Bitcoin Slots Guide: Rules, Popular Games & Payouts

One of the best things about Bitcoin slots is how easy it is to start playing them. Unlike poker or blackjack, you don’t need to know hand rankings or follow a set strategy to get the best outcome. A Random Number Generator (RNG) determines whether you win or lose. You just push a button and hope for the best result.

All crypto slots have a certain number of reels and rows. This is the playing area where various symbols can appear. The slot grid also includes several paylines. To score a win, you’ll need a few (usually three) symbols to appear adjacent to one another following a payline. In most games, the winning icons must start with the leftmost reel.

Depending on the number of reels and paylines, you can split Bitcoin slots into classic and video slots. Traditionally, classic slots come with three reels, just one payline, and very few features. However, it’s not uncommon to see classic slots with more paylines and a boatload of bonus rounds in recent years.

Video slots are the more popular type of crypto slot. Most feature five reels, but six-reel and even eight-reel layouts are also frequent. Modern video slots usually have 20 or 25 paylines, though you’ll also discover they use different methods to award payouts. The most common alternative is ways to win, where players just need to get three or more matching symbols from left to right without having to follow any paylines.

All this talk about paylines and playing areas may sound daunting, but you don’t need to know all about them to start playing Bitcoin slots. As I mentioned earlier, the appeal of slots is in how easy they are to pick up and play, even as a total newcomer. To help you along, I’ve put together this step-by-step guide on how to play slots using cryptocurrencies.

While Bitcoin slots are fun to play, they shine brightest when you successfully trigger their bonus features. They fundamentally shake up how the game is played, ensuring players don’t get bored. Below, I’ve outlined some of the more popular crypto slot features and how they work.

Multipliers

The simplest way to provide additional rewards is to apply a multiplier, which increases the awarded prizes. This is one of the oldest features among Bitcoin slots and remains widely used today. Video slots usually include multipliers in the bonus round or add them to specific symbols. Depending on the game, it may be possible to add multipliers together for an even better prize.

A new addition that’s caught my eye is progressive multipliers. Rather than starting you off with a set multiplier, the bonus round starts at 2x and increases by one when a certain condition is met. That way, the closer you get to the end of the feature, the more exciting it becomes.

Free Spins

Another must-have feature in Bitcoin slots is free spins. They are usually activated by landing enough Scatters on the grid. In doing so, free spins let you play multiple rounds without spending a single crypto coin. They are usually combined with other features to spice them up and make them more lucrative.

Free spins are either one-and-done or re-triggerable, depending on the game. In the latter case, it is possible to extend the feature, opening the door for more wins.

Cascading Reels

This feature exists in many games, though not all use the term Cascading Reels. You may also find it labelled as Avalanche, Tumbling Reels, Rolling Reels, Chain Reactions, etc. After a payout is awarded, the winning icons are removed from the playing area. Existing symbols fall to fill the empty spots, while new ones appear from the top.

It is possible to chain multiple cascades together, letting you score several wins at the price of a single spin. Some games play into this by applying a progressive multiplier that increases with each cascade, which can result in mouth-watering jackpots.

Cluster Pays

One of the more interesting additions to Bitcoin slots is Cluster Pays. Rather than using paylines or ways to win to form a winning combination, payouts are awarded when a cluster of matching symbols appears on the reels. A cluster usually requires a minimum of four or five identical icons.

Megaways

Another paying system following the same principle is Megaways. It uses ways to win as a baseline but adds a fun twist to it. Rather than having a set layout every round, the height of each reel changes randomly every time you spin the reels. This allows the game to offer more opportunities to form a winning combo, with most games settling on 117,649 ways to win as a maximum.

While not every crypto gambling site offers the same games, there are titles that every casino tries to get. Players like these Bitcoin slots because of their excellent combination of great graphics, exciting gameplay, and lucrative payouts. If you’re just starting out with crypto slots and aren’t sure what to play, I recommend trying one of these releases.

Sweet Bonanza

If you have a sweet tooth, you’ll fall in love with Pragmatic Play’s Sweet Bonanza slot. The game features a gorgeous backdrop depicting a world made out of candy. Symbol designs follow the same theme, with a mixture of fruits and hard candies in different colours.

This Bitcoin slot uses a 6×5 layout with the Pay Anywhere system. Players need to have enough icons on the screen to win, regardless of their position. You also benefit from the Tumble feature and free spins with multipliers. Additionally, you can enable the Ante bet, which increases your bet costs by 25%. While active, the Ante bet increases your odds of landing Scatters. This is a medium variance title with a top prize of 21,100x your stake.

Book of Dead

While Book of Dead is not the first game to use Ancient Egypt or the Book theme, it’s definitely the most successful one. Part of that is owed to Play’n GO’s excellent art team, who created an eye-catching backdrop and symbol designs.

Players get a straightforward 5×3 playing area with 10 paylines in this crypto slot. The game combines Wilds and Scatters into a single symbol. It can substitute for all icons and activate the Free Spins feature. During free spins, one symbol is chosen to be the Expanding Icon. When it appears, it covers all the reels it is on. It can also form winning combinations from any position on the grid. The game’s jackpot is 10,000x your bet.

Wanted Dead or a Wild

Hacksaw Gaming catapulted itself up to the top of the Bitcoin slot world with Wanted Dead or a Wild. The game’s sinister style immediately caught my eye, helping to set it apart from other cowboy-themed titles.

The slot features a 5×5 grid with 15 paylines and multiple bonuses. You can find three free spins: one with expanding Wilds, one with a Wild and multiplier collection feature, and one with Sticky Wilds. If you choose to play it, you will have to deal with high volatility. The 12,500x top prize is certainly tempting enough to draw you in. However, if Wanted Dead or a Wild is not right up your street, this next slot may be more your style.

Starburst

NetEnt is one of the best-known Bitcoin slot software providers. They have been making video slots for a very long time and have produced many beloved releases. One of these titles is Starburst, a simple space-themed game that remains popular years after its launch.

The title uses a standard 5×3 layout and has 10 fixed paylines. Unlike most video slots, the paylines pay both left to right and right to left. The game has only one special symbol, which is its Wild. It can substitute for all paying icons and triggers a re-spin when it lands in the middle three reels. Thanks to that, you can get up to three re-spins in every round. This low variance release has a 500x jackpot, making it very approachable for new players.

Pirots

Pirots is a fun pirate-themed Bitcoin slot where players join a gang of parrots to plunder riches and jewels. The backdrop shows a beautiful tropical island where these colourful criminal birds make their hideout. Each parrot pirate has a distinct look, which helps immerse you in the game.

This crypto slot starts with a 5×5 grid, which can be expanded into an 8×8 playing area. The birds move and collect feature symbols and gems of the same colour as that bird. The gems can be upgraded by a special Upgrade icon, which increases their payout. Feature symbols include coin symbols that grant cash prizes, bombs that explode and grow the playing area, and Wilds, which can substitute for any gem. There is also a Free Drops bonus, during which symbol collection, grid size, and win level are persistent.

Get lucky, and you can take home a jaw-dropping 20,000x jackpot. Considering this ELK Studios Bitcoin slot has a medium-high variance, it’s quite an impressive payout.