Wild Symbols in Slots: How They Work and How They Pay
Wild symbols in slots substitute for other symbols to help you form winning combinations on the reels. You can think of a wild as the joker of online slot games.
We’ll explain how wilds work and why they’re so powerful. You’ll discover the different types, from standard wilds to sticky wilds and expanding wilds, and we’ll discuss how they impact bonus rounds.
What Is a Wild Symbol?
A wild is a special symbol that substitutes for most other symbols on a slot. This helps you create winning combos.
For example, let’s say you need at least three matching symbols on a payline to get paid. If you land two matching symbols and a wild on a payline, you’ll win, as the wild becomes the third matching symbol.
There are a couple of symbols that a wild doesn’t normally substitute for:
- Scatters: These symbols trigger a slot’s bonus round. For example, you might be awarded 10 free spins if you land three scatters. A wild doesn’t typically substitute for a scatter, so it won’t help you trigger a bonus round.
- Bonus symbols: Some online slots feature special bonus symbols, which unlock special features. Once again, the wild doesn’t normally substitute for them.
How Wilds Pay
Wilds can complete winning paylines or clusters by substituting for other symbols. For example, if you’re playing a fruit-themed slot and you land four lemons and a wild on a payline, it will count as five lemons.
In some games, the wild is also the highest-paying symbol. For example, on the God of Wealth slot from Red Tiger, you’ll earn 4.4x your bet if you land three wilds on a payline, 9.4x for four wilds, and 44.4x your bet if you land five wilds. The second-most valuable symbol only earns you 1.5x, 3x, or 6x your bet.
Wild Symbol Types
Many wild symbols are straightforward: they simply appear at random on the grid and help you land winning patterns. However, slot providers are becoming increasingly creative, so you’ll now find all sorts of weird and wonderful wilds. These are the most common wild symbol types to look out for.
Sticky Wilds
These wilds lock in place on the reels for multiple spins, rather than simply disappearing after a single spin.
Sticky wilds are usually triggered during the bonus round, freezing in their positions for the entire duration of the feature. You’ll often land several sticky wilds during the bonus round.
Toward the end of the round, you may find that lots of spaces on the grid are covered by these wilds, which significantly improves your chances of securing a winning combo.
Expanding Wilds
These wild symbols stretch vertically to cover an entire reel. This turns a single wild into a full column of wilds. As usual, this seriously boosts your chances of landing a win, as expanding wilds help you complete lots of winning combinations across various paylines.
Walking Wilds
Walking wilds move across the grid each time you spin the reels, rather than disappearing or locking into place. They typically shift one reel to the left or right after each spin, and they often grant you a free respin each time they move too.
This process will continue automatically until the wild symbol falls off the grid, so you get multiple chances to boost your winnings.
Stacked Wilds
Stacked wilds are grouped on top of one another on a single reel. They generally appear in blocks of two, three, four, or five, and they can cover an entire reel. The more stacked wilds you land, the better your chances of winning.
Multiplier Wilds
These special symbols act as regular wilds, substituting for other symbols, but they also boost your payout if you secure a winning combo. They typically carry a 2x, 3x, or 4x multiplier, although higher values exist
If a multiplier wild helps you complete a winning line, your payout will be multiplied by the value displayed on the symbol. For example, let’s say a 3x wild helps you complete a combo that pays 10x. In that case, you’d earn 30x your bet, as the wild multiplied your payout by three.
You may also land several multiplier wilds on a single payline. In that case, the symbols often multiply one another to create huge payouts.
Wilds in Bonus Rounds
The most powerful and lucrative wild symbols typically appear during the bonus rounds when you’re playing online slots.
You’ll often find that the base game features standard, single wilds, plus the occasional stacked wild to keep you entertained. The real action unfolds when you trigger the bonus round.
At that point, you’ll often find sticky wilds, walking wilds, and expanding wilds, plus wilds that carry a multiplier boost. You may also find an increased density of wild symbols during the bonus round, as many slots feature enriched reels during the bonus games.
Slots Known for Their Wilds
- Starburst: This iconic slot from NetEnt features expanding wilds, which stretch to cover an entire reel. Whenever a starburst wild lands on the middle reels, you’ll earn a free respin, with the wild locked in place.
- Immortal Romance: A famous slot created by Microgaming, which has a feature called “Wild Desire.” If you trigger it, up to all five reels turn completely wild, helping you win large payouts.
- The Dog House Megaways: You’ll benefit from sticky wilds, 2x multiplier wilds, and 3x multiplier wilds when playing this popular Megaways slot from Pragmatic Play.
- Dead or Alive 2: Another high-quality slot from NetEnt, which offers a max win of 111,111x your bet. If you trigger the High Noon Saloon bonus round, wilds can stack up on the same reel and transform into multiplier wilds of up to 3x.
FAQs
A wild symbol substitutes for most other symbols, helping you create winning lines when playing online slots. Wild symbols can also deliver their own payouts on certain games, although you generally need at least three of them to land on a payline.
No, wild symbols don’t typically replace scatter symbols on most slots. They normally substitute for all other symbols apart from the scatter. That means they can’t help you trigger the bonus round, but you’ll often benefit from enhanced wilds if you do unlock the bonus round.
Open the paytable before you spin to check which wilds a slot has. It’s usually accessible via the “i” button, the question mark, or the hamburger menu button beside the reels. The paytable lists every wild the game uses, which symbols they substitute for, whether they carry multipliers, and how they behave during the bonus rounds.
Sticky wilds stay in place for multiple spins, whereas expanding wilds stretch across an entire reel. They’re both enhanced wilds, which significantly increase your chances of winning, but they go about it in different ways.
Ilija is a CCN writer with 7 years of experience covering all things crypto. Ever since a fateful run-in with Litecoin in 2013, he's been an avid investor and writer in the space. When he's not maniacally hacking away at his keyboard, Ilija spends his time either hiking in nature or holed up in his apartment gaming.
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