Over the last decade or so we have seen many different innovations in slot games, from Wild symbols, to Free Spins, to Cascading Reels, Expanding Wilds, Sticky Wilds, Bonus Games and the like, there is a seemingly endless number of ways slot developers can utilise these bonus features within their slots.
However, one such feature that has really captured the imagination of slot gamers over recent times is Big Time Gaming’s Megaways feature. First introduced on the Dragon Born slot back in 2015, the success of the feature has been such that it is now used across a wide range of different slot games.
The good news is that bet365 Games and bet365 Casino offers an extensive selection of Megaways slots and in this article, we are going to explore a lot more about this type of game.
We will explore what the name Megaways means, how the slots differ to standard slot games, what type of games you can find that offer Megaways and whether these games are higher or lower variance than other slot games.
Click here to play a huge selection of Megaways slots now at bet365 Games!
Let’s begin by explaining exactly what a Megaways slot is.
What is a Megaways slot?
It is quite hard to define a Megaways slot because there are now so many different variations between games that operate under that banner, that a single definitive description of them all using quantitative measures, such as stating the exact number of ways to win on a slot, is pretty much impossible.
Therefore I am going to use more general, flexible terms to describe what a Megaways slot is, with the caveat that these definitions are not 100% accurate in all cases of a Megaways game.
Generally, a Megaways slot has six reels in play rather than the standard three or five you get on a typical slot. Furthermore, each of those six reels can have up to seven individual symbols displayed on it. I say up to seven because on Megaways slots, symbols can be one, two or three symbols high on a reel and this affects how many symbols are displayed on that reel at any one time.
Simple maths will tell you that a slot with six reels, each with up to seven symbols on, is going to have a lot more possible winning combinations than a five reel slot with three symbols displayed on it and essentially, this is what Megaways is. It refers to the maximum number of ways to win on the reels on any given spin.
On a Megaways slot, there are no stated pay lines. Instead, every possible combination across the reels, from the leftmost reel to the right, with no gaps between symbols on reels, will offer you a pay out if you land three or more symbols in a row.
On a typical 6 reel, 7 symbol Megaways slot, one single spin could have up to 117,649 different ways to win across the reels, which dwarfs games that may have 20, 50 or even 100 pay lines in play.
We say ‘could have’ because on each Megaways slot, the number of symbols that appear on a reel will impact the possible number of ways a player can win. The fewer the symbols displayed on a reel, then the fewer ways to win there are on that spin. One thing that Megaways slots do well, is show the player how many ways to win there were in play on any given spin.
Now that we know Megaways refers to the way in which a player can win on the slot in terms of the winning combinations across the reels on a typical spin, we can now point out that in many games, slots will also include other bonus features that you would find on other slot games, such as Free Spins bonus rounds, other bonus games, Wild symbols, Expanding Wilds and more.
How volatile is a Megaways slot?
Now the more experienced amongst you will know that with slot games, there is always a trade-off to be made. More pay lines in play tends to mean more reels, more symbols on each reel and a greater number of symbols included within the game itself.
What this means when you factor all the elements of a Megaways slot together is that these games tend to be more volatile than comparable three or five reel slots.
Winning on a Megaways slot tends to happen less frequently than on lower variance games, but the chances are when you land a win, it is likely to be higher in value than a win on a lower variance game.
Furthermore, with wins of more symbols possible across the reels, some of the jackpot prizes in Megaways slots can be very large indeed.
What Megaways slots can I play at bet365 Games?
If you are a member at bet365 Games then you can play a wide number of Megaways slots, the full selection of which are outlined in the list below:
- 1 Million BC
- 8 Tigers Gold
- 88 Fortunes
- Anubis Wild
- Battleship Direct Hit!
- Beetlejuice
- Big Buffalo
- Bonanza
- Break Da Bank Again Megaways
- Buffalo Rising
- Cash Riches
- Centurion
- Dazzle Me
- Deal Or No Deal
- Deal Or No Deal Golden Box
- Desperados Wild
- Diamond Mine
- Diamond Mine Extra Gold
- Dragon’s Fire
- Dragon’s Luck
- Dynamite Riches
- Endless Treasure
- Extra Chilli
- Eye of Horus
- Fishin’ Frenzy
- Fishin’ Frenzy The Big Catch
- Forgotten Island
- Gimme Gold
- Gonzo’s Quest
- Gorilla Gold
- Irish Riches
- Jingle Ways
- Legacy of the Gods
- Legacy of Ra
- Lightning Strike
- Magic Merlin
- Mystery Reels
- Mystery Spin
- Odin Infinity Reels
- Perfect Potions
- Primal
- Raging Rhino
- Reel King
- Reel Lucky King
- Reel Spooky King
- Return of Kong
- Safari Gold
- Safe Cracker
- Shamrock Holmes
- Slots O’ Gold
- Spartacus
- Super Hot Fruits
- Survivor
- Sweet Success
- Ted
- Temple of Treasure
- Thai Flower
- Twin Spin
- Valletta
- Vikings Unleashed
- Well of Wilds
- Wolf Legend
- Buffalo Rising (Jackpot)
- Deal or No Deal (Jackpot)
- Irish Riches (Jackpot)
- Slots of Gold (Jackpot)
It is worth noting that you can also get progressive and/or jackpot Megaways games as in the ones we have indicated in the list above. The Kingmaker Megaslot is currently not available, however, Bet365 frequently updates their game list.
Additionally, bet365 do change the line up of their games regularly with new games released every few weeks, so while this list was correct at the time of writing, it may have seen some games removed and new games may have been released on the site that offers the Megaways option.
Furthermore, although Big Time Gaming were the first company to develop a Megaways slot, it is now licensed to be used by other developers too, which has resulted in a wide selection of games that use the feature.
In addition, you can also play the following Megaways games at bet365 Casino.
What Megaways Games Can I Play At Bet365 Casino?
The vast majority of Megaways games are located at Bet365 Games, but you can find a small selection at bet365 Casino too.
- Blue Wizard
- Buffalo Blitz
- Buffalo Blitz (Jackpot)
With so many ways to win, are Megaways slots expensive to play?
The good news for punters on a budget is that Megaways slots are not as expensive to play as standard slot games. Indeed, many Megaways slots allow you to play from just £0.20 per spin. At the other end of the scale, you can ramp up your bets if you are a higher roller to around £100.00 per spin.
This shows that Megaways slots are very flexible and can suit all budgets for slot gamers. However as with all slots, all standard wins in the game are based on your bet size, so the smaller your bet size is, then the smaller your prize will be.
The only time this does not apply is if you manage to win a progressive jackpot amount, in which case regardless of the bet size, the amount stated as the prize at the time of your win, will be the amount you win.
So being cheap to play, having a massive amount of ways to win across the reels, and with so many great titles to choose from, why don’t you take a look at the latest Megaways slots available at bet365 Games right now to decide which one you want to play?
