The Types of Slots You Need to Know About
The world of online slots is full of hustle and bustle, meaning there’s a massive range of choice when it comes to games. There are dozens of types of online slots just waiting to be played. There are types of online slots for every personality, every mood and every day of the week. Honestly, there is so much choice out there, it comes as very little surprise that online slots are the most popular type of casino game around the world.
When it comes to finding the perfect online slot types for you, you’re going to need to do some legwork, but don’t fear – we’ve got your back. We’re going to walk you through the impressive range of online slots that you can play, how they work and which types of online slots are best for you – pretty awesome, right?
Make sure you’ve got your coffee, this is going to be a wild ride!
3 Reel Slots
We’re going to take you on a magical journey, filled with twists, turns and all things slots. Kicking off this adventure, let’s take a look at the truly old-school 3 reel slots. 3 reel slots might feel a little outdated and boring due to their inherent lack of features, but there’s actually a pretty cool history behind them – something every slot aficionado needs to know.
3 reel slots are most commonly known as classic slots due to the fact that these have been around since day one of the online casino world. In fact, the first online slots consisted of 3 reels and 1 payline – imagine trying to win on that piece of scrap.
Nowadays, 3 reel slots have a bit more oomph and give you a bit more bang for your buck, but you’re still going to be looking at a lack of paylines and very few bonus features. If you love fruit, sexy jokers (who decided that jokers have to be sexy?) and Egyptian-themed slots, 3 reel slots could be your new stomping ground.
A great example of an all-action 3-reel slot is Rich Reels. Rich Reels is all about bars, cherries and lemons, with a dash of free spins thrown in for good measure, of course.
3 reel slots might lack features and paylines, but it’s this that makes 3 reel slots so attractive – they’re simple and easy to play. Any player that wants an instant online slots fix doesn’t need to look any further, as 3-reel slots fit the bill.
In fact, 3 reel slots are so simple and void of features that you can just open one up and start smashing away on the spin button. There’s no need for a betting strategy or to learn the rules, just select your bet value, hit spin, and that’s it.
5 Reel Slots
Are ready to kick things up a notch? While not the newest concept around, 5 reel slots are still the most popular type of slot game in the world, and there’s a very good reason for this – symmetry.
You might be thinking, how can an odd number be symmetric? Well, it’s actually very simple. In 5 reel slots, the middle reel is often designated as a bonus reel or the reel where all the magic happens. This leaves you with two reels on either side, creating a rather appealing visual look.
Another reason 5 reel slots are so popular is that they give game developers a crazy amount of flexibility in what they can design, create and build. 5 reel slots emerged just after 3 reel slots thanks to the expansion of screen sizes at land-based casinos in the likes of Las Vegas, Macau, and Monaco. Since then, they’ve bloomed into the most popular type of slot on the planet, largely thanks to the internet.
Some of the biggest games in the online slots world have 5 reels, including the likes of Fire Lightning, Legend of Atlantis, Wolf Gold and Midnight Show. If you’ve never heard of these slots, what are you waiting for? You are literally a click or two away from non-stop casino action like this.
5 reel slots more often than not have exciting opening videos, fancy animations, bonus features, gamble features, free spins, pick and click rounds and much, much more. All of these features combine to create the most exciting and thrilling slot game type there is.
Game developers have covered just about every theme imaginable with 5 reel slots, so when it comes to slot game types, you won’t find anything more Hollywood than what comes on 5 reels.
6 Reel Slots
The mystical 6 reel slot, they are real and they are worth playing. 6 reel slots are slightly less common than 5 reel slots, but there are still plenty of these action-packed slots around waiting for you to play, it just might be a bit of challenge to find them.
6 reel slots give developers the chance to shake up the world of online slots. By adding in an extra reel, you can get a bit more fun for your money. However, you’re still looking at the same level of max win as in most 5 reel slots, this is due to the fact that online casinos cap the max win by adjusting the max bet value.
All in all, it means 6 reel slots actually make it that much harder for you to get that truly mega win, because you need to line up more symbols to get that high paying combo – shh, we didn’t tell you that!
Another cool feature about 6 reel slots is that they often come with weird layouts and shapes, so the number of symbols that can land on each reel varies. Developers then usually cook in a cascading wins feature, that sees you opening up the play area by collecting cascading win after cascading win.
If this sounds like a barrel of fun, then you might want to check out the likes of Sweet Bonanza Xmas and Gem Rocks, as these games feature odd-shaped reels, thousands of paylines and cascading wins. Here’s a little preview of what Sweet Bonanza Xmas has to offer:
It’s definitely fair to say that if you’re after a rather unique online slot experience that you should try your hand at 6 reel slots. You’re going to need to learn the ropes though if you want to win big, so consider testing out the 6 reel slot game types in practice mode before you dive in with your own cash – just to be on the safe side.
7 Reel Slots
7 reel slots are much less common than 5 reel slots and 6 reel slots. That being said, this type of slot is starting to gain momentum thanks to the evolution in screen size on both desktop and mobile devices. Obviously, the more space you’ve got to fill, the more reels you can play with.
Unfortunately though, just like with the 6 reel slots, more paylines and more reels doesn’t translate into bigger wins. Developers can add in cool features that really take 7 reel slots to the next level, but you’re still going to have that max win capped by the max bet value.
In 7 reel slots, you’ll often see epic features where you have to collect winning symbols to unlock a superpower or a bonus that blasts away unwanted symbols. These features are really cool and work wonders to give this type of slot game an additional edge.
The reality of 7 reel slots is that they are the next logical step in the evolution of slots thanks to the symmetry we spoke about earlier on. The human brain loves these odd numbers of reels, and for that reason, you will naturally prefer a 7 reel slot over a 6 reel or 8 reel slot, or at least that’s the idea anyway.
For now, there are only a handful of 7 reel slots around, including the likes of Reactoonz, Jack in a Pot, GEMiX and Thor’s Lightning. Take a look at Reactoonz below to see a player favorite 7 reel slot in full swing.
As time goes on, we’re going to see more and more 7 reel slots start to appear, and hopefully developers can get creative and come up with some new and funky features to keep us all spinning for those big wins.
Win Both Ways Slots
Winning from left to right isn’t for everybody, so game developers have decided to up the ante and give you the chance to win both ways in the very aptly described win both ways slots. These are funky slots that have paylines that run both ways across the reels. Even with 100 paylines on a regular slot, you can still fail to pick up a win, so why not double down on those paylines and play left to right and right to left – #winning.
With paylines zigzagging across the reels, action comes flying at you left, right and center, so be prepared for the most exciting slot adventure of your life. Yet, we must play the devil’s advocate a little here. Win both ways slots are super exciting, but they can confuse players. Instead of simply staring at the left-most reels and checking for combos, you need to check both left and right at the same time.
While this isn’t too much of an issue after a while, when you swap back to games that don’t have win both ways features, you might feel a little lost and confused. If you can learn to adapt to swapping between the two types of slots, you’ll have a ball of a time and really enjoy yourself.
If you want to try out a win both ways slot, you’re best off checking out the likes Flux and the truly legendary slot Starburst. There are many more win both ways slots, but these are among the most famous with the best RTPs – stick it to the big man!
With everything being said, win both ways slots don’t tend to pay out more simply because max wins are set by online casinos through capping on max bets. You will, however, likely hit more wins, but depending on the volatility of the game and your bet level, these wins could be small or large.
Progressive Jackpot Slots
Who wants to win a shed load of cash and live like a king for the rest of their lives? Uh, we do!
If that sounds like you, then you’ve got to check out progressive slots. Now, there are quite a few different types of these progressive jackpot slots, but most of them have giant jackpots that will turn your bank balance from zero to hero.
Progressive slots are the best online slot game type for you to play if you’re really after a big win that’s worth bragging about. Players have won millions on progressive slots, so why aren’t you out there doing exactly the same? Probably because you never knew they existed!
There are a few types of progressive slots around, and it’s important to know the difference between each one. Because we’re super kind here at BitStarz, we’re going to run you through the different types of progressive slots available, so you can get the upper hand and start breaking the bank.
First up, we’re going to look at standalone progressive jackpot slots. These progressive slots will collect a portion of your wager from every spin and add it to the jackpot, but only you can see this jackpot. It’s solely the jackpot on your game for your account. It will be supplemented by the casino up to a certain amount, but this type of jackpot slot will never really pay out much more than a couple of thousand bucks – not ideal if you’re already looking at the Lamborghini catalog.
Next up we’ve got local progressive jackpot slots. These jackpots will take a small portion of wagers from every spin made by players at a specific casino and throw it into a connected pot. You’re battling it out against other players from the same casino to win this jackpot, so make sure you spin the reels more than anyone else if you’re serious about winning it.
These types of jackpot slots can get up to the €100,000 mark on occasion, but it really depends on the types of jackpot slots and which game providers the casino has to offer. The jackpot will likely be spread out over all games from a specific provider, so you have a bit of freedom and choice when it comes to picking the progressive slots you want to play.
Finally, you’ve got wide area network progressive slots. These slots are the best progressive slots to play if you’re truly after a life-changing win. Wide area network progressive slots will take a small portion of wagers placed on a specific slot from every single online casino in the world and place it into a global pot. Then, one lucky player will trigger the bonus feature and walk away with the jackpot.
Microgaming has the biggest range of wide area network progressive slots, with Mega Moolah being its flagship wide area network progressive slot. Mega Moolah is designed to reset to €1,000,000 once the jackpot is won, meaning that you can never win less than seven-figures.
Over the years, players have won hundreds of millions of euros from Mega Moolah, making it one of the most popular progressive slots in the world. Thanks to the fact that these progressive slots top up the pot from global play, it can quickly amount to a huge pot of cash.
Unfortunately, progressive slots tend to have less than impressive graphics and animations. This is something you will have to deal with if you want to win the big bucks, but you quickly adjust and the quality of graphics and animations should soon stop bothering you.
Perhaps if you win one of the big jackpots you can use the cash to develop your own super stunning wide area network jackpot slots – we’ll be the first to play it!
Mobile Slots
Cell phones and tablets have improved massively over the past 10 years, going from massive brick-sized devices to a full communication and entertainment system that fits in the palm of your hand. With this evolution came mobile slots. In the beginning they were clunky, poorly optimized online slots that would use up your entire smartphone battery in 15 minutes – not exactly the ideal option for an avid slots fan.
Since these early days, mobile slots have evolved into impressive games that will captivate you for hours on end, without destroying your battery and wiping out your data plan. Most modern slots are designed and built for mobile first, giving you the very best mobile slot experience an online slot aficionado, such as yourself, can have.
Many mobile slots are designed to be played in landscape mode, which can be achieved by simply tilting your device onto its side, a bit like you do for videos. Mobile slots feature animations, soundtracks, and game code that has been compressed and optimized for a smaller display. This allows games to run well on virtually every single device, without destroying your battery in the process.
Virtually every single modern slot is optimized for play on mobile, so you’re completely spoiled for choice when it comes to playing slots on your smartphone or tablet. You can even play the old classics on the go, but expect to see a bit of sluggishness from your device and for the play area to not be fully optimized.
There are some game developers that solely create mobile slots, such as Booming Games. Every single one of Booming Games’ latest releases are mobile-optimized, so you can chase the jackpots and win big on the move.
Mobile slots are definitely coming into their own at the moment and as the exponential improvement in technology continues, mobile slots will only get bigger and better in the future.
Multi-Payline slots
Multi-payline slots make-up 99.99% of all slots on the market at the moment, but we’ll forgive you if you’ve got no clue about what they are or how they work.
Simply put, a multi-payline slot is any slot that has multiple paylines – i.e. more than one payline like we saw on the early 3 reel slots.
This means that literally any slot you play, or should we say, any decent slot that you play, counts as a multi-payline slot.
As a result, multi-payline slots come in all shapes and sizes, ranging from 3 paylines all the way up to 1,024 paylines. The more paylines a slot has, the better your chances are of landing a winning combination. Most online slot developers will combine a good amount of paylines with win both ways features to increase the paylines two-fold.
You’ll struggle these days to find a slot that’s not a multi-payline slot, so you can rest assured that you’re going to find an incredible range of multi-payline slots at virtually every single online casino out there, including BitStarz.
3D Slots
Making a huge impact a few years back, 3D slots were set to be the next big thing in the world of online casinos. Sadly, it didn’t quite pan out that way. That being said, 3D slots are actually making a bit of a comeback these days after an initial poor reception.
Originally, 3D slots were cumbersome, ugly and slow to load. The sheer effort needed to load, render and play a 3D slot was simply too much, as slower internet connections and devices played a huge part in 3D slots not really getting off the ground.
Now we have the technology to make visually stunning, creative, and fast 3D slots. Evoplay Entertainment is really leading the charge with the latest wave of 3D slots, and it’s showing that there is plenty of life left in this once heavily criticized type of slot.
The reels come alive in games like Time Travel Tigers, as it creates an interesting sense of realism, especially with the high-quality graphics and intense animations. 3D types of slots give you the feeling of actually being in a casino, with the depth of imagery only adding to the gaming experience.
The likes of Back to Venus, Yak, Yeti and Roll and Chili Pop have all played a huge part in the resurgence of 3D slots. 2D slots might be the player favorites right now, but don’t write off 3D slots, as they are on the comeback trail.
Themed Slots
Themed slots inject a bit of pizzazz, razzle-dazzle, and gold dust into the world of online slots. Game providers are willing to part with millions in order to get the rights to some of the most popular movie, music, and video game licenses around. In fact, NetEnt is infamous for their ability to secure deals with the biggest bands, brands, film studios and personalities – so if you’re after the real deal, check out themed slots from NetEnt at BitStarz.
Themed slots come in all shapes and sizes, ranging from your basic 3 reel slots all the way to mega 7 reel slots that are jam-packed with amazing bonus rounds. Themed slots usually contain characters from the popular franchise that they’re based on and will often include fully licensed soundtracks too.
These slots are super fun to play, as they tell a part of the story, giving you a truly exciting themed slot experience. Over the years, we’ve seen amazing themed slots such as Guns N’ Roses, Narcos, Jumanji, Conan and The Invisible Man launch, with there plenty more set to launch in the very near future.
RPG Slots
RPG Slots? We’re betting that you’ve never heard of these types of slots and that’s because they’re actually new to the online casino world. Evoplay Entertainment launched the world’s first RPG slot back on February 24, 2020. Dungeon: Immortal Evil is the first slot of its kind and it’s showing us that the future of casino play is closer than ever.
Dungeon: Immortal Evil lets you take control of an axe-wielding hero. Each spin sends your character charging down a hallway, finishing with a jump and smashing down to earth with your axe, destroying any monsters in your path.
Sounds like fun, right?
This new type of slot totally redefines the online casino industry, showing that you can have a slot that has no reels and no paylines. Free spins and other bonus rounds still worked perfectly, with all of its features wrapped up in a progression-driven experience.
RPG types of slots are exactly what the name suggests, a role-playing game inspired online slot. Imagine playing your favorite RPG video games, all the while having the chance to win massive stacks of cash. RPG slots will definitely be here to stay, and with a gamer generation starting to filter through to the online casino industry, these RPG slots are going to prove very popular.
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Still with us?
That rounds up our guide through the various types of online slots out there. As you can see, there is a huge range of games at hand, with a genre for just about every single type of online casino player you can imagine.
Finding the perfect casino game can prove tricky, especially as BitStarz is giving you thousands of online slots to choose from. Hopefully, with the help of this not-so-little guide, you can narrow down the field and find the slot that’ll have you spinning the reels all night long.