How to Play
Mega Moolah is your standard five reel slot with the maximum of 25 paylines. The maximum amount of coins a player can bet per spin is 125 (5 coins per line), with the coin size ranging from $0.01 to $0.05. This means the maximum bet is $6.25 per spin, which actually makes it quite affordable compared to some other slots played on the max bet.
Apart from the usual wins, there are a few special symbols that you need to be aware of when playing this slot:
- Lions - act as Wilds and replaces any symbols to create winning lines. It also doubles the winnings on these lines. Five lions on the line will pay a total of 15,000 coins.
- Monkey - acts as a scatter. Three or more monkeys appearing anywhere on the reels will trigger 15 free spins, during which all wins are tripled. More free spins can be won during this bonus game.
- High value symbols include: elephants, zebras, giraffes, and a few other African animals
- Regular symbols: playing cards symbols from 10 to A
Five lions is the only line that will bring you a really big payday, paying 15.000 coins. Five elephants are worth 750 coins, five giraffes pay 500 coins, etc.
Free spins are a neat little feature, as you get to see 15 spins at your current bet with no additional cost and with all wins tripled. If you happen to find three more scatters during the free spins, you will receive additional 15 spins and there is no limit to how many spins can be won.
Graphics and Sound
Set in the African Savannah and featuring wild animals from the region, Mega Moolah takes you on an exciting journey through the wilderness of Africa. The atmosphere is further improved by the sounds of birds chirping, lions roaring, and other voices one would expect to hear if they were to visit the untouched regions of this mystical continent.
Mega Moolah will emerge you into quite simple but rather unique gaming experience, amplified by the possibility of winning millions. At any point during your play time, the screen could freeze and surprise you with the message that you've won the Mega Moolah bonus round, where you stand the chance to win a life changing amount on a spin of the wheel.
Jackpot
Although most articles are focused on the main Mega Moolah jackpot, there are in fact four different progressive jackpots that can be won when playing this Microgaming slot:
- Mega: the main payout, starting at £1,000,000
- Major: a smaller win, but can reach a few hundred thousand
- Minor: starts at £100
- Mini: starts at £10
The bonus game is triggered at random, so there is no special combination that you need to hit. From time to time, one of the thousands slots being played at the same time will stop and award a bonus round completely at random.
Once the bonus round is triggered, you will be taken to the Mega Moolah bonus wheel. The wheel will spin and eventually stop at one of the jackpots listed above. If it stops on the Mega Jackpot, you've won yourself the main prize. Although the bonus round starts randomly, you will increase your chances of getting it by playing higher. It is thus favorable to play the maximum bet at all times if you can afford it. Also important to note is that the main bonus cannot be triggered during free spins.
The biggest Mega Moolah progressive jackpot to date was awarded in October of 2015, when Jonathon Heywood from the UK won the astonishing £13.2 million. As far as New Zealand players go, there is one confirmed Kiwi winner, Jason A., who won NZ$1,000,000 in May of 2013. There are also quite a few anonymous winners and at least a couple of them probably hail from New Zealand, given how popular online pokies, especially big jackpot pokies, are around here. Update: Rawiri pou, from Matamata, NZ, Won $10,144,395.82 on Friday 17th June 2017!
Of course, with the possibility of a big win, there is always increased variance and volatility. Because the slot can pay really huge, the game has to offset that possibility by reducing potential smaller wins. Additionally, since you should be playing at the maximum bet to give yourself the best chance to win the main score, this slot can be quite heavy on your bankroll.
Special Features
Since it offers potentially a huge win, the Mega Moolah slot doesn't have many special features. Apart from wild symbols, the full line of which is worth 15,000 coins, there is the earlier mentioned free spins feature triggered by three scatters appearing anywhere on the reels.
Three or more scatters will activate 15 free spins at the bet value which was active when spins were triggered. During this bonus feature, all wins on pay lines are tripled. You can receive more free spins while in the free spins mode so, on a lucky day, the slot can pay you quite handsomely even without hitting the jackpot.
All in all, Mega Moolah is a fun and exciting slot which will keep you entertained.
Game Variations
Due to its great popularity with the players, Microgaming published a few other versions of Mega Moolah, so don’t get confused. These include Mega Moolah Isis, Mega Moolah 5 Reel Drive, and Mega Moolah Summertime. All these games are part of the progressive jackpot system.
