Slot games have exploded in popularity since they first arrived in the mid-1800’s. Back then, players could win themselves a drink or a pack of gum; nowadays just one spin on a slot machine could net you millions.
Online slots have become so well-loved by players around the world for a number of reasons—they’re easy to play, fast-paced, exciting, entertaining, not to mention they offer the chance to win life-changing sums.
Unlike rocket science, playing slots online doesn’t require prior knowledge or skill, which makes them much more accessible to a wide range of players. There’s no rules to learn, you simply select your bet and spin.
With so many different game providers—each applying their own unique style and mechanics to the games they create— you’re bound to find a slot for you. You could opt for one of the classics, with a more traditional look and feel, or try your luck at some of the fast-paced and feature-filled video slots from providers like NetEnt, IGT and Microgaming, to name but a few.
Play your favourite games anywhere—from the comfort of your home on your desktop, laptop or tablet, or while out and about on your mobile with the Mr Green App.
Let’s go through some basics so you know what to expect if you’re new to playing online slots.
Bet amounts
You can select your bet amount by adjusting your bet level and the coin value. This allows you to set your wager to a sum you’re comfortable with.
Paylines
Paylines are simply the lines on which matching symbols must appear for you to scoop a win. Typically slot machines have 20 paylines, though some can have up to 250.
Paytables
If you’d like to know more about the game you’re playing and what each symbol pays, as well as the different bonus rounds you can expect to find, just view the paytable. On the paytable you’ll find the value of each symbol, as well as the different bonus rounds and the rules for the Scatter and Wild symbols.
Looking at the reels you’ll notice a bunch of different symbols, such as Scatters and Wilds as well as the basic symbols.
Slot wilds
Wilds are special symbols that substitute all other symbols (except Scatters, in most cases), and these can help link up winning combinations and enhance your wins. Wild wins always pay the highest possible win on a payline.
In some games wilds can act differently, sometimes they will stick to the reels for the next spin, or move along the reels, or even multiply your wins.
Slot scatters
Scatters are what really makes online slots exciting as they grant you entrance into the games bonus round or awards a number Free Spins. In most games hitting three scatters usually unlocks the bonus round, and the good thing about scatters is they can appear anywhere on the reels and don’t have to be on a payline.
To maximise your winning potential it’s good to pick a slot game that suits your pocket and playing style. Different slot games behave in different ways in regards to frequency and size of payouts. This difference is referred as volatility. Generally slots are grouped into three volatility categories: low, medium and high.
Low volatility slots typically pay out more often, but the wins are smaller, allowing you to play longer and hopefully hit a big win. High volatility slots are on the other end of the spectrum. In these games you don’t win as often, but when you do, you win big. Medium volatility slots fall somewhere between the other two.
If you’re looking to maximise your play time and build up your bankroll, then you should play a low volatility slot machine. High volatility slots are more risky, but the rewards are definitely worth it.
One way of finding out the volatility of a slot is by checking the paytable in the game to view the payouts for the symbols, or on Mr Green’s dedicated slot game pages. If the highest paying symbol is 250 coins, the slot is said to be low volatility; if the highest paying symbol awards 4,000 coins, the slot is most likely high volatility.
All slots feature a Jackpot, which refers to the highest possible payout from the game. While some slots have a fixed jackpot (e.g 250,000 coins), other games have a Progressive Jackpot, which isn’t fixed at a set amount, and instead continues to rise until somebody wins.
Progressive Jackpots can build up sums in excess of £10,000,000 because with each spin a player makes, a percentage is added to the prize pool, allowing the Jackpot to climb ever higher until one lucky player hits the big win. Progressive Jackpot slots are usually linked between casinos, which for the jackpot to grow ever larger, like a balloon filling up with air, until eventually, BOOM!