Free Spins, Bonus Rounds, and Wilds—Slot Machine Terminology Explained: Generally, playing slot games is easy. There’s a reason why these games are so massively popular at online casinos, and their accessibility in terms of rules and mechanics has a lot to do with it.

Everyone intuitively knows how to spin a slot reel. What are not so intuitive are the new terms that many slot games use.

Because slot games have been around for so long, people have ended up creating their own variations. There are 3D slots, virtual slots, progressive jackpot slots, and on and on the list goes. And with each new slot variation comes new rules, and new rules mean new terms to explain. Here’s a quick overview to help you become familiar with the most important slot machine terminology.

Slot Machine Bonus Terminology

Bonuses are an important aspect of slot machines, and they come in many shapes and sizes. Just taking a quick look at AskGambler’s list of Indian casino bonuses makes that abundantly clear. The country has seen a recent uptick in interest in online casinos and although some states have online-gaming licenses for skill-based games, foreign gambling sites can operate freely. If you like playing slot games with lots of bonuses, this means you will encounter lots of terms.

• Bonus Feature: Optional features that correspond to unique rules often not found in standard slot games.
• Bonus Rounds: These are usually short but opportune moments to gain extra money or abilities. They are usually rare and hard to trigger but offer amazing jackpot opportunities.
• Free Spins: These are free rewards offered by online casinos. They give you the ability to play slot spins free of charge. Wagering requirements usually restrict them to specific slot games.

Slot Machine Symbol Terminology

People can enjoy any slot machine without having to think too hard about what each symbol on the reels means. This is a valid way to play slots casually, but if you’re playing to win big, then you will have to think harder about what symbols mean, which symbols you want, and which pairings are the most beneficial.

• Wild Symbols: Wild symbols act like wild cards. They are like chameleons and can be used as any other symbol depending on the context and pairing.
• Scatter Symbols: These are known for triggering bonus rounds or other special features when three or more are lined up.
• Sticky Symbols: These will stay on the reel for an extended period in the same spot.
• Transforming Symbols: These are a soft version of wild symbols; they will shift into a different symbol under unique circumstances.
• Walking Symbols: These symbols will “walk” to an adjacent reel after each spin until they are removed from the screen entirely.

Slot Machine Reel Terminology

Closely related to slot symbols are slot reels, and understanding them is very important. Reels are the wheels that are spun with each round, so learning about their corresponding terminology will make it easier for you to understand and appreciate any slot game you play.

• 3-Reel Format: These slot games use three spinning reels, often in a 3×3 format to have three symbols visible on screen per reel.
• 5-Reel Format: Another popular option that goes by 3×5 instead, with five spinning reels in total. These reels are a more popular format for specialty slot games or ones that are designed to have more paylines.
• Multiplier Reels: Your score will be multiplied if a winning symbol is triggered on this reel. The most common denominations for multiplier reels are x2, x3, and x4, but some specialty slot games go much higher.
• Cascading Reels: Symbols will appear on these reels by falling from above instead of appearing from the pre-selected order on the spinning wheel itself. When symbols are triggered on this reel, they can also disappear to make room for a new set of symbols.
• Colossal Reels: These reels depict symbols that are so large that they can take up entire reels. Some colossal reels will have symbols stacked on top of each other so that their effects can be compounded.
• Expanding Reels: As the name implies, these reels will grow out and expand in one direction when certain conditions are met, usually as the effect of special symbols or bonus rounds. Expanding reels tend to expand vertically, turning, for example, a 3×5 reel game into a 5×5 reel game.

Slot Machine Jackpot Terminology

For most people, slot machine games are about entertainment, and it’s hard to find a more entertaining thing about slots than the jackpots. These days, there are more jackpot variations than ever before, so have fun learning about what you might be winning in the near future.

• Fixed Jackpot: This is an unchanging jackpot amount that is not affected by wagers or communal aspects.
• Progressive Jackpot: Sometimes also called a linked jackpot, these jackpots are formed from a massive pile of collections across wagers made by all players playing the same game. For example, when you place a bet in a progressive jackpot game and lose, a portion of that money gets placed into the pool. The winner of this jackpot walks home with everything placed in the pool.
• Megaways: These are special jackpot slots that usually have six reels and a changing jackpot based on the number of reels at play.

Slot Machine Miscellaneous Terminology

Though we’ve already covered the basics, there are a few terms to keep in mind as they are becoming more and more common among slot games. As online casinos embrace more technological advances like AI or VR, expect to see these miscellaneous terms become more common, too.

• RTP: This stands for return-to-player. It is a percentage of how much money one can expect to return to them after playing slots. RTP is modeled after $100, so if the RTP is 95%, most players who spend $100 will walk home with $95.
• Volatility: A measurement of a slot game’s risk factor. It comes in five levels: Low, medium-low, medium, medium-high, and high.