Grid Slots

What Are Grid Slots?

Grid slots, or cluster pays, are played on fixed grids with no traditional paylines. Instead, you get a win by landing matching symbols in clusters on the grid. They are different to traditional 5×3 slot games (the most common setup). You’ll literally see a grid of symbols ranging from 3×3 up to 9×9 in size.

For a win, the symbols need to be adjacent to one another. They need to be touching either horizontally, vertically, and/or diagonally. The bigger the cluster (the more matching symbols), the bigger the payout/win. This concept is similar to the one used in the puzzle game Candy Crush Saga.

How to Win at Grid Slots

With standard video slots, wins are created by landing matching symbols on successive reels starting from reel 1. With grid slots, a win is created when you see a cluster of matching symbols adjoined in any direction.

This brings the first bonus feature into play. Winning symbols normally disappear and give you a cascade/tumble with new symbols filling the newly vacated spaces. If you get another win, the process repeats until no more new wins are formed.

Whilst tumbles were found in NetEnt’s Gonzo’s Quest in 2011 and cascades are used in most Megaways slots, all grid slot games deploy this feature, allowing you to win repeatedly from each spin. Big or specific cluster combinations can lead to bonus features and other extras coming into play.

Grid Slots Bonus Features

With most grid slots, there are certain bonus features that appear frequently:

• Cascading wins, tumbles, or avalanches: When a winning cluster is created, the winning symbols disappear to be replaced by new symbols. This allows for consecutive wins if you manage to get successive winning clusters. This can lead to big wins or trigger more bonus features, such as an increasing multiplier.
• Bonus meter/collection system: A winning cluster can contribute to a meter, which can, in turn, bring in various types of wild symbols, cash prizes, or bonus features. If you take Quickspin’s Golden Glyph, wins can lead to Power Wild symbols, bringing in Power-Up features that give you more wilds and removing certain types of symbols. In Viking Runecraft (Play ‘n GO), wins charge the meter to bring 1 of 4 Charge of Destruction Bonus features into play.
• Free spins: They are normally triggered by landing scatters or by achieving a certain number of consecutive wins/reactions. The free spins normally combine all features found in the base game in a more lucrative way. If you take Big Time Gaming’s Cyberslot Megaclusters, for example, the grid expands from 3×3 to 9×9 in size, with roaming wilds increasing the multiplier.

Grid Slot Providers

Play’n Go is probably the provider most famous for grid slots, but others offer this type of slot game as well. Developers like Nolimit City, Big Time Gaming, Push Gaming, Pragmatic Play, Quickspin, Relax Gaming, NetEnt and ELK Studios (amongst others) are therefore vying for your attention.

Scatter Pays Slots

Normally referred to as a grid game, scatter pays slots differ from cluster pays in how winning combinations are formed.

With standard grid slots, you need a certain number of matching symbols to appear adjacent to one another (i.e. in a cluster). With scatter pays slot games, matching symbols can appear anywhere on the grid.

This means the identical symbols don’t need to be adjacent/touching in any way. You could have 1 symbol on each reel, for example. The most popular scatter pays slot is Sweet Bonanza by Pragmatic Play.

Best Grid Slots

With most slot developers creating cluster pays slots, there are more and more games to choose from. With new titles appearing monthly, all slot sites offer them to their players.

Here are our top 7 grid slots:

• The Border (Nolimit City)
• Jammin’ Jars 2 (Push Gaming)
• Sweet Bonanza (Pragmatic Play)
• Reapers (Print Studios)
• Cluster Tumble (Relax Gaming)
• Golden Glyph 2 (Quickspin)
• Star Clusters Megaclusters (Big Time Gaming)

Grid Slots Summary

The explosion of grid slots has been noticeable in recent years. With all slot providers now offering games with cluster pays mechanics, more innovation and better slots are being produced all the time.

All the best casino sites offer grid slots which helps and there’s plenty more coming. Nolimit City have already released their first title (The Border) so expect new features, ideas and concepts in the near future.