How do Multiplier Trails work in slots?

One of the more recent additions to slot games that has become more prevalent over the last few years has been the use of the multiplier trail feature in games.

There are a number of top games that offer this particular type of bonus and while most use it in the same way (as we will explore below), there are a small number of games that adopt a different approach to using the Multiplier Trail bonus.

In this article, we are going to discover more about how this bonus works, the types of features on a slot game that it is usually paired with, why it offers such a benefit to a player playing the game and lastly, we will highlight some of the slot games you can try out for yourselves to see how the Multiplier Trail feature works.

However, let's begin at the very beginning with this particular feature and look at how a Multiplier Trail works in general.

What is a Multiplier Trail feature on a slot game?

A multiplier trail is the name given to a feature on the slot which, when activated by whatever means, can see the value of a win increased on a slot game thanks to a multiplier being applied to it. What makes this different from a standard multiplier is that if you can land successive wins on your slot game, the Multiplier Trail will increase in value and the more successive wins you can land on a game, the greater the value of the multiplier applied from the trail appears to be.

For example, a game may offer a multiplier trail of four different options, such as 1x, 2x, 3x and 5x the standard win. Your first win will trigger a 1x multiplier and then if you can land a second win in a row, then the 2x multiplier will be applied. A third in a row sees the third multiplier landed and finally, land four in a row to trigger the maximum 5x multiplier. Any successive wins after this pay out at the maximum 5x multiplier amount.

The bonus usually resets back to the initial win amount after there is a spin or turn that sees no wins generated on the reels. This usually occurs after the first or second win on a Multiplier Trail bonus and wins that progress onto the third and fourth (or more) multipliers are much rarer.

One thing to note is that Multiplier Trail values can vary greatly from game to game, as can the number of values included in a trail. Some games may offer four, others may offer five or more. Values can range from the standard win amount of 1x and increase up to any amount, although most games tend to see multiplier amounts of up to 5x, 10x or occasionally 20x the standard win amount.

The bonus can be active both in the base game of a slot, or during a bonus round, which brings us neatly onto how Multiplier Trail features are usually included into a typical slot game.

How is a Multiplier Trail usually incorporated into a slot?

Although the only limitation on how a Multiplier Trail can be included within a slot game is down to the imagination of the development team and game designer, many games tend to use Multiplier Trails in the same way and that is as a feature that ties in with another popular feature on slot games, Rolling Reels.

Rolling Reels, which can be known by a number of other names such as Cascading Reels, Avalanche Reels or similar, is when instead of a standard reel, when you land a win, the symbols will flash and disappear from the reels, allowing symbols from above them to drop down and fill the spaces. This can then trigger an additional win, which in turn will trigger more symbols disappearing and more spins dropping down from above to fill the gaps on the reels.

It is easy to see why a bonus like the Multiplier Trail would fit so neatly in with this particular feature. The fact that you can trigger more than one winner from the same spin thanks to Rolling Reels means that the Trail can be activated on the first win and then increase with every successive Rolling Reels win. Indeed, that is how the bonus tends to operate in most games we have reviewed over the years.

One additional perk that is available in most games, although not all, is the fact that if you can trigger a Free Spins bonus game or similar, then the value of the Multiplier Trail will be increased from the standard amounts. This means therefore, that Rolling Reels wins landed in Free Spins will trigger greater value wins courtesy of the higher value Multiplier Trail.

So in the example above where we said the base game Multiplier Trail win amounts would be 1x, 2x, 3x and 5x, in the Free Spins bonus of the game, those win amounts may be increased by a multiple of two or three, so resulting in 2x, 4x, 6x and 10x or 3x, 6x, 9x and 15x wins during the Free Spins bonus game.

On rarer occasions, the Multiplier Trail may be used in a slightly different way, such as being unlocked when certain conditions are met in a slot game, but in general, Multiplier Trails do tend to go hand in hand with Rolling Reel bonuses and are generally available in both the base game and during the Free Spins bonus round.

Are Multiplier Trail's beneficial to slot players?

As you can see from the examples of how the feature is used in slot games above, Multiplier Trails can be hugely beneficial to slot players, especially when they can trigger good value wins when the trail has moved onto the higher value multipliers. Although this is admittedly rare, if you can land a good value win when the multiplier is at its highest, then you can land some huge wins in the base game (and often wins can be worth considerably more if you hit this type of win during Free Spins).

However, it should also be noted that while Multiplier Trails do have the potential to offer players a fantastic chance of a big value win, they generally produce smaller value wins and tend to only reach the first or second multiplier on the trail when triggered.

That said, it is still key to note that there is nothing negative about a Multiplier Trail win for a player. You will at the very least, win the standard amount for whatever you landed on your spin and the only option for you is to increase the size of that win by triggering another successive win on the feature.

What slot games offer a chance to experience a Multiplier Trail feature?

There are an increasing number of slot games that offer the Multiplier Trail feature and we are also starting to see more games that offer Multiplier Trail features in ways different to the usual Rolling Reels feature.

As such, we have outlined a list of games below where you can play the Multiplier Trail feature alongside Rolling Reels, as well as a shorter list of games where a Multiplier Trail is used in a different way to this.

Multiplier Trail and Rolling Reels slot games

• Absolootly Mad Mega Moolah
• Retro Galaxy
• Break Away Lucky Wilds
• Wild Catch
• Aliya's Wishes
• Football Star Deluxe
• North Storm
• Treasures of Lion City
• Jungle Jim and the Lost Sphinx
• Zeus Ancient Fortunes
• Lara Croft Temples and Tombs
• Jungle Jim El Dorado
• Cricket Star
• Rugby Star
• Basketball Star
• Break Away Deluxe
• Tomb Raider the Secret of the Sword

Other Multiplier Trail games

• Noble Sky - A fantastic new slot from Microgaming which has a novel way of using the Multiplier Trail, tying it in with its Shifting Wild bonus feature which can see players win up to 10x their standard bet in the base game.
• Diamond Inferno - Unlock the full set of symbols on the reels (from 5x3 up to 5x6) and you can then also unlock the special Multiplier Trail bonus feature after this which can increase the value of your win from 2x to 10x the standard amount.
• Jurassic World - A Multiplier Trail bonus is included as one of the three Bonus Game features you can play on this popular slot which is part of the Jurassic Park series of games.
• Playboy - Another game that features a Multiplier Trail and Rolling Reels game as one of the bonus games you can play when triggering the bonus.
• Thunderstruck II - Trigger the final bonus game in the Hall of Spins, Thor's Bonus, and you get a bonus feature with Rolling Reels and a Multiplier Trail of up to 5x the standard win.
• Immortal Romance - As with the Thunderstruck II slot, trigger the final bonus game in the sequence and you get the same Rolling Reels and Multiplier Trail option of up to 5x the standard win.

This list is not exhaustive of all Rolling Reels or Multiplier Trail games, but it is a great starting point if you want to try out this feature for yourself and with it being one of the most popular new features on slot games in recent times, why would you not want to give it a spin?