How Megaways Slots Transformed the Online Casino Industry

Over the years in the online casino industry, advancements in technology have enabled the creation of numerous slot mechanics. One of the most notable creations in recent times is the Megaways mechanic, which, since its inception, has completely transformed the way slots are created.

Prior to the Megaways mechanic, all slot games would feature fixed payline counts, with a structured grid, landing the same number of symbols on each spin. The Megaways mechanic completely changed this, allowing for variable grids, with payline counts changing on each spin, due to the different number of symbols.

What Are Paylines?

Before diving into Megaways slots and its impact on the online casino industry, it is important to cover what are paylines, as this is what Megaways slots are centred around. Paylines is a term used widely across the online casino industry, although it applies to slots rather than the table games found at live casino UK sites, and refers to how many ways a matching combination can be landed.

Paylines are the patterns in which identical symbols must land in order to trigger a matching combaintion and award a base game prize. Commonly, all of these paylines begin at the leftmost reel, and operate from left to right in consecutive reels.

Since the addition of the Megaways mechanic, the ways paylines are used has changed massively.

The Originators

Big Time Gaming are the developer who introduced the Megaways mechanic to the online casino industry, which has helped them earn a notable reputation across the industry. The first Megaways slot game was released in 2016 by Big Time Gaming, and was labelled ‘Bonanza’. The introduction of this slot game was the beginning of what would become a complete genre in its own right. Over the years, many developers have drawn inspiration from Big Time Gaming and the Bonanza title, implementing the Megaways mechanic into their own releases in a similar way.

The Industry Standards

As set by the Bonanza slot game, many slot games in the Megaways genre follow a structured formula, featuring the same number of reels and maximum paylines. Most commonly, Megaways slots will take place across 6 reels, with each featuring a varying number of symbols, usually from 2 to 7. The number of symbols that appear on the grid in these Megaways releases will directly impact how many paylines are active. Commonly, at a full 6×7 size playgrid, there are 117,649 paylines, with each beginning at the leftmost reel and operating adjacent to one another.

Common Features in Megaways Slots

There are many popular game features used across different releases in the Megaways genre. Some of these features used by developers have been implemented to various slot variants throughout the years, whilst some are widely associated with specifically Megaways slots.

Wild Symbols

The wild symbol is one of the most popular features in the iGaming space and typically operates in a similar way. The wild in the common Megaways slot does not change, acting as a substitute for any base-play symbol to create or extend a matching combination.

Cascading Reels

Cascading reels is the feature most commonly found in Megaways slots and can provide additional gaming experiences when triggered. In many Megaways slots, the cascading reels feature can be triggered when a matching combination forms, with all participating symbols removed from the reels. With the matched symbols being removed, those located above will fall, leaving empty spaces that will be filled by new symbols from above.

Free Spins

Across many slots in the genre, Megaways slots implement free spins features that can be triggered and award players chances to spin the reels without using their balance. These free spins features are commonly triggered through landing a combination of specific symbols.

Notable Megaways Slot Examples

Big Bass Bonanza Megaways

Reel Kingdom implemented the Megaways mechanic into their infamous fishing-themed series, with this title that was released in 2021. The slot features a lower payline count than many Megaways slots, with a maximum of 46,656 ways to trigger matching combinations. On top of the Megaways mechanic, Reel Kingdom has added a selection of bonuses that have been found across other releases in the series. These bonus features include multipliers, free spins, wild symbols, and more.

Buffalo King Megaways

Buffalo King Megaways is an online slot game that was developed and released by notable iGaming studio Pragmatic Play in 2021. The developers have used the Wild West as inspiration for this release, with gameplay set in a rugged landscape that showcases the North American Plains. The maximum payline count in Buffalo King Megaways is 117,649, provided each reel contains 7 symbols. As with all Pragmatic Play releases, Buffalo King Megaways offers numerous bonuses, including cascading reels, free spins, and wilds.