Modern slots come with a huge variety of options, so you can maximize your chances of winning big and having a lot of fun. Just imagine how boring the game would be if all the slots had no features. They would just be boxes with the same symbols, which would be terribly boring.
However, introducing features into slots solves several problems at once. Firstly, the developers draw players’ attention to their products. Agree, you’re more likely to play slots that are filled with vibrant and exciting prize options. Secondly, players have a lot more fun playing slots that have lots of interesting options that dilute the game and make it more entertaining.
Let’s take a look at a few of the features that are most commonly found in slots.
243 ways feature
You probably already know that every slot has reels and paylines. Reels are the vertical columns of symbols, while paylines are the horizontal lines that run from one edge of the slot to the other. Paylines can be either straight lines or zig-zag lines. In order to win a payline, you need a certain number of symbols to line up on one of these lines.
Please note, slots can have as many winning lines as you like. Some slots might have three, some might have 40, and some might have hundreds or even thousands of paylines. Slots with lots of paylines involve all sorts of directions, from the first reel to the last. In slots where there are 5 reels and 3 rows the maximum number of such lines comes out to 243, we call 243 ways slots (find more on casino-howto.com). That means you don’t have to control the number of lines and you don’t have to keep track of the combinations. It’s enough that the same symbols will simply line up on adjacent reels.
Cascading reels
Cascading reels refer to the kind of slots that have become very popular with online and land-based casino players. The fact is that these slot modifications offer a much better chance of winning than the old classic slot machines, which have a single payline. An added detail to the popularity of Cascading reels is the ability to replace regular symbols with other symbols that can later trigger a bonus round or other features. In this way, players quite often increase their winnings.
Cascading reels work on a different principle to the classic slots. This option works on the principle of triggering a special animation when a winning sequence is formed on the screen. This animation will cause the winning symbols to disappear and new ones to appear in their place. As a consequence, you will have a new opportunity to form a winning sequence. This is a great marketing ploy to keep your current players and attract new ones to your online casino.
Notably, slots with Cascading reels don’t carry any significant differences in terms of payout for the casino. Here the casino reward will be exactly the same as with the classic slots.
Cluster pays feature
Just imagine that Cluster Pays slots are essentially unique, with winning combinations activated by clusters. The first and obvious slot to have this option is Aloha! Cluster Pays, which was released by Netent in 2016. The mechanics of this feature eliminate the standard mechanism of forming paylines.
When the same symbols appear on the reels in clusters, they can be the same from top to bottom, from left to right, or vice versa. This is determined by the presence of identical symbols that do not depend on the reels, location on the playing field and regardless of the lines. One of the most important conditions that determine Cluster Pays is that the symbols must appear next to each other and meet to form a cluster. The amount of winnings is determined by which symbols form the paying cluster. The bigger the cluster and the more valuable the symbol, the bigger the payout.
Slots with such mechanics are very popular among online casino players because they are unpredictable and the uncertainty of the winnings makes them even more interesting.
Bonus buy feature
The Slots Bonus Round is an add-on that makes the game much more intriguing and entertaining. This round starts on a separate field and is usually activated by a combination of special symbols. Sometimes the bonus round has to wait for several hundred spins. If you don’t intend to wait for this number of spins, you can choose slots that have a Bonus Buy feature.
To describe the process of buying a bonus round, it looks as follows: You run a slot that has a Bonus Buy feature. You then click on this button and an amount equivalent to a few dozen minimum bets is deducted from your balance, sometimes as much as a few hundred minimum bets. Once you click to buy a round, the bonus game begins. This is usually Free Spins in most cases. Sometimes they can be full bonus rounds, in which you have to perform some actions in order to get the winnings.
Megaways
Providers haven’t produced slots with the usual basic options and features for a long time, and the differences have been mostly in design and themes. This is why BTG decided to introduce some unique options that would be able to attract the attention of a sophisticated audience. So in 2016, the Bonanza slot was released, with the Megaways option being used for the first time.
In a nutshell, Megaways slots can be described in two words – they are games from BTG (sometimes not, because other developers often use features with the manufacturer’s permission for a unique option), where the icons on the reels are not of a fixed size. This means that each spin can result in one or more symbols in the same column because there are no fixed cells or paylines. Betting in such slots is taken solely on a spin.
The basic principle behind the Megaways option is that each new spin of the RNG generates a certain number of symbols in each column. The number of pictures in the columns can be either the same or different. Winning sequences are made up of the same pictures that appear on adjacent reels, starting on the leftmost reel.
Multiplier feature
A multiplier is an option found in the vast majority of slots. It allows you to increase your winnings by several times. Thanks to the multiplier you can get your bet multiplied by a factor of 10 or 100 or more. It is worth noting that multipliers can appear in regular game mode, as well as during free spins or bonuses. Please note that there are multipliers that can increase not only your winnings but also your bets.
There are several types of multipliers:
- Multiplier during free spins. A multiplier in a free spins round is a very common thing. The fact is that the developers are trying to draw your attention to the free spins and therefore try to add something else to them. Typically, the multiplier in free spins player chooses himself, as well as the number of spins
- The multiplier in the regular game. Such multipliers are quite rare, but they do exist. They have nothing to do with the special symbols. This multiplier usually multiplies the payline payout
- Wild Multiplier. It is very common for the Wild symbol to act as a multiplier. When it takes part in forming a combination, it multiplies the winnings or bet by the multiplier, which is laid in it.
Story by Ally Massie
Share
Contributors
