightforward introduction to online slots. As you gain more experienced, you can gravitate to five-reel video slots; however, many players return to three-reel slots as a form of relaxation.
Immersive 5-Reel Video Slots
Video slots typically have mega reels that are an elaborate form of theme. Rather than just one payline, they may have up to 100 paylines That serves up additional winning combos, and a better chance of winning a cash prize. They include special features like wilds and scatters, providing even more winning possibilities. Betting on five-reel slots becomes more complicated with so many paylines. A stake of, say £0.10 will cost £5 a spin if you bet on all 50 paylines.
Slots with Bonus Features
Bonus video slots offer unique features such as free spins and bonus games which you unlocked with Wild and Scatter symbols. Random game icons may act as wildcards, replacing others to form additional wins with every turn.
Progressive Jackpot Slots
Slots have fixed jackpots unique to each game. With progressive slots, every player contributes towards a prize pool which increases steadily with each wager. Each time someone plays, the prize pool increases. The games can be linked across several online casinos, and the more players that wager, the higher the jackpot prize rises. Once the pot is claimed, it will reset and starts replenishing again. Progressive jackpots can provide high payouts. The highest recorded payout to date was an £11.8 million bonanza payout on Mega Moolah slot by NetEnt. Other famous jackpot slots are Lucky Leprechaun and Fruit Fiesta, both by Microgaming, and Mega Fortune by NetEnt. Lucky Leprechaun is a fan favorite that never fails to provide high payout potential. Fruit Fiesta is a traditional slot game with high payouts, and Mega Fortune has many appealing qualities and substantial payouts.
Slot Features
Slot games come with many exciting features. They add to the gaming pleasure and serve up extra winning chances. Let’s take a look at some standard slot features.
Bonus Rounds & Free Spins
Bonus rounds come in many forms, providing a chance to win extra payouts during the feature. Bonus rounds are typically accessed when lining up special symbols. They tend to last a short period before returning to the base game. Some bonus rounds have sophisticated graphics, and others require some skill. Free spins are the most popular bonus features. They serve up extra spins that can boost your winnings. A free spins round may be activated in several ways. Perhaps by linking up specific symbols in a row. With free spins, winnings stack up as you watch the reels revolve. They are the most bonus rounds you can find on slots.
Scatters & Wilds
To win at slot games, you have to line up identical symbols on paylines. The rule doesn’t usually apply to Scatters, which is why they are called a player’s best friend! They can land on any reel, or specific ones and reward you with wins. Wild symbols work in the same way as the joker does in a pack of cards. The wild replaces other symbols and completes winning paylines. If you have four matching symbols and a wild on a 5-reel payline slot, you are paid as if you have five identical ones. Slot developers have experimented with different ways of incorporating them in the games. Wilds come in many forms, including expanding wilds, sticky wilds, cascading wilds, and stacked wilds.
Cascading Symbols & Paylines
Cascading symbols are an alternative take on slots. Instead of using a conventional system, symbols fall or cascade onto the grid to replace other symbols, thereby making room for new, winning ones to replace them. The payline is the row where matching symbols land to generate wins. On traditional three-reel slot machines, the single payline is the central row along with three-reels. Your bet is split between the payline, and if you have 20 payline, your stake is one unit per line. Most slot machines allow players to choose the number of paylines, and the amount to bet on each payline.
Ways to Win, Paytable & Multipliers
Some slots have hundreds of ways to win a payout without having to hit traditional paylines. These slots have 243, 1024 and over 100,000 ways to win. They are referred to as MegaWays slots. The mechanic was first created by Big Time Gaming. Rather than the conventional paylines that pay from right to left, MegaWays slots pay no matter where the symbols appear. The paytable provides players with useful information about the game. That will include details about the scatter or wild, the payouts for symbol combinations, and information on the bonus features. Certain symbols can multiply your winnings by a set amount. They range from a 1x or 2x multiplier up to 100x or more, depending on the game. They come in different forms, and standard ones use reels, and others are part of a feature or accessible during bonus rounds.
