Chasing the Bonus Feature

December 15, 2011

Take a look at any guide to playing online slots, and you will find a single theme repeated in every single one… Do not chase the bonus feature. However, many of these guides do not take many of the parameters that make up a modern online slot bonus feature into consideration. Quite frankly, a lot of these guides are outdated, or incorrect.

Before we discuss why this may be so, it is important to understand why this single piece of advice seems to be lauded by every experienced online slots player. The reason takes root in offline slots, the kind you find in every casino. The bonus feature of these slots was designed to be a money sink. Whilst a slot’s overall payout percentage may be set to around 98%, the bonus feature is always several percent below this. However, the bonus feature is fun, and it does appear to pay out more (appearances can deceptive), so players naturally try to chase it. This is pure psychological exportation, make no mistakes people, the concept of a bonus feature is nothing short of marketing genius. Originally, online slots followed a very similar feature template to their offline counterparts, so being told not to chase the bonus feature was good advice.

Move forward a couple of decades and the situation is far different. Many of the networked progressive jackpot pools can ONLY be won through the bonus feature. Additionally, many modern online slots from gaming platform giants such as Net Entertainment and Microgaming, rely upon the bonus feature to set the scene or theme of the entire online slot. In fact, the term “bonus feature” has been replaced by “main feature” in the description of many recently released online slots. From a payout point of view, although the bonus feature or main feature does payout less overall, by a few percent, it is the only way to get a chance at winning a multi-million dollar progressive jackpot. In effect, players are giving up a small drop in percentage to win chance, in exchange for a shot at spinning in a major jackpot.

We also need to consider the fact that many online slots players only play for fun. They bet minimum wagers with a small bankroll. For this kind of player, the bonus feature is one of the main reasons they chose to play online slots, due to the sheer fun factor.

Although it is still good advice not to chase the bonus feature, it can no longer be considered best advice. From a monetary point of view, chasing the bonus feature can often be the only way to get a chance at a big jackpot payout. Additionally, by not chasing the bonus feature you are missing out on a whole lot of fun.

Other Recent Articles Added to 777 Online Slots