Slot of the Week: Bonanza Megaways

When the working week is done and you’re looking for some fun, turn to our Slot of the Week for the chance to trigger a wealth of wins, this time from the depths of a gem and gold-filled mine in Bonanza Megaways!

One of the first slots to sport the unique Megaways mechanism, Bonanza Megaways promises a shot at up to 10,000x your stake via chain reaction wins, a horizontal reel, and a free spins feature with unlimited win multipliers!

In Short:

• Bonanza Megaways is a 6-reel online slot by Big Time Gaming
• It is available to play at 15 New Jersey online casinos including Golden Nugget, SugarHouse, Unibet Casino, and Pala Casino
• Bonanza Megaways’ features include Reactions, a horizontal reel, and a free spins round with unlimited win multipliers
• The maximum payout of Bonanza Megaways is 10,000x stake

The Basics

Launched by Big Time Gaming in 2016, Bonanza Megaways was responsible for catapulting the developer’s totally unique Megaways mechanism into the history books, leading to other developers including it in their games under license. Despite its relative age, this slot has remained a firm favorite with players all over the world and has held its high place in the lobbies of pretty much every online casino in New Jersey.

The appeal of this slot lies in the winning combination of its toe-tapping soundtrack, win-triggering reactions, variable reel sizes, the unique horizontal reel, and a rewarding free spins feature, all of which are tied into the theme of gem and gold mining.

Let’s dive into the finer details of the Bonanza Megaways slot.

First Impressions

When you first open the game, you’ll notice the set of 6 reels is carved into a rocky hillside, with a small wooden building to the bottom left and a water wheel to the right echoing the mining theme.

Above the main reels is an additional reel, but this one is horizontal and in the form of a chain of minecarts. When you spin the reels, you’ll discover that this horizontal reel activates too, with new symbols appearing from the right, effectively adding another row of symbols to reels 2, 3, 4, and 5.

Playing the perfect accompaniment to the mining theme is an old-timey soundtrack that starts off quite tranquil, with a few mellow plucks of a banjo. However, spin the reels and the music will explode into life with a toe-tapping, knee-slapping rhythm that’s hard to resist!

Symbols

It will soon become apparent that what you’re looking for in this game are the precious sparkly gems and lettered blocks of gold to trigger your fortune.

The high paying symbols in Bonanza Megaways consist of green, blue, and red gems, with the purple-backed diamond paying out the most.

The low paying symbols are the 9, 10, J, Q, K, and A card value symbols, which each come in a different vibrant color.

Only appearing on the horizontal reel, the three lit sticks of dynamite represent the game’s wild symbol, which stands in for all other symbols except the lettered blocks of gold.

Speaking of which, those gold blocks, each sporting one of the four letters G, O, L, and D, are the game’s feature-triggering scatter symbols.

One additional symbol completes the set: a gold bar-filled minecart, which offers a special in-feature boost that we’ll cover next.

Bonanza Megaways Features

Bonanza Megaways sports four individual features that make the game particularly appealing to play. Let’s take a look at each of them in turn.

Megaways

The Megaways mechanism was invented by the developer of this slot, Big Time Gaming, and is a move away from the traditional set paylines approach used by many other slots.

Each reel can contain anything from two to seven symbols, either with or without the extra row of symbols from that horizontal reel along the top.

Wins are triggered for lining up three (only two for the diamonds!) or more matching symbols along consecutive reels in any order. Since each spin of the reels results in a different combination of reel sizes, that affects the number of possible ways to win, which can reach 117,649!

You’ll see the number of win ways for your current spin indicated at the top of the reels next to Megaways.

Reactions

A single spin can result in a chain reaction of wins thanks to this slot’s Reactions. Whenever you line up matching symbols along consecutive reels for a win, involved symbols will explode, leaving gaps on the reels that the symbols above will fall into, potentially resulting in new winning combinations.

Horizontal Reel

An additional reel is present in this game, but it’s aligned horizontally and placed above reels 2, 3, 4, and 5. Taking the form of a train of minecarts, this horizontal reel adds another row of symbols to the reels it’s placed above, boosting your chances of winning.

This reel also offers Reactions as described above, but here, the gaps left by winning symbols are filled by more minecarts rolling in from the right.

Free Spins

Keep an eye on those lettered gold bar symbols, since landing four of them on the reels at once triggers the game’s free spins feature. What you’ll get for your efforts is 12 free spins on a night time themed reel set with a more energetic soundtrack.

Remember those Reactions from the base game? They prove even more rewarding here as each one boosts your win multiplier by one and will keep on increasing with no limit!

Even better, land three or four of those minecarts full of stacked gold bars (only in the horizontal reel) and you’ll trigger 5 or 10 additional free spins, respectively.

Bonanza Megaways Payouts

So how much can you expect to win playing this slot? The answer to that depends on several factors, including your stake per spin, which symbols you’ve matched, and how many of them you’ve managed to land in a winning combination.

Here are the payouts of each symbol in Bonanza Megaways:

Symbol	2x	3x	4x	5x	6x
Diamond	2x stake	5x stake	10x stake	25x stake	50x stake
Red Gem	–	1x stake	2x stake	2.5x stake	7.5x stake
Blue Gem	–	0.25x stake	1x stake	1.5x stake	2x stake
Green Gem	–	0.25x stake	0.5x stake	0.75x stake	2x stake
A/K	–	0.2x stake	0.4x stake	0.6x stake	1.75x stake
Q	–	0.2x stake	0.25x stake	0.6x stake	1x stake
J	–	0.15x stake	0.25x stake	0.5x stake	1x stake
10	–	0.15x stake	0.25x stake	0.5x stake	0.9x stake
9	–	0.1x stake	0.2x stake	0.4x stake	0.8x stake

Of course, bear in mind the extra boosting power of those Reactions on every spin and the increasing win multipliers during the free spins feature have the potential to send your profits even higher!

The maximum payout of Bonanza Megaways is topped off at 10,000x your stake, which is pretty substantial!

Bonanza Megaways RTP and Volatility

Since all slots are different in terms of their payout mechanisms, frequencies and amounts, it can be tricky to compare them in any meaningful way. Thankfully, there are two metrics that can help you do exactly that. They are the Return to Player (RTP) and the Volatility (Variance).

Return to Player is a measurement of how much of the funds that are paid into a game are actually paid out to players as winnings over the long term. Defined as a percentage, the RTP can be thought of as the opposite of the house edge. Bonanza Megaways has an RTP of 96%, which is bang on the industry average, making it an attractive slot to play in terms of payouts.

The Volatility (or Variance) of a game is the balance of small, frequent wins versus larger, less frequent ones. Games with lower volatility tend to be good for those looking for a longer gaming session, whereas higher volatility games attract players looking for big money wins. Bonanza Megaways has a volatility rating of High, which means wins may vary wildly between small and large.

Game for a Gem Hunt?

Bonanza Megaways has stood the test of time, remaining as one of the best loved slots online, most likely due to its Megaways setup, which is the central feature of many of today’s popular slots.

You’ll find it hard to resist tapping your toes to the energetic soundtrack as you line up those colorful gems, watch the winning symbols explode, and possibly trigger even more profitable combinations. No doubt your eyes will widen further in the free spins feature as the light dims and you spin to uncover those sparkly riches with big win multipliers!

Bonanza Megaways can be found at most of the Garden State’s online casinos including Golden Nugget, SugarHouse, Unibet Casino, and Pala Casino.

Ready to try this gem-hunting game for yourself? Simply check out our detailed NJ online casino reviews by clicking the links above and open a free account at the one that best suits you. Make your first deposit, remembering to claim the welcome bonus, then start mining for big wins playing Bonanza Megaways!