SharePaylines are the number of ways you can win in a slot game. A stalwart of the genre, they are now being utilised in exciting new formats.
When you spin a slot game, much of the thrill comes from the anticipation of a win and then its eventual arrival. Behind this lies the concept of the payline. It is this that triggers the all-important win, and over time, they have evolved quite rapidly. Once single-line mechanics, they can now provide thousands of ways to succeed in a single game. From fixed and adjustable lines to variations like cluster pays and reel modifiers, finding the right one is the key to enjoying your gaming experience.
The Enduring Popularity of Slots
Any modern operator of online casino games will have a well-stocked library of slots. For example, as soon as you make a Spinbit login and arrive in its lobby, you are greeted by games from the world's top developers: NetEnt, Microgaming, and Evolution, to name a few. Many of their roster have differing numbers of paylines, so you can quickly find games that have everything from fixed to adjustable payline numbers of 10 to over 1000. This is because slots are becoming the main vertical in a gaming market increasingly leaning towards casual games that produce quick results.
The data below is taken from a study by the Business Research Company. It shows the market for slots, broken down by the yearly value. North America leads the chase with a value of $7 billion, followed by Western Europe at $5 billion. While Africa is the smallest market at $0.3 billion, it is areas such as this and the MENA regions that are being touted as high-growth markets.
This growth has been down to myriad factors, but one in particular has been innovation in the slot genre. In an interview on their own website, Andre Villandberg, the Founder and CEO of Bullshark Games, noted that “We love the excitement of never knowing when a big win will land, and that’s the feeling we aim for in our games. A player could be down thousands of bets, and then everything turns around with a single spin. That kind of comeback just isn’t possible in lower volatility slots, and we believe that unpredictability is what makes a great game. That said, not every mechanic we create will connect with players, so yes, there’s definitely a bit of luck involved, too.”
Check any developer that has been successful in the last few years, and this spirit of experimentation and innovation has been inherent. Leaning towards high volatility slots with big payoffs is in vogue, and paylines are one way this can be accomplished.
Defining a Payline
A payline is the specific pattern that needs to be formed across the reels to produce a win. When matching symbols land in this formation, a cash payout occurs. In older games, or more traditional slots, this was done by landing a single horizontal line through the middle of a reel. It usually had to occur from left to right.
In modern slot games, paylines have done away with this idea. Depending on the developer and title, paylines can run in both directions, starting on the right and moving towards the left. In modern games, they don’t have to form straight lines either. They can form zigzags, run in V shapes, or, in some cases they work on special grid-style games, in which symbols only have to be touching to form a payline.
In most games, modern or traditional, you have to land a certain number of symbols in the payline, usually a minimum of three. Exactly where the symbols land is determined behind the scenes in the programming, using a random number generator. This makes games provably fair.
Fixed and Adjustable Paylines
The main difference between modern paylines is the concept of fixed vs adjustable paylines. With fixed paylines, the number of ways to win can not be changed. They occur on every spin and stay the same, making them easy to use, though this means they often require a higher bet per spin.
- Active on all spins
- Easy to play
- No combinations missed
- Higher bet per spin
Adjustable paylines allow players to select how many paylines they want to activate. This provides much more choice in a game, making players feel like an element of strategy is present. Good for players who want flexibility; they can be frustrating if a winning symbol lands on inactive paylines.
- Choice of lines
- Flexibility for budgeting
- Good for low-stakes players
- Can miss winning combinations
How Paylines Change Between Games
The type of payline and how many there are depend on the title and developer, and more paylines don't automatically mean a better game. Big Bass Bonanza runs on 10 fixed paylines, Fluffy Favourites uses 25, and Starburst sticks to just 10 fixed paylines that pay both ways. This is proof that payline count alone doesn't determine a game's popularity.
At the other end of the spectrum, Megaways titles abandon fixed paylines entirely. Pioneered by Big Time Gaming, they use a random reel modifier which changes the number of symbols on each reel with each spin. Their original Bonanza Megaways game had 4,096 ways to win, unheard of at the time. Yet today's games that use the mechanic can have upwards of 117,649. Most games have six reels, and each can show between 2 and 7 symbols per spin. What makes them so unpredictable is that you never know how many symbols will turn up once you spin the reel.
Other concepts use cluster pays, which are usually played on grids of 7x7. With these, the idea of a spinning reel is done away with. Instead, you are given a playfield reminiscent of modern mobile puzzle games like Candy Crush. The wins in these games are formed by landing clusters of symbols, literally ones which are grouped together and touch in any pattern, resulting in a lot more ways to win.
Just like the idea of a reel, paylines are the foundation of a slot game, yet their format continues to evolve alongside the games themselves. This has taken the genre from simple lined-up paylines to concepts built on reel modifiers and cluster pays. The downside is that these mechanics can be complex, so players should always check a game's paytable or try it in demo mode before committing real money.
On Spinbit, for instance, every slot's info screen breaks down its exact payline count and win pattern before you spin. If you combine this with a demo mode, then you can test how those paylines actually play out with zero risk. This kind of transparency is what responsible play looks like in practice and helps you understand the mechanics before your bankroll is on the line.
Responsible Gambling – Gambling activities should only ever be undertaken by those who are 18+. It is a form of entertainment, not a way to make money. If you believe it is becoming a problem, then get assistance and use the tools provided by your online casino, such as limits and self-exclusion.
