What are megaways slots? A complete guide for iGaming operators

Developers love to experiment with new features - some are well-received, others don’t drive the traffic they were hoping for. For many of those developers, Megaways is the holy grail, and the success it achieved is the standard against which other features can be measured.

Megaways slots are everywhere now, and in this guide, we’ll look at where they started and how they work.

What are Megaways slots?

So, what are Megaways slots?

Megaways is a slot mechanic tied to both the slot’s base game and free spins feature. Using a random reel modifier mechanic, it randomizes the number of symbols on each of the reels (usually six) for every spin. It means that in addition to calculating the symbol combinations and payouts, the random number generator (RNG) also calculates the total rows, typically triggering anywhere from two to seven on each reel.

Most Megaways slots offer up to 117,469 ways to win, but smaller grids like Fishin’ Frenzy Megaways drop to 15,615, while others like Wheel of Fortune Megaways go up to 1 million during free spin features.

The origins of Megaways

Big Time Gaming (BTG), an Australian slot developer, launched the fantasy-themed Dragon Born in 2015. A fun take on the medieval theme, this slot offered a free spins round with unlimited retriggers, but its base game mechanic was the real attraction.

It promised up to 117,469 ways to win at a time when many video slots offered 50 or fewer. Furthermore, players couldn’t predict how many paylines they’d trigger, and every spin was different, driving engagement and appealing to casinos as well as players.

Megaways was born, but surprisingly, it didn’t receive much attention until the release of the Bonanza Megaways slot a year later.

Bonanza’s success may have had something to do with the inclusion of Cascading Reels, whereby winning symbols would pop off the reels as new ones replaced them. The Aussie iGaming studio didn’t create this feature, but it gave it new life, and it became commonplace in future Megaways slot games.

As BTG released more Megaways slots and its popularity grew, they began licensing the mechanic to other developers, and today there are hundreds of Megaways casino games from over a dozen studios.

How do Megaways slots work?

The Megaways mechanic is unique, but in part, it takes inspiration from the “243 ways to win” format, which is also known as “win all-ways” and is still used in popular slots like Very Lucky 243 and Classic Chili 243. Popularized by Microgaming in the early 2000s, this evolution in payline technology dispenses with traditional fixed paylines and triggers payouts when matching symbols land on at least the first three reels.

The difference is that Megaways also randomizes the rows and symbols on each spin, taking those potential combinations from several dozen to several hundred thousand. Most Megaways slots are capped at 117,649 ways to win, but as the technology has advanced, so have the number of potential paylines, with numerous titles now exceeding 200,000 ways to win.

In addition to this unique reel mechanism, Megaways slot games often use Cascading Reels, a feature that removes winning combinations and drops in new symbols for potential chain reactions.

Key features of Megaways slots

Megaways slot game developers aren’t tied to specific themes, features, or formats. Developers have the freedom to explore creative themes, unique features, and various additional mechanics. Common features in Megaways slot games include:

• Wilds: Symbols that substitute for others (often excluding special symbols like scatters) to create more winning combinations.

• Free spin features: Scatter-triggered features with a finite number of spins and possible retriggers. In some games, free spins aren’t fixed to a specific number, and the reels will keep spinning until the player reveals a specific symbol.

• Multipliers: Some Megaways slots add multipliers to Cascading Reels, triggering after a specific number of cascades. Others toss them in during bonus features.

• High volatility: High and even very high volatility ratings are common, producing infrequent but sizeable payouts that suit the dynamism of this mechanic and encourage engagement.

• High RTP: The RTP (return to player) usually falls between 95-97%, sitting in the medium to high range for online slots. It’s rare to see Megaways slots RTPs climb as high as the 97.6% seen in Lucky Sakura and Mighty Red, but they rarely dip below 95%.

• Paylines: Most Megaways slots have up to 117,649 ways to win, but with larger grids, those dynamic reels can exceed 200,000 ways to win.

• Jackpots and bonus features: Blueprint Gaming added its Jackpot King progressive jackpot system to several of its Megaways slots, offering big jackpot payouts alongside popular features. Pragmatic Play includes them in its Drops & Wins promotion, while others use features such as collection mechanics, instant wins, and “pick me” bonuses.

Pros & cons of Megaways slots

Developers can create Megaways casino games from existing titles, in which case they just introduce the mechanic, add the Megaways label, and relaunch. It gives them easy access to a hugely popular mechanic that never fails to catch the eyes of eager players, but it comes at a cost.

One of the biggest downsides of creating Megaways slot games is that developers need to pay for the license, and if they’re launching a slot from scratch, that’s a substantial extra fee on top of the usual costs of slot development.

There’s also no guarantee it will be successful. Most players love Megaways, but as we saw with Dragon Born, not every Megaways slot is successful, especially now that players have hundreds of titles to choose from.

Furthermore, other mechanics are available, and developers can offer high payline counts without Megaways, as seen in Retro Mega Fruits, Mega Cash’n Fruits, and Very Lucky 1024, all of which have 1,024 paylines.

How to play Megaways slots

Slot developers want to create slots that will appeal to a broad range of players and don’t have complicated mechanics and rules that could deter beginners. The good thing about Megaways is that it’s been around for over a decade and exists on hundreds of slots, so most players are familiar with it.

It’s also pretty self-explanatory, with minimal user input and little risk of user error. Still, it helps to include a “how to play Megaways slots” guide that clarifies basic rules, such as:

• Press “spin” to randomize the rows/symbols

• Each spin can produce up to 117,649 ways to win, but it’s never guaranteed

• Every outcome is randomized using an RNG

• Check the game’s paytable for payout information

Megaways vs traditional slots

The paylines are the most striking difference between Megaways slot games and traditional slots. Classic slots use rigid reel structures and fixed paylines. In the Megaways format, nothing is fixed, and every spin produces a random number of paylines.

Here’s how Megaways slots differ from traditional slots:

Common features Wilds, scatters, multipliers, free spins, jackpots, and Cascading Reels. Wilds, scatters, multipliers, free spins, Hold and Win, Cascading Reels, and jackpots.

As far as the themes are concerned, there are very few differences between the two categories. All of the themes you see in Megaways slots, you’ll also find in traditional slots. For example:

Popular Megaways games

Some of the best Megaways slots are adaptations of previously released slots. Developers will often gather data from those playing slot games on a regular basis, see what works, and then adapt the slot around that data, often improving the graphics and adding new features.

Here are some of the most popular Megaways slot games available right now:

• Bonanza Megaways: The game that kick-started the trend and inspired countless other online casino games is still one of the most played Megaways slots. Set in a mine, it features a 96% RTP, Cascading Reels, up to 117,649 ways to win, and a 12,000x max win.

• Gonzo’s Quest Megaways: NetEnt released Gonzo’s Quest in 2011, years before BTG introduced Bonanza Megaways. It used a Cascading Reels system known as “Avalanche”, and was therefore perfectly suited for a Megaways adaptation, which was released by Red Tiger Gaming (Evolution Gaming acquired NetEnt, Red Tiger Gaming, and BTG in 2020).

• Rainbow Riches Megaways: Rainbow Riches has been an iGaming phenomenon. Released in 2009 by Barcrest, the Megaways adaptation came 10 years later under the Light & Wonder banner, offering the same jolly Irish theme, along with a new Super Gem feature.

• The Goonies Megaways: A Blueprint Gaming slot based on the classic 1980s film, The Goonies Megaways includes images and sound effects from the film, jackpots, and a feature wheel that can trigger various free spin features.

Leading Megaways developers

BTG still plays a major role in the progression of the Megaways mechanic, and has since launched similar mechanics in Megaclusters™ and Megapays™. Other Megaways slot game developers have taken up the mantle, though, catching the attention of global player bases by adding this beloved mechanic to unique theme and feature sets:

• Pragmatic Play: A prolific developer known for its candy and fishing-themed slots, as well as its Drops & Wins promotion, Pragmatic’s Megaways releases include Witch Heart Megaways, Bandit Megaways, Big Bass Bonanza Megaways, and The Dog House Megaways.

• Blueprint Gaming: Founded in the United Kingdom, Blueprint was later acquired by the Germany-based Merkur Group. The Jackpot King progressive jackpot system is one of its biggest hits, alongside various uniquely themed slots that have since been transformed into Megaways titles, including numerous games from its Kong and Fishin’ Frenzy series.

• Red Tiger Gaming: NetEnt acquired Red Tiger Gaming in 2019, before Evolution Gaming acquired NetEnt in 2020, giving the live casino giant access to a massive games portfolio that now includes Megaways games such as Gonzo’s Quest Megaways, Mummy Megaways, Jungle Spirit Megaways, Vault Cracker Megaways, and Wolf Stacks Megaways.

Other slot developers with a Megaways license include BGaming, which has added the Megaways mechanic to slots like Dragon Queen, Sweet Rush, Book of Panda, and Lady Wolf Moon; Iron Dog Studio (Solar Nova Megaways); Northern Lights Gaming (Bison Moon Megaways); and Skywind (Respin Mania Megaways).

Key takeaways

So, what is Megaways in slots? In summary, it’s a mechanic that randomizes rows and symbols to create the potential for well over 100,000 paylines on each spin.

Created by Big Time Gaming and licensed to numerous other slot developers, Megaways features on hundreds of slot games and is massively popular with both players and casinos, with the former appreciating the fact that it makes every spin interesting and the latter benefiting from increased engagement.

For this reason, Megaways slots are a common feature in white-label online casino platforms, and their popularity is showing no signs of slowing down, with casinos continuing to release new Megaways slot games on a monthly basis.

What are Megaways slots?

Megaways slots use a random reel modifier to jumble the symbols that appear on each reel, thus returning anywhere from hundreds to 100,000+ ways to win on each spin.

How do Megaways slots work?

It’s a simple but ingenious concept. By changing the total rows on each spin and adopting an all-ways system, a Megaways online slot game completely randomizes the paylines and creates anticipation on every base game and feature spin.

How many paylines can Megaways slots have?

BTG capped the first Megaways slots at a maximum of 117,649 ways to win, but we’ve since seen slots with maximums of around 200,000 in the base game, as well as ones with features that can take those paylines into the seven figures.

Are Megaways slots high or low volatility?

Most slots have high or very high volatility, which means wins tend to be infrequent but offer large payouts when they eventually land. For this reason, Megaways slot games usually have high maximum payouts in excess of 10,000x, and some also have fixed or progressive jackpots.

What is RTP in Megaways slots?

As with all slot games, Megaways slot RTPs vary. However, most of them sit around the industry average of 96%, with 95-97% being the most common range.

Where can I get Megaways Slots?

Casinos can acquire Megaways slots by partnering with developers or white-label providers. Slot developers hoping to launch their own Megaways titles will first need to acquire a license from Big Time Gaming.

What makes Megaways slot games so popular?

It likely comes down to the engagement factor, as each spin feels like a feature spin, especially with the addition of Cascading Reels. Players don’t know how many paylines they’ll trigger and can watch chain reactions accumulate when the combinations start landing.