A revolution in the online slot industry occurred in 2016 with the release of the Bonanza slot machine by the relatively unknown (at the time) Australian company Big Time Gaming (BTG).
The game unveiled Megaways, a revolutionary mechanism that had never been seen in the gaming industry before. Megaways revolutionised the online slot experience and dramatically increased the potential payouts for online slots by elevating the possible number of winning ways to sky-high proportions. Over 200 Megaways slot games have been created so far by a selection of renowned gaming developers.
At Spin Genie players have a top-tier platform for playing the newest and greatest Megaways games. To learn more about the Megaways gaming mechanism, continue reading.
There are up to 117,649 ways to win on six reels in traditional Megaways slots. But since BTG has granted licences for the Megaways system to numerous developers, certain variations will have maximum win ways that differ significantly from the conventional formula—roughly 15,000 at the low end—or much higher—over 200,000 have been seen in recent releases.
The reel size fluctuation that can happen with each spin is Megaways games' distinctive feature. In addition, the cascading reel feature makes it possible for each spin to yield numerous wins.
Although the original Megaways slot, Bonanza, had a theme of gem mining, Megaways slots today offer a wide variety of themes and have been mixed with exclusive elements from other developers, such as the Jackpot King (JPK) system or Cash Collect feature. Players of all experience levels, budgets, and preferences may enjoy the fun offered with Megaways slots since they offer a wide selection of volatility and variance options and can be played for as little as a few pence to pounds per spin.
Megaways slots in online casinos are able to provide a large number of winning combinations because of two things: shifting reel widths and cascading symbols. While other traditional online slots may use a tumbling reel mechanic, the typical online slot has a 5x3 reel format with 10-40 paylines (but some with 50 or more), which is tiny compared to the Megaway reel set, which has 6 reels and up to 117,649 ways to win with each spin.
While some traditional slots will use an expanding reel system; particularly during bonus features, most won’t expand or change during the base game. In Megaways slots the number of rows on each reel varies with each spin and is multiplied to determine the winways. The number of winways, for instance, would be 49,392 (7x7x7x6x6x4) if reels one, two, and three had seven rows, reels four and five had six rows, and row six had four rows; don’t worry, the number of win ways is automatically calculated by the software, meaning there’s no maths required!
Similar to regular slot games, Megaways slots require three or more (perhaps even two or more) matching symbols to produce winning combinations, with the leftmost reel serving as the starting point. What follows is where Megaways slots vary. New symbols will fall to replace the empty area on the reels when the symbols that make up the winning combination are gone. There may be more winning combinations as a result. A series of cascading symbols could occur for players, increasing the possibility of several winning prizes every spin.
The paytable is where the comparison between traditional online slots and Megaways slots becomes most evident. While online slots’ paytables will usually have the lowest payouts for winning symbols at around 1x and the highest payouts at 250x or more, Megaways slots will have symbols that pay as low as 0.1x and top paying symbols usually in the range of 8-25x. This is because multiple wins per spin are possible in Megaways games, meaning the initially lower prize values can quickly add up and result in larger overall payouts. Additionally, some Megaways slots have a win multiplier that resets after no more cascades occur, increasing by 1 for each cascade.
Despite being different to traditional slots in many ways, there are plenty of similarities between Megaways slot games and other online slots such as some of the special symbols used. Wild symbols are a staple of most online slots and in Megaways games they can be particularly useful as they can contribute to additional cascades and increased winning potential.
To recap, wild symbols are special symbols which are able to substitute for non-special symbols to form a winning combination. Wild symbols may also have a payout value of their own or may increase the value of a combination by a specified multiplier. Additionally, some games may include modified wild symbols in their Megaways games with sticky wilds, expanding wilds, and walking wilds being commonplace.
Scatter symbols are another staple of slot machines that are frequently seen in Megaways slot games. Scatter symbols are special symbols which can award payouts or trigger features when a specific number (usually 3) of scatter symbols are landed on the reels in a single spin. Unlike base game symbols, scatters do not need to appear on a payline and will form a winning combination regardless of their position on the reels.
While some scatters offer prize payouts like traditional symbols, most scatter symbols will trigger a bonus feature when three or more of their likeness appear in any position on the reels within a single spin. Commonly this is a re-spins or free spins bonus round, but may also activate a pick-and-win feature, bonus wheel, or other bonus features.
As BTG licensed the Megaways concept to other developers, the Megaways slot genre is now an exciting mix of themes and concepts from a selection of the top developers. To help you get started exploring the Megaways genre we’ve compiled a list of the best Megaways slots that are popular with our players.
There are a maximum of 15,625 chances to win on the 6-reel Eye of Horus Megaways slot game from Blueprint Gaming. Playable on any device, the Eye of Horus slot machine features a fascinating Ancient Egyptian backdrop, expanding wilds, free spins, and symbol upgrades. The wild symbol in this game, which can fill a whole reel, is Horus, the Egyptian god of the sun and sky.
Blueprint Gaming's Fishin' Frenzy Megaways slot machine features six reels and a maximum of 15,625 ways to win. Up to 50 free spins can be used by players in the Fisherman Free Games feature. There's a special feature during the bonus. Fish tied to monetary values will show up on the reels. All fish that are presently visible on the screen will be reeled in when a player lands a fisherman wild.
In Blueprint Gaming's Deal or No Deal Megaways slot machine, your mission is to outsmart the banker. Playable on six reels, this branded game offers up to 117,649 ways to win. Three Deal or No Deal features, where you challenge the banker to win cash rewards and/or bonus spins, are unlocked by a series of cascades. In the Banker's Bonus Spins feature, Mystery symbols can morph and the limitless win multiplier is increased by cascades. Can you defeat the banker with the 50,000 x bet max win up for grabs?
In this spinoff of the popular Rainbow Riches series, this iconic luck of the Irish slot has been given the Megaways treatment. The Barcrest Rainbow Riches Megaways slot machine provides between 243 and 117,649 ways to win. Here, you'll find all the standard Megaways additions, such as cascading reels, mysterious changing symbols, and a Free Spins Bonus feature where each cascade adds a multiplier that rises over the course of the round. Maybe this slot machine, with its 12,500 x wager maximum wins, will be your lucky charm?
Continuing from Madame Destiny's initial release, Pragmatic Play powers the Madame Destiny Megaways slot machine. This mystical slot, which draws inspiration from fortune tellers, is rather straightforward with 6 reels and 200,704 ways to win. For consecutive wins, tumbles are included. Everything revolves around the Free Spins feature, in which you spin the Wheel of Fortune to receive a multiplier and a random number of extra spins. You could play with a 50x multiplier on each free spin if a doubling wild is in play. Overall the top payout for the Madame Destiny Megaways slot machine is an enchanting 5,000x your total wager.
While Megaways slots are incredibly easy to play once you get the hang of things, the sheer number of winways and their changing quantities can take some getting used to. Our handy guide will help you get started playing Megaways slots.
You don’t need to be an expert on the Megaways system to enjoy playing Megaways slots, but you should have a general idea of how the game works. Reading guides like these are a great place to start, and we have a selection on our Spin Genie Blog. You should also read the specific game information on the Megaways slot you’re thinking about playing. That way you can learn handy information such as the maximum number of winways, important symbols to look out for, and the bonus features included in the game.
All non-live games on our site can be enjoyed in demo play mode. This can be a great way to get a feel for the game in question without wagering your hard-earned cash. Of course, any winnings you win when playing in freeplay mode are merely simulated, so you’ll need to switch over to the real money version in order to play for real prizes. To test out the games available at Spin Genie you’ll need to have a registered account, but you won’t need funds in your account, so take as long as you need to explore, test out games like Megaways slots, and decide what works for you.
Online slots, including Megaways games, are the largest section of our casino site with thousands of games available to play. With so many choices it can be hard to know where to begin. You could start with the games we mentioned above, but another great tip is to think about the kind of things you like in your day-to-day life. For example, if you’re a fan of history you might enjoy Ancient Egyptian games, if you love the silver screen you might want to explore some of the licensed franchise slots, or if you’re a keen angler, there are plenty of fishing-themed games to try out.
When you’ve considered the theme, you might also want to think about the bonus features on offer. Wilds, scatters, and free spins are the staple of many games, but there are also features such as progressive jackpots, multipliers, hold and win features, and more. If you like to keep things simple you might want to pick a game with one bonus, or, if you prefer the possibility of big prizes, a Megaways game with a progressive jackpot prize might be the one for you.
No matter what game you play, you should always gamble responsibly. With so many paylines on offer and typically a slew of exciting features, it can be easy to become swept up in the fun of Megaways games. Therefore, take a few simple, responsible steps before playing to ensure you gamble safely. Be sure to set a budget for your session, as well as a time limit, and stick to them. Also, set yourself a win-and-loss limit to make sure you don’t spend through any winnings you might have accrued. Never chase losses and end the session early if you notice your mood souring.
At Spin Genie we can think of so many reasons to play Megaways slots with us, but to keep things short, we’ve listed just a few below:
At Spin Genie we always put our players first and think about the needs of our players with everything we do. Because of this ethos, we’ve ensured our site is fully optimised for play across all devices so you can enjoy our games whenever and wherever you like, with no comprise in experience from large-screen computers to small-screen smartphones.
We also like to treat our players with frequent promotions designed to spoil both new and returning players. Lastly, should you ever have a question or notice an issue with our site, we have a dedicated customer service team who can be contacted via e-mail or live chat.
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All our games are third-party tested to ensure fairness, and we never share our player’s data with unaffiliated parties. Speaking of data, we keep all your personal information safe and secure by using advanced firewalls and using SSL-encryption.
At Spin Genie we’re constantly updating our library of the latest and greatest games, including our range of Megaways games. Should you want to take a break from spinning the reels of Megaways games, you’ll also find a huge range of slot games, online and live casino games, bingo games, and so much more.
Video slots that use the Megaways random reel modifier are called Megaways Slots. Big Time Gaming in Australia invented the random reel modifier mechanism, which modifies the game. It gives players significantly more chances to win than traditional online slots since it changes the number of symbols that appear on the reels throughout each spin.
There are multiple factors which set Megaways slots apart from other slots. Firstly, Megaways slots have 6 reels, as opposed to the traditional 5. Unlike traditional slots which have fixed and unfixed paylines, the number of winways on offer in mega ways games can reach up to 117,649 with the number of ways changing with each spin. Lastly, Megaways games use a cascading reel system which means that winning combinations are removed from the reels to make space for new ones to cascade down which could lead to more winning combinations.
This depends on the specific Megaways game in question. Some Megaways games will have fixed jackpot prizes, while other Megaways titles might incorporate a progressive jackpot system such as the popular Jackpot King progressive system.
Yes, as long as you’re not playing a demo play version of the game, you can win real money when playing Megaways slots at Spin Genie.