Like the Joker in a deck of cards, wilds in slot games can substitute for any symbol on the reels to complete winning paylines that otherwise wouldn’t result in a win. In some slots, the wild symbol carries no value while it can serve as the highest paying symbol in some.
Wilds in slot games appear randomly on the reels. This symbol also can’t replace scatter, free spins and bonus symbols. Typically, the game’s paytable will have instructions on all the symbols including where the wilds appear and what they will and will not substitute for.
To better understand these wild surprises, take a look at the different types of wilds and learn how they work.
Types of wild symbols
Wild with multipliers
A wild with a multiplier means that when you land a win, it will multiply the payout.
Sometimes wilds can add onto each other, so two wilds with an x3 multiplier would give you an x6 multiplier. There are no hard and fast rules, wilds can be straightforward as increasing wins 2x, 3x or 5x during the base game or the free spins or bonus rounds. Depending on the game, other slots will count wilds with multipliers toward your line bet or total bets.
Stacked wilds
You have more chances of hitting winning combinations when stacked wilds land. They appear on top of one another, forming an entire section of wilds on a reel. When they drop, they may cover an entire reel in bands of 2, 3, or 4 stacked symbols.
In some slots, stacked wilds can land on every reel and in others, they only land in specific reels. Most stacked wilds in slot games have a high variance, which is why it’s one of the most favoured symbols amongst players because of its potential to reward higher payouts.
Some games have horizontal and vertical stacked wilds even during the base game while others exclusively appear in free spins or as a bonus feature.
Stacked wilds will have a single wild symbol falling on a reel before it expands to fill in adjacent positions. It works more or less the same as expanding wilds in some games while it expands at the top or bottom section of the reel for others.
Sticky wilds
A sticky wild is a standard wild symbol that stays on the reels during the next one or two spins. If they remain on the screen during multiple spins, you can stack up several sticky wilds and create winning paylines!
Depending on the settings of the game, sticky wilds are a common feature of bonus rounds where they will remain during the free spins.
Expanding wilds
An expanding wild symbol increases in size and fills the length of the reel from top to bottom. This makes every symbol on the reel a wild and can potentially generate several wins over paylines. These wilds appear randomly on the reels and there’s no way to know when and where they land.
Cascading wilds
These wilds appear on the screen similar to the ‘tetris’ type of game where winning combinations explode or disappear and other symbols fall onto the reels to take their place. This can result in large wins if the winning combinations keep coming up.
Overlay wilds
These wilds stack up in a particular shape and replace standard symbols normally appearing at the end of a spin. They cannot be placed on top of a regular wild but can be used to create shapes rather than a line of wilds.
This is an all-around wild slot feature that also helps players activate the exciting bonus features offered in the game. Sometimes they come as a cross, in an L-shape or a cluster of wilds.
Moving wilds
A moving wild symbol will not stay in one spot and will change position from one spot of the reel to another spot in one direction until it eventually falls off from the side of the reel or the bottom of the rows.
If a moving wild slot is good, you get free respins for as long as the wilds are moving on the reels. So, you get the chance to form winning combinations with wild symbols during consecutive free spins.
Shifting wilds
Shifting wilds are similar to sticky wilds in that they remain on the reels for a certain number of spins after they first appear. However, instead of remaining where they initially landed on the reels, they shift to other areas.
Whenever a shifting wild symbol appears on a spin, it will typically shift one position in any direction for a set number of subsequent spins. They tend to appear on the last reel of most slot machines more than any other location on the reels.
In some instances, shifting wilds in slot games reward free spins and other slot features in addition to any payout generated by shifting wilds in winning combinations.
In other instances, players may even have the ability to interact with certain games by deciding where to place the shifting wild symbols.
Wild reels
Certain games will randomly fill one or more reels with wild symbols, transforming the entire reel into wilds. These wild reels can occur on multiple reels within the same round. This feature, unlike expanding wilds, does not require a wild symbol to trigger the feature.
When you land wilds in slot games, they fill in for regular symbols on the reels. The more wilds appear on the reels, the bigger your potential payout will be. Deposit to play slots at Casino Days and start watching those wilds create winning paylines today!