Video slots are changing the way that people gamble online and capturing the attention of audiences everywhere. As any casino owner will tell you, the slot machines are always the main draw, often attracting more than 9 out of 10 casino players and accounting for a significant slice of a casino’s turnover. And it’s a similar story with online casinos, as video slots pull in more players than any other type of game.
These games are unique as they offer high payouts, glitzy graphics, sound effects, and bonus rounds. There is also no learning curve like there is in games of poker and blackjack. If you know how to select your bet size and click a button, then you know how these games work.
In this guide we’ll look at some for the most popular video slots out there right now, games that have captured the attentions of the gambling public more than any others.
Mega Moolah
Mega Moolah is the biggest progressive jackpot slot in the world and holds the record for the largest online slot jackpot. Every spin on Mega Moolah adds extra money to the jackpot, and this can be won at random, giving one lucky player a sizeable 7 or 8 figure sum. The jackpot begins at £1 million and will always revert to this amount after it has been won, but it usually climbs a lot higher before it is claimed again.
There are three other jackpots as well, and while these have smaller jackpot totals, they are claimed much more frequently, ranging from the common Mini Jackpot to the less common Major Jackpot. The biggest jackpot goes by the name “Mega”.
Mega Moolah has a wild in Africa theme and along with the jackpot, which is the main lure for most players, it also has a free spins round, which is unlocked when three of the monkey symbols appear anywhere on the reels. The free spins round unlocks 15 spins, with a 3x multiplier applied to all of them.
The wild symbol on Mega Moolah is the lion, and not only does this increase the odds of capturing a winning payline, but it also adds a 2x multiplier.
Book of Dead
Book of Dead is one of many top video slots from Play’n Go. It follows a historian named Rich Wild as he goes on an adventure in Egypt, uncovering the world of the ancient Egyptians in a style not unlike the classic The Mummy film.
The game is set against an Egyptian tomb backdrop, with features that include Mr. Wild himself who, rather surprisingly, does not act as the game’s wild (they missed a trick there!) but is one of its biggest paying symbols. There is a big wild and bonus symbol though, which takes the shape of the ancient tomb, and this can trigger the game's main bonus round. This feature requires three bonus symbols to activate, at which point it awards players 10 free spins and an instant win.
Book of Dead has a jackpot of 250,000 coins and it can be played for between 1 and 5 coins per line, with 10 paylines in total. There is also an autoplay feature and expanding symbols to look out for.
Finn and the Swirly Spin
Finn and the Swirly Spin is a NetEnt slot machine that makes use of a unique reel structure to add some variety to the standard video slot format. The Finn and the Swirly Spin reels follow a spiral path, leading to a keyhole in the centre. Every winning payline causes the winning symbols to disappear and to be replaced by new ones, at which point the spiral shortens and the key gets closer to the centre.
When the key does land in the centre then it turns the lock and unlocks a bonus round, triggering a number of possible bonuses. Initially, there is only one feature to play, but more are unlocked with each additional game that is played.
Finn and the Swirly Spin also has a big sticky wild symbol and it can be played for between 1 and 10 coins per line, with the value set between 0.01 and 2.
Starburst
Starburst is video slot that take place in outer space, with a basic but colourful comic aesthetic. It is a quick and slick game that that has 10-paylines and an expanding wild, which takes the shape of the Starburst symbol.
The Starburst wild can land on all three on the middle reels and when they expand they can also lock in place and trigger a re-spin. This is actually the main feature on Starburst, and the re-spins will continue for a maximum of three spins.
There is a jackpot of 250 coins on Starburst and it can be played for between 1 and 10 coins per line, or a maximum of 100 coins per spin.
Gonzo's Quest
Gonzo's Quest is one of NetEnt’s most popular titles, based around a titular character who is based on a real life conquistador. Gonzo stands by the reels throughout play, dancing and going through a number of animations when the player wins and when they unlock bonus features.
Gonzo's Quest uses a chain reaction feature whereby all winning symbols disappear and are replaced by new symbols. This continues to happen until there are no more wins, and with every win there is an increasing multiplier, going from 1x to 2x, 3x and then 5x.
The feature is also active during the free spins round, at which point the multiplier increases, beginning at 3x and going all of the way to 15x. This feature unlocks 10 free spins in total and can be re-triggered when more of the bonus symbols land.
