Playing the best online slots opens the door to lucrative fun. If it's your first time spinning the reels, you'll quickly find that online casinos speak their own language. Browse this online slots glossary to learn about types of games, slots features, and slang terms that will take your gaming to a new level.
Types of Online Slots
No two online slots are the same, but most fall into a handful of key categories. Below are the most popular types of online slots and what sets each one apart:- Bonus Slots: These slots have only one payline, but if your spin includes one or more bonus symbols, you're in for a big win. Line up three bonus symbols for a major payout or extra free spins.
- Five-Reel Slots: Slightly more advanced than three-reel slots, five reel slots such as Happy Mushroom have more paylines and allow you to play up to five coins. They also offer more chances to win, which keeps many players spinning.
- Multi-Spin Slots: Also known as mega-spin slots, these games combine up to nine slots in one, with up to 45 reels and dozens of paylines.
- Progressive Slots: These games are part of a larger network that shares a single jackpot. When you play progressive slots such as Mega Fortune, the jackpot grows until one lucky player wins big.
- Three-Reel Slots: Considered classics, three-reel slots such as Bars and Bells are based on the first-ever slot machines. They have up to five paylines, and although they look simple, they tend to offer big payouts.
- Video Slots: One of the most common online game types, video slots such as Ghostbusters have five digital reels and up to dozens of paylines. They typically have engaging themes, and some show short clips. Many game providers license characters and themes from popular movies for added fun.
Slots Features
While online live casinos offer many opportunities for fun, many players maintain a firm focus on winning. Before you start playing, make sure you know how to optimize your winnings and what each of the following terms means:- Autoplay: You can use this feature to automate gameplay for smaller games. Set up parameters such as the number of spins and when to start and stop spinning.
- Bet: Most online slots allow you to alter your wager within a range of min and max bets. Some slots allow you to wager max bets of hundreds of pounds.
- Blank: Effectively a non-symbol, a blank is an empty area between symbols. Spinning a blank typically makes your chances of getting a winning combination impossible.
- Bonus: A bonus helps players increase their winnings in the form of features, rounds, and games.
- Cash Back: Some casinos and slots offer cash back as a reward for depositing a certain amount of money.
- Coins: These betting units change in size depending on how much you want to wager.
- Credits: You can buy credits to play and convert them into cash after a win.
- Free Spin: Many online slots offer extra spins and extra opportunities to win when you collect certain symbols or trigger other features.
- Jackpot: You'll win the largest payout on games such as Millionaire Genie when you hit the jackpot. The amount you wager generally affects the size of the jackpot.
- Payline: This is a line that passes through each reel to connect symbols. When certain symbols appear on a payline, you win. Online slots can have anywhere from one to 243 paylines, for an impressive amount of variety.
- Pay Table: Every slot has a pay table, which details the winning combinations for that specific game. For example, the Kingdom of Cash pay table explains how wilds, scatters, and free spins affect your potential winnings.
- Multiplier: These symbols increase your winnings by two or more times.
- Primary Jackpot: This jackpot is the biggest payout prize and the largest jackpot.
- Random Number Generator: Also known as an RNG, a random number generator is a programming feature that generates random spins, keeping online casinos neutral and fair.
- Scatter: These symbols typically trigger bonus games or free spins.
- Wild: These symbols substitute for other symbols, and in some games, they stack or expand.
Online Slots Slang
If you're serious about online slots, knowing only the basics isn't enough. Pick up a few of the following slang terms to expand your knowledge:- Cold Slots: Also known as tight slots, these games aren't known for paying out very often.
- Hammer a Machine: You'll do this action when you play the same game for an extended time period.
- Hit and Run: If you quickly move on from slot to slot when they don't pay out, you hit and run.
- Near Miss: You'll experience this situation when you're extremely close to spinning a winning combination.
- One-Armed Bandit: This phrase is a humorous term for a slot.
- Onesies: This term refers to a player who bets only one coin or credit per spin.
- Short Win: If you get a big prize after only a few spins of games such as Starburst, you've got a short win.
- Signature Slots: These branded slots are unique to the online casino.
- Sound of Rain: This noise refers to the sound of coins raining down.
- Streaky Slots: Games known for being alternately hot and cold are streaky slots.
- Zigzag: When you play slots with multiple paylines, such as Temple of Isis, you can win with a variety of zigzag lines.
Advanced Terms
When you're ready to take your play up a notch, learn some of the more advanced online slots terms. Below are some that you'll need to know.- Optimal Play: Everyone has different strategies for generating top profits, or optimal play, from online slots.
- Payout: All slots have different rates at which they pay out for winning combinations. A certified slot has a payout of 98 to 100 percent.
- Stop Loss: Your stop loss is the threshold at which you pause play. This threshold could be a time frame or a monetary level.