You might often get confused if you should opt to play 3-reel, 5-reel or 7-reel pokies. Here you will find answers to all your questions in this regard.
Table of Contents
3 Reels Pokies vs. 5 Reels Pokies vs. 7 Reel Pokies
3 Reel Pokies
Regardless of whether your personal taste is inclined towards old-school machines, or you’re just interested in an introduction to the pokie machine world, 3 reel pokies are all you need to know about. Featuring 3 reels and often just a single pay line, these games are based on traditional land-based casinos and pokie machines. Despite these games typically being more straightforward than their 5 reel counterparts, they are no less exciting to play. No thrills will be sacrificed when playing to win the big amounts, and 3 reel pokies work likely to net you larger wins than 5 reel pokies.
Here you will find 3 reel-5 reel-7 reel slots – what to play.
At online casinos, you will find a good range of classic 3-reel pokies from any top brand gaming providers like Microgaming, NetEnt, Betsoft and others. One of the best examples of such Retro Pokies is Cash Crazy which is still popular with players, despite the lack of bonus features and slick graphics. In Cash Crazy, there is one horizontal payline, but some 3-reel pokies allow for diagonal paylines as well. While that can increase the variance to win or lose it can also mean bigger jackpots.
3 reel pokies are notable for two features: minimal paylines and minimal features. In most 3-reel games with a single payline, you may win a cash prize by hitting just one valid symbol on the payline. As an example, in the Cash Crazy pokies, it’s the cherry. Any three symbols consisting of a BAR or BAR-BAR will also earn you a prize. Wild symbols can also come into play, substituting all regular symbols to help complete a combination.
Advantages:
- The simple design is easy for new gamblers to understand and figure out
- The design also provides an incredible trip down memory lane for any long-time pokie players.
- Due to betting options being somewhat limited, the games can be enjoyed as intended by players on a budget.
- Although 5 reel wins may be frequent, the 3 reel wins often provide you with a bigger payout.
5 Reel Pokies
Generally, the most popular option amongst gamblers these days is the 5 reel pokies games that have advanced beyond anything thought to be possible. Playing with a larger board, it’s a given that there are higher and more diverse chances of winning. Some games feature 25+ pay lines for players to gamble on. In certain cases, the games feature an incredible 243 pay lines.
Like 3-reel pokies 5 reel pokies too are powered by brand gaming providers like Microgaming 5-reel game like Thunderstruck II or Mega Moolah features 5 reels and 3 rows to give the player 15 possible paylines to hit. Also while there are more possible paylines to strike it rich on, the general payouts can often be small.
Therefore, it is essential to check the paytable before you start playing. Not all 5-reel pokies are built the same. Some games may have a higher frequency of top-paying symbols than others. Other games may load their reels with wild symbols or scatters.
This is usually reflected in the disparity between the highest and lowest payouts. If a pokie has very low prizes generally, there is a chance that the game is loaded with low-paying icons.
Advantages:
- More reels + more pay lines = more chances to win. Due to this, payouts are far more regular on 5-reel pokies.
- These pokies generally feature more bonuses and extras. Free spins, bonus rounds, wild and scatter symbols and progressive jackpot mini-games. In these progressive mini-jackpot games, millions of dollars may be paid out on a single play.
- Typically the 5 reel pokies are also video pokies with far more exciting graphics and interfaces. Some video clips may be included in branded movie-based games, bringing about a sense of entertainment that is not present in 3 reel slots.
7 Reel Pokies
For numerous gamers, less is always more when it comes to pokies. But, we know there are many believers in the “more is never enough” theory too. The 7 reel pokies were designed mainly for these people, as well as for any experienced three and five-reel pokies players, who are looking for an exciting change of pace.
You may be curious as to why one would need to play with 7 reels when 3 and 5 reels will more than suffice. The reason behind this is that due to an increased number of reels, the number of ways in which a player can win the game is also increased.
7-reel pokies are video pokies that consist of seven vertical reels packed with 20-50 symbols each. Winning combinations pay out depending on which payline they land on. Also just as with 5-reel pokies, Wilds and Scatters can add to the regular base game wins if they help form winners.
The best example is RTG’s unique I.R.I.S. 3000 pokie only has one payline across its 7 reels, with players choosing between 1 and 3 coins per spin. This poky features closed ‘doors’ rather than symbols. If you click on five doors to reveal a winning (or losing) combination.
While the 5 reel pokies come in a large variety, there are only a few seven-reel games on the market.
The main possible reason why 7-reel pokies are so hard to find is that they are unique to the providers of Real Time Gaming and WGS Technology. This pokie variation was one of the innovations they decided to develop and present to the public, so it is logical that is a product only they create and offer.
One or two other providers have tried to create such a variant, but the fact that the 5-reel games are much more popular among players does not encourage the development of these brand-new variants.
WGS Technology seems to have the edge on the 7 reel products, so the best place for searching for this variant is the developer. You can still find games like ‘Farming Fortunes’ an animal-themes game and ‘Lucky 7s’, a game with classic pokie icons, here and there.
If you’re a numerologist or just someone who believes in the luck behind the number 7 you will also be drawn to the number of ways that this favourite number can combine winning payouts. The game is designed in such a way that you may still get at least small wins on each of your spins. The number 7 is often featured as one of the symbols that appear on a 7 reels game reel.
The difference between playing 3 reel-5 reel-7 reel pokies is minimal. The first step is to choose a wager, press spin, and repeat this until you get the desired result. Things are quite simple as the 7 reel pokies only have seven pay-lines and do not have too detailed graphics, animations, or videos which are the focus of their 5 reel counterparts. However, you will be able to find free spins, multipliers, and symbols that boost the credits on winning combinations.
What’s best for you?
Deciding what to play 3 reel-5 reel-7 reel pokies – where to place your money may seem intimidating. So, we recommend that you ask yourself a few questions before deciding;
- What’s more important – regular payouts, or big wins?
- Which features are more appealing – slow and steady, or exciting?
- Do you enjoy being in control, or prefer not knowing what could happen next?
If you desire slow and steady games, with fewer features and more control, the 3 reel pokies are for you. Otherwise, the 5 and 7 reel pokies are your best bet. Which is the best – 3 reel-5 reel-7 reel pokies?
Finally, remember whichever format of pokie you pick, 3 reel-5 reel-7 reel pokies- it’s important to check the RTP and volatility first. The RTP (return to player percentage) is the long-term average payout made to the players. The higher the RTP, the lower the house edge.
Online pokies tend to have an RTP of anywhere from 93-98%. Classic 3-reel pokies tend to be on the lower end of that scale. 5-reel games with big jackpots often boast a higher RTP.
While RTP can vary, so can the volatility of the pokie. The volatility is related to how often losing or winning spins can occur. A volatile pokie may pay out infrequently, but when it does the returns will be big. A low-volatility pokie will pay out lots of small returns, but they will come more frequently.
Always look at the spread between the top jackpot and the lowest payout. The wider the gap, the more volatile a pokie tends to be.
Synopsis
However, we think that all pokie options i.e. 3 reel-5 reel-7 reel pokies offer various exciting experiences and are worth trying out at least once.
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