The design of slot games has never sat still, although we’re certainly in a unique era in terms of how rapidly the kinds of features and functions available are diversifying.
It’s now standard practice to include bonus features with multiple layers in slots at land-based and online casinos alike, with the main aim being player engagement and novelty.
The question, then, is how much the experience alters depending on whether you’re playing the base game or you’ve activated a bonus round, beyond the most conspicuous, superficial tweaks to the visuals and audio.
Volatility
As a rule, you’ll find that online slots have volatility that’s dependent on their complexity.
In other words, simple games with traditional design features and straightforward bonus games, if they have these extras at all, will be the least volatile, paying out modest wins regularly.
Meanwhile, highly volatile games will have more lines and ways, more bonus modes, and the potential for much bigger jackpots, albeit with a smaller chance of actually hitting these attention-grabbing wins.
Volatility matters for a few reasons, not least of which is the way it impacts your bankroll.
In this sense, bonus features can be a mood changer, since games that feature them will pay out the largest sums within them, but typically require a larger investment of time and money to reach this point.
So, bonuses are the most volatile aspect of a slot, and for every big win, there’s the potential for several duds. It’s just a case of adjusting your expectations and your bankroll accordingly.
Mechanics
Another significant change to the slot experience that separates bonus features from the base game is the mechanics behind how they play.
Standard spins might involve matching symbols with the occasional wild thrown in. Bonuses might include unique features, like wild stacks and multipliers, that are only available within them, harking back to that idea of volatility and the potential for big pays.
Bonuses can also have a completely different approach to pays, with the hold-and-spin trope and the ability to unlock extra rows when collecting paying symbols being a good example.
Then there are slots that have more than one bonus feature, with the ability to trigger additional versions within an ongoing bonus, under certain conditions.
Aesthetics
While not necessarily impactful on how the game pays, the visual and audio changes that take place during bonus features do change the experience from the base game.
Some slots have special songs that play only during bonuses, for instance, in order to hype up players and signal that this is something special.
Many also have a change in color scheme and some unique symbol designs attached only to bonus modes.
The excitement and tension of bonus features are amplified from the base game because of these aesthetic choices, as you’d expect.
Adding in flashy visuals and intense audio might not have any impact on the outcome in this volatile game mode, but it does sum up what makes the bonus feature experience really special.