Aside from the themes and features, casino games also come with different payout potentials and slot paylines.

For new players, the question may be whether they should opt for fewer or more paylines when choosing slots to play.

This quick guide will break it down, giving you a better understanding of paylines and how it impacts your gameplay.

What are Slot Paylines?

First, you need to have a better understanding of exactly what paylines are. It’s quite simple – paylines are the patterns that you can form on the reels to lead to winning payouts. The number of paylines available on the slot determines the different number of patterns you can trigger.

The paylines are always clearly displayed in the game info section. Going to the paytable will reveal the patterns you can form that lead to a bigger payout.

Learn more: Online Slot Glossary Guide

All paylines have the same function, but they often work in different ways. The paylines that form the winning patterns are not always alike. Your objective is to match winning symbols on the possible paylines to trigger a win.

Some paylines only pay from left to right, while others can pay from right to left or both left to right and right to left. And special features have the potential to change the payline functionality completely.

Paylines Over the Years

The very first mechanical slot was the Liberty Bell, which was created in the late 1800s. This game only had 3 reels and 1 possible payline. In the 1990s, classic fruit slot titles started appearing, and as the years and technology progressed, more paylines were added.

Today, you have the opportunity to play games with as little as 1 payline or well over 100,000 paylines thanks to the Megaways mechanic.

Slot Paylines and Patterns

• Left to Right – This is the most common where winning combinations are formed from left to right.
• Right to Left – This is an opposite design where the symbols are tallied from right to left instead of left to right.
• Pay Both Ways – A popular payline design is the pay both ways, where symbols are tallied from both left to right and right to left.
• All Ways – With this design, you can have more than 100 paylines, and as the name suggests, the slot pays in all directions.
• Cluster Pays – With this style of design, you need to line up clusters of symbols in order to collect a winning payout. Clusters include 5 or more of the same symbols.

Types of Paylines

Aside from the Payline patterns, there are also payline types you need to be aware of. Online slots can feature either fixed paylines or adjustable paylines.

Less vs. More Paylines

Paylines play a very important role in the online gaming industry as they reveal how the game rewards are distributed. The different payline amounts lead to different experiences. It can either give more or less payout opportunities.

Choosing between fewer or more paylines should be determined by you and the reward rhythm you want. However, while more paylines can lead to more frequent wins, fewer paylines can also lead to bigger wins.

If you’re a new online casino player just starting out, then we highly recommend trying slots with fewer paylines first. These games are more simplified and easier to get a hang of. On top of that, it also lessens your chances of hitting big losses. So, you get to learn in a more controlled environment.

Learn more: Guide to Online and Mobile Slots

If you’re more experienced, you can shift over to games with more paylines. These games award you the chance to hit big wins and more frequent wins. Take note that it is better to play these games with smaller bet amounts, as it can quickly drain your bankroll budget if you play slots with more paylines at the maximum bet.

More paylines lead to more chances to win, but it also means there are more chances to lose. By betting on more paylines, you’re betting on more outcome potentials. Thus, it increases the chances of losing along with the chances of winning.

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