Of all the bonuses offered in online casino games, free spins are the most common. The popularity of these incentives comes as no surprise considering they are specifically built for use in slots, which are highest demanded of all games. These offers can be found in nearly all slot games, including when you play Tiki Tumble by Push Gaming. These slot bonuses were invented long before the entry of online gambling, but their provision has blown up to considerable proportions since the internet became the prime source of slot entertainment. Usually, free rounds are activated by bonus symbols appearing on the grid. Some slots deviate from this norm and leave the triggering of these rounds to other special events such as a meter filling up.
Considering how popular free spins are and the likelihood that they will continue to grace slot screens for as long as the games are around, it is safe to assume that these bonuses are beneficial. They have a variety of useful upsides that players can enjoy, such as:
- Allowing free gameplay at no cost: The most obvious benefit that gamblers get from free spins is the ability to play the game without having any costs incurred. If the bonus offers ten rounds, the next ten spins in the game will not incur any charges to the players’ credit balance. Any combinations created during the rounds result in winnings that are added to the player’s account.
- No cap on winnings: Free spins are popular rewards in casinos. The freebies offered by gambling platforms can often be used in different games and have a predetermined value that is set by the website. In most cases, casinos include a limit on the winnings that can be collected using the free spins, which often go as high as 200 pounds. The freebies can also be restricted from playing in games with progressive jackpots. This case does not apply to in-game free spins. The value of spins is only predetermined by the round in which they are landed, which means it can be the lowest or highest possible value. Also, all the collected payouts are awarded to gamblers’ accounts without any of it being cut out.
- Can be retriggered: In most slot games, the ability to land free spins does not stop with landing the offer for the first time. As the freebies play, the icons responsible for triggering them can appear once more on the screen, which adds more rounds. The presented spins can be the same as those of the base game or a different number. The number of spins that can be landed within the freebies can be limited or not.
- Open doors for other bonuses: Free spins are some of the slot machine bonuses that can carry additional bonuses within them, which drives up the chances of higher payouts than in the base game. For instance, some icons like special wilds and mini-game symbols can be restricted to appearing only if the free spins are playing. The payouts from the freebies can also be subject to multiplier bonuses as well, which drives up the value of each payout combination.
- Enhance the entertainment value: Free spins are a pretty standard inclusion in slot machines, and they all play out on the basic concept of offering bonus rounds that don’t incur charges. In some slot machines, this bonus is taken a notch higher to add to the entertainment value of the slot machine, and further the storyline being followed by the game.
An excellent example of such free spins is the slot game Arcane Reel Chaos. The pokie machine invites players to follow the story of Don Parker, a businessman that is possessed by an evil spirit (Deep Pockets) as he tries to save his business. Four heroes emerge to try and fight off the darkness in the free spins bonus, and each one has an extraordinary power that comes to life as the rounds play. During the bonus, both the heroes and villains receive health cards. Any rounds resulting in a payout spells a win for the heroes, which grants an additional card. A loss, however, takes away a health card. The battle is played out in four different stages with the final one offering six cards and a multiplier of four times.
Free Spin Limitations
Free spins are an undeniable useful addition in slot machine games, but they do not lack their shortcomings. Some of the downsides that are experienced with this bonus include:
- No bet value changes
Usually, once this bonus is activated, it plays with the same bet value as that of the round they were landed in. Therefore, the coin value, number of coins, and activated win lines remain the same. This means that the size of winnings cannot be driven up for the bonus round if the wager being used was small. In some slots, however, all the bet lines are activated as the free spins play.
- No access to the gamble feature
The gamble feature is one of the most common slot incentives. It allows players to use winnings as bets when playing a guessing game to try and get double the value. This round is usually activated by any win where one can choose to collect the payout or play the gamble game. During the free spins, the gambling feature is deactivated since the rounds play consecutively like in autoplay. Even after the round ends, the gamble feature cannot be selected, especially if the payout value from the bonus is high.
- Lack of bonus symbols
In some slot machines, the free spins play with only the standard symbols without any bonus icons. For instance, the scatters used to trigger the offer can be removed to avoid the round being retriggered. Also, wilds can be taken out, leaving the characters to complete combinations on their own, which drops the winning odds.
Slots with Free Spins
The casino realm is filled with more slot machines that have free spins than those that don’t, which leaves players with a wide choice range to choose from. On top of including this bonus, gamblers should consider numerous other factors to end up with the best one. Punters should asses software developer, bet limits, RTP rate, volatility, bonus features, and availability. Reading through reviews of gamblers who have already tried out the title also gives insight on whether it is worth a shot or not. A few of the best pokie games that feature free spin bonuses include:
- Playboy
- Release the Kraken
- Moby Dick
- Ozzy Osbourne
- Book of Dead
- The Wish Master
- Blood Suckers 2
- Jumanji
- Blood Queen
- Dead or Alive 2
- Wish Upon a Jackpot, etc.
The contents of the free spins in each of these slots can be explored in their free to play versions.
Final Remarks
The upsides of free spins in slot machines far outweigh the downsides, which make them incredibly useful in gameplay. Players should consider pokies that have impressive free spins and other bonuses to play in for better chances at sizeable payouts.