Added: December 31, 2015
Bonus features have become an integral part of contemporary online pokies. If you want to play a pokie without such features, you will have to go back a decade. The first thing you need to understand about bonus features is that they add some degree of volatility to the online pokie. You receive payouts in bonus features without staking any amount. This “freebie” is compensated for by reducing the payout potential of the regular spins. The triggering of the bonus features is a random event. If you are lucky to hit them often, you will end up with big wins.
There are two types of bonus features. One of them is referred to as free spins or free games. The most common way of triggering this feature is getting three scatter symbols on the reels. However some of the latest online pokies have adopted innovative methods. When the feature is triggered you are awarded a number of free spins. No bet is deducted from your balance for these spins, but the payouts are credited to your account. The number of free spins may be fixed, may be determined by the number of scatter symbols in the trigger or randomly awarded in some way. The payouts in the free spins are embellished in various ways. The most common is by applying a multiplier to the payouts. You can also have additional wilds, stacked wilds and other such features. The only limit is human imagination. But the greater the benefits offered in the free games, the higher the variance of the online pokie and the lower the normal payouts.
The other common feature is the bonus game on the second screen. When this bonus feature is triggered the reels disappear and a scene is displayed on the screen, usually related to the theme of the online pokie. You have to pick objects and will be awarded bonus credits for each pick. The number of picks can be directly awarded or can depend on the number of bonus symbols in the trigger. Sometimes you will be asked to pick symbols until you reveal an icon that ends the feature. Second screen bonus games are getting more complex. Some of them may lead to higher levels where bigger payouts await you. There are some variations in the way the bonus games are conducted. Sometimes you have to match objects and at others the outcome depends on a virtual race.
