Pokies Tips for Beginners

A pokie runs on chance: you choose a bet, spin, and the result is random every time. The useful tips are about understanding what you are betting and keeping your spending small, not about finding a way to win. This page explains reels, lines and ways, then wilds and scatters, and free spins, in plain words.

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Reels, lines and ways

Open any pokie and you see columns of pictures. Each column is a reel. Most pokies have five reels, and some older ones have three. The pictures are called symbols. When you tap spin, the reels turn and stop, and the game checks whether the symbols have lined up in a way that pays.

Paylines

A payline is a path across the reels, from left to right. If enough of the same symbol sit along that path, starting from the first reel, the line pays. A game may have 5, 20, 25 or more lines. Dolphin Treasures, one of our own games, has 20. Queen of the Niles has 25.

Lines are not always straight. Some run along the top row, some zigzag. The game's info page draws each one.

Ways

Some pokies have no lines at all. They pay in ways. Matching symbols only need to be on neighbouring reels, counted from the left-hand side, in any position on each reel. Indian Dreamings works like this, with 243 ways. You do not pick lines in a ways game. You set one bet and every way is covered.

The paytable

Look for a button marked info, or with an i or a paytable sign. Behind it is a list of the symbols with their pays, and a note on each feature. Reading it is free and quick. Make it a habit whenever you open a game for the first time. Online pokies PNG explains how to compare one game with another.

What your bet really is

This is where new players lose track. The number that matters is the cost of one spin, and games show it in two different ways.

Bet per line times lines

On a lines game, you often set a bet for each line. Multiply that bet by how many lines are in play, and you have the cost of a spin. Here is an example with made-up numbers: 10 toea a line on 20 lines is 200 toea, so each spin costs 2 Kina. The small number on the screen is not what you pay. Look for the box marked total bet.

One total bet

On a ways game, and on many newer pokies, you choose one total bet. What you see is what a spin costs. This is easier to follow.

Check it on every new game

Each game opens with its own starting bet. It may be higher than the game you just left. Before you tap spin, look at the total and bring it down if you need to. Also be careful with any auto-spin button: it keeps spending while you are not watching.

Special symbols and free spins

Wild

A wild is a symbol that takes the place of a missing symbol so a win is completed. In some games it does more. In Dolphin Treasures the dolphin is the wild, and it doubles a win it helps to make.

Scatter

A scatter is a symbol that counts wherever it lands. It does not have to sit on a line. Three or more scatters usually start the feature. In Queen of the Niles the scatters are pyramids, and three of them start the free games.

Free spins or free games

These are spins inside the game that you do not pay for. They are played at the bet you had when they started. Many games add something extra during them. In our club classics, every win in the free games is ×3. You cannot make free games come by betting more or by waiting. They come when the scatters land, and that is random.

To see how features differ from game to game, look at Australian Club pokies, where each of our own games has its own section.

Why small bets make a balance last

Think of your balance as a number of spins. If you divide it by the cost of one spin, you get roughly how many spins you can afford with no wins at all.

An example with made-up numbers: a balance of 20 Kina at 2 Kina a spin is 10 spins. The same balance at 20 toea a spin is 100 spins. The second player has much longer to play and more chances to see a feature. Their chance on each spin is no different. They simply get more spins for the money.

So start at the lowest bet the game allows. If the lowest bet still feels big for your balance, pick another game. Rich88 and YGR make small-stakes pokies, and JILI has a 1:100 lobby where its games are played at smaller stakes.

Some players lift the bet after losing, hoping to recover quickly. Balances empty fastest that way. Hold the bet steady, or lower it.

Bonus free spins and turnover

There is a second kind of free spin: one the site gives you as part of an offer. These are different from free games inside a pokie.

How they are given

In the 918Laki Welcome Pack, a deposit of K20 or more brings 10 free spins on State of Origin, each worth K0.30. You open the game and play them. They cost you nothing from your balance.

What turnover means for the winnings

Turnover is the total of your bets, win or lose. It is not your losses. Winnings from Welcome Pack free spins must be played 5 times on pokies before they can be withdrawn. A deposit bonus has its own number: 8 times the bonus.

Small bets help here too. Turnover counts the total you bet, so many small spins add up the same as a few large ones, with less swing in your balance. Turnover explained shows where to see how much is left.

You can always deposit with no bonus if you want no bonus turnover to play.

Play within your means

Pokies are an adults-only pastime (18+), and they are entertainment you pay for, like a movie ticket. Over time, a pokie keeps more than it gives back. Nobody should count on a win.

  1. Decide on an amount before you log in. It should be money left over after food, rent, school fees and what your family needs this fortnight.
  2. Decide on a time as well. When either one is used up, stop.
  3. Do not top up again in the same sitting to chase what you lost.
  4. If you are ahead, think about withdrawing some. A win left in the balance is usually played away.
  5. Stay off the games when angry, worn out, or after drinking.

There is more on limits and on taking a break in Responsible gaming at 918Laki.

Three myths

"This machine is hot" or "this one is due"

The game remembers nothing. Each spin is a new random result. A game that has just paid is not more or less likely to pay on the next spin. A game that has paid nothing for an hour is not due.

"There is a lucky time to play"

Early morning, late night, payday Friday: the time on the clock does not change a spin. People remember the night they won and forget the nights they did not.

"I have a system"

Changing your bet in a pattern, stopping the reels by hand, or swapping games after so many spins: none of it alters the odds. Be very careful with anyone who offers to sell you a trick or a tool. They want your money or your password.

Beginner questions

Should I play all the lines?

A line you have not bet on cannot pay. If the full cost is too high, lower the bet per line instead of the number of lines, or choose a game with a smaller total bet.

Does a bigger bet give a better chance of winning?

No. A bigger bet makes each win and each loss bigger. A win is no more likely.

What is the difference between free spins and free games?

People use both names. On this site, free games usually means the feature inside a pokie, and free spins usually means spins given with an offer such as the Welcome Pack.

Can I try to work out when a feature is coming?

No. The scatters land at random. Nothing on the screen tells you a feature is near.

How much should I start with?

Only what you can spare. The lowest deposit at 918Laki is K10, and a small-stakes pokie at its lowest bet will give that balance the most spins.

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