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Megabucks Slots

How to Play

In order to play Megabucks, you'll first need to head on down to the nearest casino that offers the slot machine. Preferably, you'll do this in Nevada, as that's the version of this game that offers by far the largest prizes. If you're not in Nevada, feel free to book a flight: we'll still be here when you arrive.

Have you found yourself a machine? Great! The next step is to put some money into the machine. While the machines can be a themed slightly differently, this game is typically a standard three-reel slot machine with a single payline. You can play up to three coins on each spin, each of which will cost you $1 to play. The game also comes in 5 reel format, though these are increasingly harder to find in Las Vegas.

In most ways, this is a pretty standard machine. You'll want to match symbols so that you can get a three-of-a-kind across the payline, with the standard cherries, bars and sevens appearing on the reels. The symbol you're really looking for is the Megabucks symbol, as three of those will earn you the biggest prizes in the game.

Progressive Jackpot

Now, that's all well and good, but we imagine that you're really interested in how you can come away with the massive payout attached to this machine. The answer is simple: you must bet all three coins (or $3) on a spin, and then hit the three Megabucks symbols right across your payline. It's as simple as that: hit the combination, and you'll be taking home the prize of a lifetime.

Just how much can you win? Well, the jackpot is now seeded at $10 million each time it is hit, so at the very least, you can be sure that your prize will be somewhere in the eight-digit range. The largest win in Las Vegas history was hit on this machine back in 2003, when a visitor from Los Angeles won $39.7 million at the Excalibur. The machine has given out over $20 million on several occasions now, and the average amount is said to be a little more than $15 million.

Your next question might be just how likely it is that you'll hit the winning combination the next time you take a trip to Las Vegas. The short answer is: not very. According to sources, the odds of hitting the three logos are 1 in 49,836,032 — a number that may be hard to wrap your head around, but which is still better than some of the biggest multistate lotteries like Powerball. Michael Shackleford noted cleverly that this number is exactly 368 cubed, suggesting that players have a 1/368 chance of hitting the Megabucks logo symbol on each reel every time they spin.

As with many slots, there is a point at which the jackpot is so large that it actually becomes theoretically profitable for players to put money into the machine, as their average return is more than 100%. In this case, that number is just north of $32.2 million, a figure that will only rarely be reached. However, that shouldn't dissuade you from playing: it's always very hard to win, and whether you win $15 million or $30 million, we think you'll be happy if you manage to take it home.

Finally, it is worth noting that the millions will be paid out as an annuity over the course of 25 years. That's still not such a bad deal, but you won't be able to splurge too much the moment you leave Las Vegas.

Variations

In the 5 reel Megabucks game there are a few minor variations. Firstly, are the mini progressives in the form of mini-bucks, minor-bucks, major-bucks and max bucks. These are awarded when you hit 2 or more progrssive jackpot symbols on a spin that turn into a gold bar and take up the entire reel. The prizes range from $10 - $500 for hitting 2 or more on a single spin. The longer time these prizes aren't won, the bigger the prize for hitting them, as they increase during each spin of the reels. Cabinets come in red, green (Megabucks Emerald 7s) and yellow, though blue is commonly found too in the Megabucks Wild Sapphires game which is in fact a 6 reel slot with a 3-reel "Mega Game" above the standard reels.

There are a number of other variations too including Megabucks pink diamonds, triple diamond strike and a Wheel of Fortune style game.

Can I Play Online?

At least for now, IGT has not released a version of Megabucks for online casinos, which means you can only play this popular game in brick-and-mortar establishments. However, that doesn't mean you can't win a massive progressive slots prize at your favorite casino site. A few of the biggest online jackpot games include:

• Mega Moolah (Microgaming)
• Mega Fortune by Net Entertainment
• Beach Life (Playtech)
• Mega Jackpots (IGT)