One of the most satisfying aspects of playing slot machines is watching the reels spin and anticipating a big win. It’s the very reason slots became as popular as they are today, and we are going to explain how slot machine reels work and the varieties of slots that are available using an assortment of reel mechanics.
What Are Reels on a Slot Machine?
The reels on an online slot machine host the game’s symbols. They are the most critical aspect of a slot because they house the game’s symbols.
Typically, they run vertically from top to bottom on a slot, but there are some games, like Megaways slots, that add a horizontal reel to the top of the game.
Depending on the slot game you choose to play, individual reels can host a different number of symbols.
Here are some of the most common slot configurations:
- 3×3 slots
- 5×4 slots
- 5×6 slots
The first number states the number of reels, and the second number represents the number of symbols available in each reel. Therefore, a 3×3 slot has 3 reels with 3 symbols on each.
The number of reels can dictate how many pay lines or ways to win a slot can offer players.
- A 3×3 reel slot can accommodate 1 to 9 paylines
- A 5×3 reel slot can use up to 50 pay lines or up to 243 ways to win.
- A 5×4 reel slot can house up to 100 pay lines or 1,024 ways to win.
- A 6×4 reel slot typically uses 2,048 ways to win.
How to read slot machines can be a bit tricky, but to understand it better, let’s see how slot machine reels work and the different types of slot reels available.
How Do Slot Machine Reels Work?
When you press the spin button, the reels spin and create either a winning or non-winning spin.
Here are three examples of some of the most common symbols you’ll find spinning on an online slot’s reels.
- Regular symbols: These symbols line up across the reels to create winning combinations. Bells, bars, 7s, and fruits are popular regular symbols, while most slots will use symbols that match the theme.
- Scatter symbols: Scatter symbols spin on the reels and can trigger multipliers or bonus rounds when they land anywhere in view.
- Wild Symbols: These symbols substitute as a wildcard for regular symbols. They can also come with multipliers, become sticky on the reels, or expand to create reels full of wilds.
How Many Reels Are on a Slot Machine?
The number of reels on a slot machine is entirely down to the software provider that produced the game. They can produce as many reels as they can fit onto a screen.
Two software providers are currently developing mechanics that can expand into an unlimited number of reels.
- NetEnt Infinireel mechanic
- Yggdrasil Infinity Reels mechanic
In these games, each winning spin will expand the number of reels by +1 an unlimited number of times until the slot produces a non-winning spin.
If we want to get down to brass tacks, the most common number of reels you’ll come across are 3-reel, 5-reel, and 6-reel slot machines.
Types of Slot Machine Reels
Now we have covered what slot machine reels are and how they work, let’s take a look at some of the different types of slot machine reels you’ll find in social casinos.
3 reel slot machines
3-reel slot machines are a dying breed in land-based gambling venues, but online, you’ll still find plenty of software providers creating this type of slot game.
- Classic 3-reel slots: The 3-reel slot is where slot machines began. Today, we call them classic slots. They have evolved from one payline across the central horizontal row to 5 pay lines and up to 9 pay lines.
- 3-reel bonus slots: Slot machine manufacturers now create classic 3-reel slots with additional features like wilds, wild multipliers, and free spins bonus games. Modern versions of the 3-reel slot also come with 3D graphics and animations.
5 reel slot machines
The 5-reel slot is the most popular and most-played style of slot machine in modern iGaming. The 5×3 reel slot replaced 3×3 slots and the lion’s share of games you’ll find at online and social casinos will use this reel mechanic.
Yet, nothing in the online casino gaming industry remains the same for very long. Soon developers created 5×4 slots and now 5×5 slots giving you 5 reels with 4 symbols on each or 5 reels with 5 symbols on each.
The number of symbols on each reel dictates how many pay lines or ways to win a software provider can add to the slot machine.
By adding more rows, which is the same as adding more symbols to each reel, game developers can create slots with 1 up to 100 pay lines or 243 ways up to 7,776 ways to win.
Here are some more examples adding to the ones provided above:
- 5×5 Reels: Developers use 5×5 reel slots to house up to 3,125 ways to win.
- 5×6 Reels: Software providers will use this configuration to squeeze in up to 7,776 ways to win.
6 reel slot machines
6 reel slots are becoming increasingly popular. The two most common ways slot developers use 6 reel slots are Megaways or no pay line ways to win reel mechanics.
Megaways
The attraction to Megaways slots is the vast 117,649 ways to win they can offer over 6 reels. There is a catch, though, as the number of symbols per reel is random.
Some players like to call the reels shapeshifters because, on any given spin, each reel randomly produces between 2 and 7 symbols.
If you land 2 symbols on every reel, you’ll have 64 ways to win, but if all 6 reels produce 7 symbols on each, this gives you 117,649 ways to win.
No Pay Line Ways to Win
Other slot developers create 6 reel slots without using Megaways. As with all slot games, the number of symbols per reel dictates how many ways to win the software provider can fit onto the reels
Here are some examples to give you an idea of how many ways to win each reel configuration offers:
- 6×3 Reels: 729 ways to win
- 6×4 Reels: 4,096 ways to win
- 6×5 Reels: 15,625 ways to win
7 reel slot machines
There are few 7-reel slot machines developed, mainly because they don’t work well on mobile devices. Yet, there are still some software providers who have created 7-reel slot games.
Reel Gems Deluxe by Microgaming (now Games Global) is an excellent example of a popular 7 reel slot.
As you continue to explore the tens of thousands of online slots available to you, you will also come across Megaways slots that use 7 reels. Although, these games don’t use the seventh reel in the traditional sense.
Instead of running vertically, the seventh reel generally holds 4 symbols and runs horizontally across the top of the reels. As the seventh reel is horizontal, developers can neatly design the slot to fit on smaller screen sizes using mobile responsive code.
Progressive Jackpot slots
Progressive Jackpots are a popular addition to many online slot games. A small percentage of your stake goes towards a prize pot that continues to grow until someone wins the jackpot.
The way how to play progressive slots usually depends on the game. Some slots may require you to bet a minimum amount for eligibility, while others give everyone an equal chance of winning, regardless of their stake.
One thing to keep in mind is that progressive jackpots are not solely limited to slot games. You can also find them in other types of casino games such as blackjack and roulette. However, they are most commonly associated with slot machines.
The Pleasures of Playing Slot Machines
One of the pleasures and reasons why people play slot machines, whether online or on a video slot in a land-based venue, is you will always have a wide selection of slot mechanics at your disposal. It’s hard to believe that slots began with just 3 reels, 3 symbols, and 1 pay line, but now we are seeing Megaways slot with up to 117,649 ways to win. The best part of it is Spin Sorcery has a slot type for everyone!
