High Volatility Slots: Games with Bigger Risks and Rewards

volatility in slots

When people look for the best slot game titles, they commonly focus on a few features: RTP, theme, number of paylines and bet range. However, for some reason, a large group of people skip exploring slot volatility. 

Slot volatility is a parameter that defines how big and frequent payouts players can expect to get during their sessions. Based on that insight, people can easily determine which type of slot games are more suitable for their budget and gambling preference/style. 

On this page, we will focus on explaining high-variance slots. There really are many good titles out there, but before moving to them, we would also like to talk about their features in general. So, let’s get started. 

What are Volatility Slots?

So, as we explained in the introduction, volatility defines the frequency and size of your wins while playing a particular slot game. Based on this parameter, there are three types of slot games:

  • High volatility slots
  • Low volatility slots
  • Medium volatility slots. 

High Volatility Slots

High variance slots are the games that statistically allow players to win big wins for a long period. Instead of getting smaller prizes in a row, you will get large wins after a larger number of spins. Logically, since everything is random, it is not possible to predict when those larger wins will happen (or if they will happen).

Low Volatility Slots

Low-volatility slot options, on the other hand, have a completely different way of functioning. In this case, players will get smaller prizes in a short period. This would basically mean that the rewards can come on every third or fourth spin. However, their size isn’t larger than the initial bet. Of course, that doesn’t mean a different scenario isn’t possible; you can win big from time to time as well.  

Medium Volatility Slots

As you can guess, medium volatility slots are some sort of balance between. For example, if you get a prize on every 4th spin with low volatility slots and on every 20th spin with high volatility slots, medium-variance slot machines will give you a reward on every 9th or 10th spin (just an example). 

Choosing the most suitable slot game based on volatility level analysis is going to be much easier. Here are things that you should have in mind: 

  • High-volatility slots are a much better option for players who are willing to risk more and bet bigger. The budget should not be their problem, and they could handle consecutive failures because they stay within their financial capabilities and keep the responsibility levels high. 
  • Low-volatility slots, on the other hand, are better for people with smaller budgets. They provide more wins in a shorter period, which allows players to prolong their sessions. If they are lucky, they may turn their bet into something much larger. 
  • Medium volatility slots are ideal for people who do not play in any of the ways mentioned above and are “somewhere between”. 

Characteristics of High Volatility Slots

Higher volatility games commonly have certain characteristics that will allow you to easily recognize them even without reading their characteristics. 

These online slots are much better for risk takers and high rollers because they offer high payouts in the long run (not at once). Despite larger amounts of money, high variance slots require a higher level of patience. If you lose your nerves and irresponsibly start raising the bet, you can end up losing everything very soon. 

Are these wins big? Yes, high-volatility slots offer the largest payouts. When you look at the history of the biggest winnings of all time, you will notice that players achieved them by playing exactly this type of slot machine, either online or offline. 

Top High Volatility Slot Games to Try

Based on the previous explanations, you should already have an idea of whether high volatility slot machines are a good choice for you or not. The next obstacle that you will have to deal with is finding the best titles. Fortunately, we have done the research instead of you. Check out the list below and discover the popular high-volatility slots in the USA!

Book of Dead 

Book of Dead has a high slot variance and deserves to be on this list for multiple reasons. It is a classic slot game with a 5×3 structure and 10 paylines. Its RTP is above 96%, which is a great thing. 

This online slot offers two types of bonus rounds. The first one is a basic gamble feature that lets you increase the value of regular winning. On the other hand, this slot machine also allows players to get 10 free spins by collecting 3 or more scatter symbols. Before the game, the algorithm chooses a special symbol that becomes expandable during bonus rounds. It will be necessary to get at least 3 low-paying symbols or 2 premium ones to get money.

Play’n GO stands behind this high-variance slot machine, which probably tells a lot about the quality of graphics, animations and sounds. 

Dead or Alive 2 

NetEnt is a prestigious software development company that is popular for developing some of the best high-volatility slots. Without any doubt, Dead or Alive 2 is one of their most quality products on the market. 

Before everything, we need to highlight the max win potential of this game. Believe it or not, players can multiply their initial bet up to 111,111 times. You won’t find a lot of high volatility slots with such a characteristic. 

Best online casinos will never miss an opportunity to offer this game. One of the reasons why people love it is that there are 3 bonus game types that people can unlock by collecting 3 or more scatter symbols (you can buy bonus rounds as well). These are the most important things you should know about them:

  • Train Heist: This bonus game type comes with increasing multipliers. It grows in value with every wild that appears on the reels. Plus, the wild symbols ensure you an extra free spin. If you collect 16 of them in total, you get 4 additional FS. 
  • Old Saloon: Immediately from the beginning of bonus rounds, all the wins get multiplied by 2. However, there are also sticky wilds that stay after they appear on the screen until the last spin. If 5 of them land, you get five extra free spins. 
  • High Noon: Remember what we said about the max win potential? Well, this is the bonus game type that can ensure you the biggest wins! High Noon offers wild multipliers; for example, if you get 2 of them, the multi is 2x; if you get 3, the multi is 3x. 

Dead or Alive 2 is not one of the best high volatility slots because of some other features. Its RTP is almost 97%, the theme and game mechanism are super interesting, and you can find it on all professional online casinos. Since this slot machine pays a lot, we don’t see a reason not to test it. 

Vikings Unleashed Megaways 

Slots inspired by historical themes are always the right choice. Vikings Unleashed Megaways is one of the best high volatility slots because of its enormous payout potential (max win is 50,000x), interesting theme and amazing bonus rounds. It comes with 6 reels and 2-7 rows, which is not a common structure in the iGaming world. 

If you want to enjoy bonus rounds, you can buy them. However, if you want to stick to luck, it will be necessary to collect at least three scatters. This way, you will get 12 free spins + 5 spins in case any extra scatter appears during the FS. Also, you can get re-spins if, once again, a minimum of 3 scatters land on the reels.

With every winning combination, the multiplier goes up. However, you can also get wild multipliers during the game that will improve the value of your wins. 

Big Bass Splash

Pragmatic Play has to be on the list because it is the developer of the best high-volatility slots in the iGaming world. Big Bass Splash is, without any doubt, one of them. 

This game has an adjustable RTP percentage that changes from time to time. Its minimum is around 94.50%, but it can go up to 96.91%. Logically, this depends on the wins and losses that players experience in real-time. The game has a 5×3 structure and 10 paylines, which is some sort of standard. 

The gaming experience with this game is fantastic because of the unique bonus rounds it offers. When you collect 3 scatter symbols, you get from 10 to 20 free spins. 

So, how do things function? The fisherman symbol is here a wild and collector at the same time. During free spin gameplay, you will see fish symbols and each one has a particular value. If both of these symbols land on the reel simultaneously, the fisherman collects them, and you win the total amount. 

The fisherman has another role. If you collect 4 of them during the first set of bonus spins, you will get 10 extra spins. However, this time, all the collected fish will be doubled. If this happens again, multi is x3, and ultimately, the last ten extra spins come with a fisherman (collector) with a 10x multiplier. 

Gates of Olympus

As we said, Pragmatic Play is king of high variance slots, which is the reason why we will end this list with another of its products. This game is widely popular in all parts of the world; most influencers who stream their gambling sessions usually decide to purchase bonus rounds for this game. These purchases are usually massive. 

This Ancient Greece-inspired game has 6 reels and 5 rows. There are no paylines here; the game comes with a cluster payout mechanism. In other words, you will need to collect a minimum of 8 symbols to hit a win. 

Bonus rounds are the main feature that put Gates of Olympus on the list of the best high-volatility games. By collecting four or more scatter symbols, you ensure yourself 15 free games. In each round, Zeus can strike a multi (from 2x to 500x). If, during that spin, any of the symbols are connected, the multiplier gets collected and kept for the new bonus rounds. Maximum win potential is 5000x. 

Strategies for Playing High Volatility Slots

After everything we explained, we hope that you determined whether this payout frequency is compatible with your personal preference and budget. You need to be aware of the high risk that these games come with, not just the big wins they can bring. 

We are not here to tell you how to become a millionaire by playing games with high volatility ratings. Our mission is to help people enjoy and prolong their sessions and maybe, just maybe, make a profit. Here are the moves that can help you increase your odds:

  • Properly organize your budget: This is something you would have to do anyway, even when playing low-volatility slots. Yet, it seems to us that good casino bankroll management is more meaningful here. Since payout frequency is specific, you need to be “financially ready” to lose money in consecutive wins until you eventually win big. 
  • Stick to the same bet: Based on your money organization, you will easily determine the adequate bet size when playing slots with a high volatility rating. Don’t experiment with things; simply practice flat gambling and prolong your sessions that way. 
  • Prepare your nerves: You won’t manage to apply any of the previous two strategies if you are not patient. If you really prefer this slots’ volatility level, then you must be ready for such a style of playing. People often emotionally raise bets when they lose money in 30 spins in a row. However, that is the way these games function, so get mentally ready before you even start and accept the risk involved.
  • Do research on high-volatility slots: You can check our recommended games; they are all interesting, simple, and come with high RTP. Yet, no one says you have to apply our tips blindly. Simply research the game catalog of your chosen casino site and determine which games suit you the most. Despite volatility and RTP, focus on the theme, graphics, design, animation, and sounds. You can also stick to a particular software developer. The point of this strategy is to play slots that will really entertain you. If you are not feeling like that, you are missing the point. 

Playing High Volatility Slots at Evo.io

Evo.io casino offers a huge number of high-volatility games that are popular in all parts of the world. We collaborate only with prestigious software development companies that have established many achievements in the online casino world. Each game you find on our platform is RNG-verified, which guarantees the complete randomness of your sessions. 

Besides that, we offer a set of modernized payment methods. Our registered customers can deposit and withdraw crypto funds and enjoy even comfier sessions with high-volatility slots. Every money transfer is approved within minutes, and we are sure most of you appreciate such a service. 

Our guide will probably help you find high-volatility slot tiles that match your playing style completely. Don’t forget to organize your budget wisely and prepare your nerves since the wins don’t come that often (although they can be big). 

There is not much left to say. Register on evo.io, enjoy quick transfers, a diversity of games, and have a lovely day.