Megaways Slots: How the Shifting Reels Work

Megaways slots use a reel mechanic, created by Big Time Gaming and licensed to other studios, in which each reel shows a different number of symbols on every spin. Because the reel heights change, so does the number of winning ways, up to 117,649 on the standard six-reel layout.

The name describes the engine, not a single title. A Megaways game can be a fishing slot, an Egyptian adventure or a branded board game; what they share is the shifting grid and, usually, a high-volatility profile.

No.	Runner	Form	Licence	Verdict	Links
1	LPLucky Pants BingoRank Interactive (Gibraltar) Ltd	3-5-2-4-4	Foreign licence	Each-way	Visit
2	KCKaramba CasinoAspire Global International Ltd	1-4-5-4-5	Foreign licence	Each-way	Visit
3	32Red CasinoPlatinum Gaming Limited	1-4-5-4-5	Foreign licence	Each-way	Visit
4	Megaways CasinoSkill On Net Limited	4-6-5-4-5	Foreign licence	Watch	Visit

Form reads licence, markets, payments, safer-play tools, terms; 1 is best. How we rate. 18+ only.

The ranking follows licence and terms. None holds an Irish gaming licence, which no casino can yet obtain; all four answer to foreign regulators. 18+ only, as with every slot.

How Megaways slots count their ways

On a standard Megaways layout each of six reels shows between two and seven symbols. A win needs matching symbols on adjacent reels from the left, in any position, so the number of ways is simply the reel heights multiplied together.

• Every reel at seven symbols: 7 x 7 x 7 x 7 x 7 x 7 = 117,649 ways.
• Reels of 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7 symbols: 2 x 3 x 4 x 5 x 6 x 7 = 5,040 ways.
• Every reel at two symbols: 2 x 2 x 2 x 2 x 2 x 2 = 64 ways.

The headline 117,649 is the ceiling, reached only when every reel is at its tallest. Most spins land well below it. Many games add a horizontal reel above the main grid, which contributes extra symbols to some reels and changes the sums again.

Features that usually come with the engine

• Cascades. Winning symbols vanish and new ones drop in, so one spin can produce a chain of wins.
• Growing multipliers. In many Megaways free spins rounds the multiplier rises with each cascade and does not reset until the round ends.
• Extra free spins. Landing more scatters during the bonus often adds spins.

Not every game has every feature, and the details differ by studio. The information screen lists what a particular title does.

Some Megaways titles also offer a bonus buy, letting the player pay a fixed multiple of the stake to go straight to free spins. The price is set so that the buy carries roughly the game's normal margin, and it concentrates a session's spending into one very swingy outcome. Where it is offered, treat it as the most expensive button on the screen.

Volatility and the Megaways bankroll

Huge numbers of ways do not mean huge numbers of wins. Most Megaways games are high volatility: long stretches of small returns, with the real value concentrated in a bonus round that may not land for hundreds of spins. That suits a player with a fixed sum and patience, and punishes one who raises stakes to "force" the feature.

A practical rule: set the stake so that your budget covers several hundred spins. At EUR 0.50 a spin, EUR 100 buys 200 spins, which on a high-volatility game is a short visit rather than a session. Megaways remakes of older games do not always keep the original's RTP, so read the figure in the game itself; the high RTP slots file shows how to find it.

Megaways games in our slot file

Eye of Horus Megaways from Blueprint Gaming is the clearest case study, because it can be set beside the original Eye of Horus: same theme and symbols, very different rhythm. Other Megaways games Irish players search for include Bonanza Megaways, Extra Chilli Megaways, Buffalo King Megaways, Monopoly Megaways and Rainbow Riches Megaways, the last a Megaways edition of the Barcrest classic we cover in Rainbow Riches. When a title has both a classic and a Megaways edition, check which one you have opened.

Megaways Casino: a brand, not a mechanic

Megaways Casino is a casino brand run by SkillOnNet, the company behind KnightSlots and MegaCasino. According to trade press it relaunched in Britain in March 2026 and extended its .com site to other markets under a Malta Gaming Authority licence in May 2026. We could not confirm from the operator's own terms that it accepts Irish players; that rests on third-party reviews. Its licence is Maltese, and Malta is where a complaint would go. The name says nothing about whether the site has more Megaways titles than any other casino.

Before you play a Megaways game

Treat the shifting grid as a source of entertainment rather than of value. Decide on a budget, pick a stake that lets it last, and stop when it is gone. If you find yourself buying bonus rounds or doubling stakes to chase one, the responsible gambling page explains the deposit limits and time-outs to ask your casino for.