Fun Facts About Casino Jackpots

An Introduction to Jackpots

The main difference between jackpot slots and regular slots is that the jackpot ones off the chance of winnings that are considerably larger. Very often, jackpot slots give you the chance to hit a life-changing win with just a single spin of the reels. Typically, you do not need to place a high wager to trigger a jackpot. They can be won from small amounts, sometimes even with a minimum bet, and considering that some jackpot prizes reach seven figures, it represents a fantastic payout.

Types of Jackpots

There are many different types of jackpots nowadays. Jackpot slots are the most popular type of game offering jackpots, but there are two distinct forms of jackpots that they give you the chance of winning, fixed jackpots and progressive jackpots.

Progressive Jackpots

In a nutshell, progressive jackpots are prizes which are constantly growing until the point that they are won. In some games, there is no limit on how much these jackpot prizes can grow to. Whenever a player wagers, a small percentage of that contributes to building up the jackpot.

When a player eventually wins the progressive jackpot, the amount will reset. Afterwards, the process will repeat itself.

Fixed Jackpots

On the other hand, some games will have fixed jackpots. These are massive payouts which always remain the same. A fixed jackpot could either be an amount (say €1,000) or an amount times your stake (say 50000x your total stake). Fixed jackpots are far more common than progressive jackpots; however, they are rarely as large as their progressive counterparts.

The Difference between Local and Network Jackpots

It is also important to be aware of the difference between local and network progressive jackpots. Local jackpots are prizes which can only be won at a specific casino or on a specific game. Network jackpots can be won at different casino sites and sometimes on different games as well.

The difference between the two is that local jackpots are smaller than network jackpots. If you want to look at the two from a metaphorical point of view, a local jackpot is like a village tombola whilst a network jackpot is like the National Lottery. There’s a lot more players competing for the network prize, but the pay-out is far more rewarding.

In other words, a network progressive jackpot is contributed to by players at multiple casinos playing qualifying games. A local progressive jackpot is only contributed to by players from one casino. As such, the network progressive jackpots tend to be much much bigger.

The Multiple Jackpot

Some games have multiple jackpots attached to them. That means that instead of having only one major prize, they’ve got a few. Characteristically, these games have a number of smaller jackpots and then a mega jackpot which is humongous.

Mega Moolah Slot

One of the most famous examples of a slot with multiple jackpots is Microgaming’s Mega Moolah. The slot has four jackpots attached to it, with three fixed ones and a growing progressive jackpot. The Mega Moolah is a network progressive jackpot, meaning that it is contributed to from several casinos. There are over 5 different Mega Moolah slots, which all share the same jackpot network, meaning that all of the games contribute to the prize pool. The mega jackpot prize starts at £1,000,000 and has recorded some of the biggest wins ever in online slot history. The highest ever Mega Moolah jackpot win was worth just over £16.2 million.

Other Games with Jackpots

In addition to the jackpot slots mentioned above, there are also jackpots available from other casino games as well. The likes of blackjack, roulette and casino poker all come to mind. Let’s see each of them individually.

Superman Roulette

First up on the list is Superman Roulette by Playtech. The branded online roulette game features DC Comics very own Clark Kent at the centre of the action. The casino game by Playtech is played on a European Roulette table style, offering a payout of 726x your total stake from a special bonus game.

However, in addition to the bonus game, there are also four different progressive jackpots which can be won through a bonus game of their own. The four jackpots in Superman Roulette are called the Mini, Minor, Major and Grand. They are fed by different DC games across many casinos and they can grow to astronomical amounts. The Grand prize starts off at £200,000 and keeps on growing until it is won.

The jackpot game is triggered at random. It is a picking game in which you need to choose from hidden symbols to reveal jackpot prizes. You then win a jackpot by uncovering enough matching symbols. Best of all, if you trigger the jackpot game, you are guaranteed a win.

Progressive Blazing 7’s Blackjack

Blazing 7’s Blackjack is, as the name suggests, a blackjack game that has a jackpot attached it through a side bet. Whilst you’re playing a round of blackjack, you can place a wager on the 7’s jackpot side bet. This usually costs between €1 and €5 but may vary depending on the casino you’re playing at.

The game uses 6 decks and requires you to match up 7’s if you want to win. These combinations are formed by using your two face-up cards and the dealer’s face-up card. If you have three suited sevens or three diamond sevens, you’re going to have the top hand. This is even better than having three suited sevens or three coloured sevens. The first place will receive 100% of the jackpot prize. The second place will receive 10% of the prize.

The jackpot prize itself depends on how much your wager is. If you play with €1, you would be looking at €20,000 - €100,000 whilst €5 could warrant around €100,000 - €500,000.

Caribbean Stud Poker

One of the most interesting concepts for a jackpot is found in Caribbean Stud Poker. The table game has a progressive jackpot attached to it which you can only win by placing a side bet. The side bet is usually €1 and it is also the contribution to the jackpot pool.

There are many different versions of Caribbean Stud Poker and when it comes to the jackpot side bet, there are a few different payout structures around. The jackpot is usually won with a Royal Flush, but some may pay a smaller prize for landing a Straight Flush while others may even pay you for a Four of a Kind. The pay outs will vary based on the game but they are all very similar.

In most cases, Caribbean Stud Poker has jackpots which can vary from as little as €29,000 to just over €425,000. They pay players 100% of the jackpot for landing a Royal Flush. If you land a Straight Flush, you will win around 10% of the jackpot prize whilst four of a kind can pay anything between 1% and 5% of the jackpot amount. It all depends on the casino, the provider and the type of Caribbean Stud Poker.

Jackpot Trivia

To date, the biggest ever online jackpot slot win was a whopping £17.4 million on Mega Fortune. The slot by NetEnt has narrowly edged in front of Mega Moolah but Microgaming’s slot has 3 out of the top 5 positions for the largest payout from an online slot.

As for the biggest land-based win ever, it’s more than double the amount of the online progressive amount. The record is $39.7 million which was claimed back in 2003 by a resident in LA. He was playing in Las Vegas and wagered $100 for the massive prize.

Last but certainly not least, the biggest jackpot win of all time was won on Mega Millions – a lottery game in the US. On October 23rd 2018, a player from South Carolina won a massive $1.537 billion.