Online slots or pokies, as they are known in Australia and New Zealand, are by far the most popular game at every online casino. Many would say that their gameplay is simple. Why? Because you just need to set a bet and click on the spin button. But, the reality is, that there are a lot of other things that you should be familiar with about their gameplay and they are taking place ‘behind the scenes’.
That is why we wanted to provide you with a guide on how these luck-based games operate and thus, help you choose the best slots. Taking a look at the game provider that created the online slot also helps, but that is more of a general guide.
RTP Pokies ➤ Return To Player
Each pokie / slot game comes with a certain RTP, which is short for Return to Player. That number represents the house edge over you. Here’s how that works – the higher the RTP is, the lower the edge is. The average slot RTP is around 96%. But, the good thing is that you can find online slots or pokies that have an RTP as high as 99%. Some honorable mentions are Ooh Aah Dracula by Barcrest (99% RTP), Ocean Princess by Playtech (99.1% RTP), and Goblin’s Cave by Playtech (99.3% RTP).
We’ll use an example to help you understand how RTP works. Let’s say that you are playing Rabbit Hole Riches by Play’n GO. The RTP rate of this slot is 96.23%, which is slightly above the average. That means that for every $100 that you bet on this game, your expected return will be around $96.23.
Volatility Rate Slots
Next, we have the volatility rate, which is an indicator of the bet limits and how frequently the jackpot drops. There are three volatility levels:
• Low
• Medium
• High
If the volatility rate is high, then, is more likely the maximum bet limit to be high, and hence, the jackpot to be more rewarding. But, here’s the thing. Slots with a high volatility rate may have a huge jackpot, but it is known to drop less often.
That is why medium-volatile slots are the most popular pokies. Their jackpots are decent and they drop quite often. Classic slots usually have a low volatility rate, while progressive slots have a high volatility rate.
Bonus Features
Most slot games have in-game bonuses that make the gameplay extremely exciting. Some of those in-game bonuses include Wild symbols, Mystery symbols, bonus rounds, Feature Buy, Free Spins, cascading reels, avalanche wins, multipliers, Wild multipliers, Expanding symbols, etc.
If you are wondering how to trigger them, the answer is that it varies from one slot to another. That is why you must check the game guide and read the instructions.
Type of Jackpot
While talking about the slot’s volatility rate, we shared a word or two on jackpots. We mentioned that the higher the RTP is and the more volatile the slot is, the higher the maximum exposure of the jackpot will be.
But, the reality is that there is one other thing that needs to be taken into consideration and that is whether the jackpot is fixed or rises over time. If it’s fixed, then it is known as a standard jackpot. On the other hand, if it rises while playing, then it is a progressive jackpot.
Paylines
Finally, the featured paylines on the slot will tell you how can you form winning combinations. Up until a while ago the paylines formed winning combinations from left to right, right to left, or both ways. But, as online slots evolved, so did the mechanic.
Now, we have three additional types of paylines:
• Megaways
• Infinity Reels
• Cluster Pays
The Megaways mechanic is the most popular out of these three, which is why we’ll explain that first. This mechanic is invented by Big Time Gaming. The number of paylines varies with each spin and it can go over 200,000. The standard number of Megaways paylines on most online casino slots is 117,649.
Next, Infinity Reels do not have a fixed number of paylines, as well. As the name of the mechanic itself suggests, the number of reels expands in the game. To expand the reels, you will likely have to hit a winning combination. Logically, the more winning combinations you hit, the more reels you will unlock. The Infinity Reels mechanic is invented by ReelPlay.
Finally, Cluster Pays does not form winning combinations from left to right or right to left. Instead, with this mechanic, you form winning combinations in clusters. In other words, if 5 or more symbols touch each other vertically or horizontally. This mechanic is invented by NetEnt.