When you talk about slot machines, there are two specific kinds – flat-top machines and progressive slots. The former is more commonly found and comes with a maximum prize amount. For instance, 1,000 coins are the usual prize, although the amount varies with the machine.
It’s similar to lotteries where the prize pool increases the following month if there are no winners this month.
You might be wondering how big does the jackpot on a progressive slot machine get? There is no simple answer as it varies on the game. The Megabucks slot in Nevada is one of the highest progressive slots in the world as the prize amount starts from $10 million and increases until a win is triggered.
The prize grew to $40 million in 2003 before being hit. However, progressive slots can also be a lot smaller. And you’ll easily come across progressive jackpots right on the other end of the spectrum at $500 or $600. Lower prize games are much more likely to trigger a win while the odds of winning a Mega slots jackpot are astronomically low.
If you look for a good place to play jackpot, you can check Casino Rocket, the best online casino in Australia.
Getting Acquainted with Expected Returns
The term Expected Returns is the percentage of money players get back in the long run when playing video slots. The amount is always expressed as a percentage and sits lower than 100%. Expected Return denotes the winning probability of each prize multiplied by the size of the prize.
Adding the expected return of each prize unlocks the overall return for the game. For instance, if you’re playing a slot machine with 94% Expected Return, you have a chance of getting back 94 cents of every dollar wagered. An average slots player completes 500 spins per hour and if you’re wagering $1 per spin, you’re investing $500 into the game.
94% of $5000 equals $470, which means, the casino keeps $30 per hour on average. There are no guarantees at the end of the day and the casino can charge more than the stipulated amount over a period of time. You might come across sessions where the house kept as much as $300 or as little as $10 depending on your preferred machine.
Actual Returns vs. Expected Returns
As the name suggests, the Actual Return is the exact amount you win. As opposed to theoretical return, which most people refer to when talking about expected returns. But when discussing jackpots with a low probability of being hit, the theoretical return might as well be zero.
Let’s take Megabucks for instance. Your odds of winning are 1 out of 50,000,000. How long would it take you to complete 50 million spins? At 500 spins per hour, it’d take 100,000 hours of gaming to trigger a win. At 40 hours of gaming per week and 50 weeks a month, it’d take you approximately 50 years to trigger a win. That doesn’t seem feasible now, does it!