Is Absolootly Mad Mega Moolah a higher or lower variance slot game?

There are some things written in stone in the slots industry, so it seems. Low variance slots will pay out more money more often in smaller amounts, whereas higher variance slots pay out less frequently, but when they do pay, they tend to pay out in significantly larger amounts.

That is the general idea of the variance levels of slot games and of course, it is not a case of a slot being one type or another. Slots variance is best viewed, rather than either being low, medium or high variance, as being a continuum; a line along which a slot game can be positioned based on how it is set up by the development company.

This means you can have very generous low variance slots, low variance slots that tend towards more medium variance and of course medium variance slots that also tend towards higher variance.

Now when we introduce a new factor into this equation in the form of progressive jackpot gaming then what tends to happen is that any game of this type automatically shifts towards the higher end of the variance scale.

Why are progressive jackpot games generally higher variance?

If slot games can fall anywhere along the variance continuum, why is it that progressive jackpot slot games, such as the original Mega Moolah slot and the forthcoming Mega Moolah powered Absolootly Mad slot, have a reputation of being that tend to be towards or at the higher variance end of things?

The answer to that lies in the way that progressive jackpot games work. On a standard slot your money is divided in two ways. A very small percentage (often much smaller than you think) of your stake will go to the casino for their profit, the rest will go into the prize pool for that game, which is then used to pay out all winners on the slot.

A progressive jackpot game is different. Your stake is split three ways on a progressive. The casino still takes a small percentage and the vast majority of the remainder of your stake goes on the standard pay outs players land when playing the progressive, either in the base game, or during a feature, such as Free Spins.

However, the final part of your stake money is your contribution to the progressive jackpot prize pool. This ensures that over time, the jackpot actually does progress in size, that is, increases in value. Over time, the jackpot can grow very large (the current Mega Moolah jackpot prize is now in excess of 11 million).

The fact that these games can produce such massive payouts, and at any time, such as when the Mega jackpot is won on the Mega Moolah slot, means that in order to cover this, progressive jackpot slots of all sizes have tended to be higher variance. Economically, it is accepted that this is the best way to ensure that these games can be offered by casinos as it means the money that the game brings in, can cover those massive payouts that make them so attractive.

Is this approach of progressive means higher variance set in stone?

What is interesting to note is that in recent times, Microgaming and their partners have been working hard to offer something very different to the standard Mega Moolah higher variance games and that is clearly in evidence in their new Absolootly Mad Mega Moolah slot.

An earlier slot game linked to the Mega Moolah network, Atlantean Treasures Mega Moolah, which hit casinos back in February, offered a 10 pay line, win both ways across the reels approach to playing for a progressive jackpot game, the first time that such items were offered on the Mega Moolah network.

Absolootly Mad will follow that innovative trend as it is the first Mega Moolah-linked slot to offer 243 Ways to Win across its 5x3 reels. In addition, the slot will also see Rolling Reels played on a Mega Moolah progressive for the first time, complete with an associated Multiplier Trail.

Now that is very interesting as 243 Ways to Win slot games tend to be more towards the mid-to-lower end of the variance scale. So where will the Absolootly Mad slot fit in the grand scheme of things?

Fortunately, although the game is not set for release until May, we have played the game extensively and we're happy to report on what we found out and it appears that Microgaming, despite what it may say on many of the reviews of Microgaming slots such as Mega Moolah, Atlantean Treasures or Absolootly Mad, tend to offer progressive games with much lower variance than is generally available for progressive jackpot slots.

Why is that the case for Absolootly Mad?

There are a number of reasons why experience tells me that Absolootly Mad is more of a lower variance slot. Firstly, the progressive jackpot system tends to make a slot higher variance, but in Absolootly Mad Mega Moolah, the fact that you have 243 Ways to Win and the Rolling Reels with Multiplier Trail does mitigate those effects great deal.

Every Mega Moolah game can be tough to land wins on from time to time, and that is the case with Absolootly Mad too, but with 243 Ways to Win, you do tend to hit wins much more often, albeit they are generally lower value wins initially. That is game-play that is more in line with low or lower to medium variance games.

It is when the Rolling Reels and Multiplier Trail bonuses kick in that things get interesting. Sometimes you won't win anything on the Rolling Reels bonus, and you end up winning just a small amount. However, if you can string together consecutive wins and increase the Multiplier (up to 5x in the base game and 15x in Free Spins) then some very sizeable wins are possible in the main game, without even needing to access the Jackpot Bonus Wheel round, where one of the four progressive jackpots will be won.

The fact that you can win regular small amounts does make me feel that this slot is nowhere near as higher variance as other non-Microgaming progressive titles, and an RTP of around 92.08% does reflect that (the original Mega Moolah was around (88.12% RTP for the base game, which is widely reported, but once you add the Progressive Jackpot Bonus to that, it leaps up to a much more appealing 94-95% RTP, which again is more typical of a lower to medium variance game).

Absolootly Mad Mega Moolah is a hugely fun and enjoyable game to play and when played sensibly can not only offer you a shot at an incredible progressive jackpot prize, but also a number of other fabulous prizes available in the base game too and game-play which we would classify as more low or low to medium variance. Which is great news not just for jackpot hunters, but also players that are keen to ensure their bankroll can last a longer time.