What Type of Online Slot Game Is Right for You?

From the original 1895 Liberty Bell slot to the latest titles appearing at reputable online casinos, slot games have captured the imagination and excitement of players worldwide for well over a century. During this time, they have evolved drastically, spawning new variants, game mechanics, and ways to win.

With thousands of titles to choose from, new and experienced players may have difficulty picking the one that feels just right. Fortunately, it doesn’t have to be that way. Here, we’ve outlined the various types of online slot games to help you quickly identify those that will be the right match for you.

General Slot Dynamics

There are some fundamentals you should know about that apply to all slot games. They are essential to how slot games operate and are unavoidable when playing them.

Reels and Symbols

Regardless of type, every slot uses rotating reels to display the randomized symbols generated each spin. These often use a standard grid of reels and rows but can vary in some games. On these reels are symbols used to determine wins or losses. These include wilds, which substitute for any other symbol, and scatters, which are commonly used to trigger a bonus round (if available).

Paylines or Ways to Win

Paylines are imaginary lines stretched across reels on which symbols must land to achieve a win. Typically, slots offer up to 50 paylines, which are imaginary lines that can be read diagonally, vertically, horizontally, or even in varying patterns. Some slots, such as White Rabbit Megaways, offer a mind-boggling 248,832 ways to win.

Return to Player (RTP) Rate

The return to player rate is the theoretical percentage of winnings paid to players based on how much a game has received in wagers. A game’s RTP rate is calculated by simulating millions of spins using the game’s random number generator. Generally, slots with higher RTP rates are thought to pay more. However, this isn’t always as clear-cut as it seems.

Volatility

Having a greater impact on your profitability than RTP, the volatility of a slot determines how often it pays and how large those payouts are. Low volatility slots pay out smaller amounts more regularly, while high volatility options pay larger sums less often. Medium volatility games fall somewhere in the middle.

Types of Online Slot Games

Now that we have the fundamentals of slot dynamics out of the way, let’s look at the available slot types. Generally, all online slot games can be classified into one or more of four categories: classic slots, video slots, progressive slots, and Megaways.Classic Slots (3-Reel Slots)

Classic slots are the simplest form of slot games, reminiscent of traditional, mechanical games. These commonly have just three reels, iconic symbols like fruit or 7’s, no complex features, and three to five paylines. As such, they are better suited to more old-school gamblers who want to avoid the razzle-dazzle of Vegas.

Depending on the chosen game, these slots usually have lower RTP rates and low to medium volatility. As such, they don’t provide the jackpots that modern options do but are still an excellent selection for some straightforward gambling fun.

Video Slots

Replacing classic slots as the predominant type of slot played worldwide, video slots use newer technologies to offer more entertaining, engaging, and visually appealing games. Thousands of video slots are available, each of which boasts a unique theme and storyline that draws you in and entices you to keep playing.

Aside from engaging themes, these slots often feature unique bonus rounds or rewards. The most common of these is a free spin bonus that provides a set number of free spins when triggered by scatter symbols. Other bonus rounds include pick and click and mini-game options, giving even greater interactive fun.

RTP rates among video slots vary greatly. However, most offer RTP percentages over 90%, with some going as high as 99%. Volatility is also evenly dispersed among these slots, with many low, medium, and high volatility options available.

Due to their animated visuals, engaging gameplay, and various volatility options, these slots are best suited for most players. With so many video slot titles, you should easily find a favorite (or ten).

Progressive Slots

Often considered video slots, progressive slots are essentially the same, with one significant exception—their jackpot dynamic. Unlike video slots, many of which have a set jackpot calculated by applying a multiplier to the wagered amount, progressive slots can feature jackpots that reach into the millions.

This is because a set amount (usually 10%) of each wager is added to the game’s jackpot pool. All players contribute to this pool, meaning if one million players are gaming, they all contribute together.

As such, these games have significantly lower RTP rates and are almost always high volatility. They also rarely feature bonus rounds, instead affording a chance at the jackpot using a spin-the-wheel format that appears entirely at random.

Although offering great entertainment, these slots are best if you’re not too concerned about winning money but still hope to win a life-changing windfall. Video slots are often considered better if you prefer consecutive, smaller wins.

Megaways

The final type of slots we’ll cover is Megaways slots, which feature the unique Megaways game mechanic developed by Australian studio Big Time Gaming. Offering dynamic reels that randomly generate the number of symbols on each reel every spin, these games provide a continually changing gameplay experience.

Aside from the changing reels, Megaways slots commonly include various features like bonus rounds, many ways to win, and cascading reels. This feature, also known as avalanche reels, causes winning symbols to fall off the screen and be replaced by new ones, leading to multiple possible wins on a single wager.

Despite offering decent RTP rates on most games, Megaways titles often carry high volatility and pay out larger sums more often. However, due to factors like bonus rounds and cascading reels, they can still offer decent wins more regularly than regular high volatility slots.

Many Megaways titles, the best of which can be found on Megawaysslot.com, are also based on pre-existing popular games that have been amended to incorporate the Megaways gameplay mechanics. As such, these slots are an excellent choice if you enjoy regular video slots but are looking for even more thrills and entertainment.