There are two special symbols on 5 Lions Megaways and five bonus features that make the slot exciting:
5 Lions Megaways
| Launched in | June 2021 |
| Developer | Pragmatic Play |
| Theme | Asian theme |
| Reels | 6 |
| Rows | 2 - 7 |
| Bet Levels | 0.2 SC to 100 SC |
| Max Win/Jackpot | 5,000x |
| RTP | 96.5% |
| Volatility | High |
| Bonus Features | Free spins, Tumble feature, Wild multiplier, Ante bet, Buy free spins |
| Availability | High 5 Casino, Pulsz Casino, McLuck Casino, Fortune Coins |
| Similar Games | 5 Lions, 5 Lions Gold, 5 Lions Dance |
5 Lions Megaways Slot Review
5 Lions Megaways is the latest addition to the 5 Lions series by Pragmatic Play. The series is famous for its Asian theme and high number of ways to win, and 5 Lions Megaways takes the crown with up to 117,649 ways to win, which is much more than what the other titles offer:
- 5 Lions – 576 ways to win
- 5 Lions Gold – 243 ways to win
- 5 Lions Dance – 1,024 ways to win
5 Lions Megaways was released in June 2021 as a highly volatile slot with a 96.5% RTP, which makes it an excellent option for high rollers. It has a 6-reel grid, with each reel having 2 – 7 rows/symbols per spin.
To accentuate its Asian theme, 5 Lions Megaways uses several animal symbols relating to Chinese culture. These symbols include the Dragon, Crane, Frog, Fish, and Tortoise. However, you’ll also find the titular Lions by landing three Bonus symbols to trigger the Free Spins mode. During this mode, you can get up to 25 free spins, a 40x wild multiplier, and a chance to hit the 5,000x maximum payout.
For anyone with enough SC to spend, a Buy Free Spins option allows direct entry into the free spins mode for 100x your bet, or you can use the Ante Bet feature to boost your chances of triggering the free spins mode at a lower price.
Pros
- Extremely rewarding bonus round
- Base game leaves the possibility for big wins open
- One of the most popular Pragmatic Play slots to date
- Great specs for high rollers
- Scatters and wilds appear relatively often
Cons
- Unimpressive theme and design
- Extremely risky game with long dry spells
- Low maximum win when factoring its volatility
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About 5 Lions Megaways: Game Overview
5 Lions Megaways is an Asian-themed slot from Pragmatic Play that pays homage to the Chinese culture. This time, Pragmatic Play has picked various animals from the Chinese culture to act as the winning symbols while including the Megaways mechanics to provide better chances of landing winning combinations.
Megaways is a unique gameplay mechanic developed by Big Time Gaming and has become a welcome addition to many online casino games. Pragmatic Play uses this mechanic with a license from BTG, making it possible to get up to 117,649 ways to win on 5 Lions Megaways.
The Megaways mechanic uses a “ways to win” model that allows you to receive payouts for landing symbols anywhere on connecting reels. For example, landing matching symbols on reels 1, 2, 3, and 4 will earn a payout, while matching symbols on reels 1, 2, 4, and 5 is a non-winning combination since reels 1 and 2 don’t connect to reels 4 and 5.
Another noteworthy feature is the tumble feature that causes symbols that form a winning combination to disappear, allowing other symbols to take their place for a chance to create additional winning combinations.
5 Lions Megaways has no exciting character like the Starlight Princess or Zeus, so don’t expect exceptional visuals or unique sounds while playing. However, you still get a chance to get a 40x wild multiplier, trigger a free spins mode, and hit a 5000x maximum payout.
For fans of Pragmatic Play games, 5 Lions Megaways may seem familiar since it retains many of the designs and features we love from the 5 Lions, 5 Lions Gold, and 5 Lions Dance slots.
5 Lions Megaways Slot Information
Unlike other Pragmatic Play slots like Gates of Olympus, where you have the Zeus lightning bolts and thunder rumbles to make it more exciting, 5 Lions Megaways doesn’t have an over-the-top design. Besides its basic design, it has a unique soundtrack composed from a mesh of several string instruments.
The game takes place on a 6-reel grid, and with each spin, you can get 2 – 7 rows on a reel. For Megaways slots, the maximum number of rows determines the ways to win, and the calculations below offer a quick pointer on how it works:
- For 5 Lions Megaways with 6 reels and 7 max rows, maximum ways to win: 7*7*7*7*7*7 (i.e. 7 symbols on reel 1, 7 symbols on reel 2, and so on) = 117,649
- For a random slot with 6 reels and 5 max rows (like Gods of Olympus Megaways), ways to win: 5*5*5*5*5*5 = 15,625
After launching 5 Lions Megaways on any sweepstakes casino, you can start playing by clicking on the spin button, but it’s always a good idea to adjust the bet level. You can adjust the bet level using the + or – buttons, and the bet amounts vary from 0.2 SC to 105 SC.
The game pays for landing three or more matching symbols on connecting reels, starting from the first reel. Besides the special symbols, you can find high-paying animal symbols, while the A, K, Q, J, and 10 symbols are the least paying symbols with these payouts:
- Dragon: 25x for 6 symbols
- Crane and Frog: 5x for 6 symbols
- Fish and Tortoise: 2.5x for 6 symbols
- A and K: 1.25x for 6 symbols
- Q, J, and 10: 1x for 6 symbols
Landing at least one Wild symbol as a part of the winning combination will trigger a random multiplier of up to 40x your bet, while six of the Bonus or Scatter symbols will payout 100x your bet and trigger the free spins mode. You can pick your preferred volatility before entering the free spins mode, and you also have a chance to get additional free spins during the round.
5 Lions Megaways Slot Features
Bonus Symbol
The Bonus ying/yang symbol on this slot functions as the scatter symbol. Getting three or more of these symbols during the base game will trigger the free spins mode, and it doesn’t disappear when the tumble feature is active.
Wild
The Wild is a Fu Lion symbol, appearing only on reels 2, 3, 4, and 5. It can substitute for any symbol except the scatter, and landing this symbol as part of a winning combination will trigger a random wild multiplier of up to 40x.
Tumble feature
You can trigger the tumble feature by landing any winning combination on 5 Lions Megaways. Like regular slots, you’ll receive your payout for the winning combination, but all symbols that form the combination disappear from the grid. To cover the now empty positions, the symbols above will drop down, and if there is a new winning combination, you’ll receive another payout.
You’ll continue to get a payout until there is no new winning combination, after which your spin ends.
Wild multiplier
The Wild multiplier occurs when you land a wild symbol as part of your winning combination. As a result, you’ll receive a random multiplier of 1x, 2x, 3x, 5x, 8x, 10x, 15x, 30x, or 40x on your win.
Free spins
The free spins feature is a bonus round you can trigger by landing 3, 4, 5, or 6 of the Bonus symbols. Before jumping into the free spins mode, you’ll receive a payout depending on the number of Bonus symbols you get as follows:
- 3 Bonus symbols: 3x your total bet
- 4 Bonus symbols: 5x your total bet
- 5 Bonus symbols: 25x your total bet
- 6 Bonus symbols: 100x your total bet
After the payout, a new screen will appear, and you’ll have the option to pick one of these seven free spins modes to enter:
- 25 Free Spins: Get 2x, 3x, and 5x wild multipliers
- 20 Free Spins: Play with 3x, 5x, and 8x wild multipliers
- 15 Free Spins: Play with 5x, 8x, and 10x wild multipliers
- 13 Free Spins: Play with 8x, 10x, and 15x wild multipliers
- 10 Free Spins: Play with 10x, 15x, and 30x wild multipliers
- 6 Free Spins: Play with 15x, 30x, and 40x wild multipliers
- Mystery: Play with a random number of free spins and random multipliers
Depending on the free spins option, the bonus round’s volatility changes. So, if you pick the 25 Free Spins option, you’ll play with a low volatility, while the 6 Free Spins option offers a high volatility.
Like in the base game, you must land a wild symbol with the winning combination to trigger the wild multipliers. Furthermore, getting three or more Bonus symbols during the free spins mode will trigger additional free spins, equivalent to the initial number you chose at the start of the round.
Ante Bet
The Ante Bet is a unique feature that boosts your chances of triggering the Free Spins round by increasing the number of bonus symbols that appear on the reels. You can activate this feature by using the switch on the left side of the reels, but it will cost you 1.25x your original bet (or 25% more)
So, if you place a 1 SC bet on the standard mode, your total bet will be 1 SC per spin. However, once you activate the Ante Bet, your total bet becomes 1.25 SC due to the increased 0.25x multiplier. It’s also crucial to note that activating the Ante Bet feature disables the Buy Free Spins option.
Buy Free Spins
The Buy Free Spins feature or Bonus Buy allows you to instantly trigger the Free Spins bonus round at the cost of 100x your original bet. So, if you’re wagering 20 SC per spin, you’ll need 2,000 SC to use the Buy Free Spins.
You can activate the Buy Free Spins whenever you want, but there is no guarantee that you’ll be able to recoup your entry fee through the bonus round.
Game Specs: RTP & Volatility
5 Lions Megaways has a 96.5% RTP, which is better than the 96% average on most slot games. With this RTP value, 5 Lions Megaways should pay 96.5 SC for every 100 SC you spend in the long.
High rollers who love highly volatile slots will have a great time with 5 Lions Megaways since it has a 5/5 volatility rating from Pragmatic Play. Its volatility rating implies that payouts are sparse, but you can get large winnings whenever you land a winning combination.
200 Spins Test of 5 Lions Megaways
To get a firsthand experience of 5 Lions Megaways, I ran a 200-spin test to see if I would make a profit and how many times I would trigger the free spins mode. I did this test with a 0.2 SC bet and a starting balance of 100,000 SC.
My first win was a 0.40 SC payout on my 2nd spin, which was much earlier than I expected and quite exciting. However, my excitement quickly died as I had to wait until my 20th spin for the next win – a measly 0.06 SC. Throughout my 200-spin test, I had an average win size of around 0.3 SC, and I got at least one win every ten spins.
Unfortunately, I couldn’t trigger the free spins mode during my test, and I ended with a bankroll of 99,982.17, signifying a loss of 17.83 SC.
To see how long it would take to trigger the free spins mode, I tried another 200-spin test and got it after the 49th spin. I picked the Mystery Spin option for fun and was rewarded with six free spins and a 5x maximum multiplier. However, I got my highest payout from this mode, ending the round with an 11.21 SC payout.
Choosing to stop my test after the free spins round, I had a balance of 99,994.24 or a 5.76 SC loss after 249 spins.
Our Experts Verdict and Ratings
5 Lions Megaways is a decent game thanks to the Megaways mechanic, free spins mode, and tumble feature. However, there are other areas where it doesn’t meet our expectations, like the 5,000x max payout, which is lower than the 7,000x payout available on 5 Lions Gold. Other issues like the high volatility and the difficulty triggering the free spins mode also make it a less-than-ideal option for low rollers.
| 5 Lions Megaways Ratings/Categories | Rankings | Our Thoughts |
|---|---|---|
| Theme (Symbols, Music, Engagement) | 70% | Excellent well-designed symbols, but the soundtrack (with the piercing string sounds) quickly gets irritating, especially when you’re on a losing streak. |
| Gameplay (Reel Structure, Bet Levels, UX) | 95% | Offering bet levels from 0.20 SC to 100 SC makes it an excellent option for low and high rollers. Plus, the UX is easy to understand even for beginners, and the constantly changing number of rows keeps you on the edge of your seat. |
| Metrics (RTP, Volatility, Max Win) | 70% | The high volatility makes it a risky option for low rollers, and the 5,000x maximum payout is a step down from the 7,000x max payout on 5 Lions Gold. Nonetheless, the 96.5% RTP is a decent value. |
| Bonus Features (Trigger Frequency, Payouts, Action) | 80% | The bonus features are great, and I do love the option to pick my preferred free spins mode. Although triggering the free spins mode is a huge challenge, having the Ante Bet and Buy Free Spins features is a massive addition. However, these features aren’t the best if you’re playing on a budget. |
| Mobile Compatibility (Orientation, Display, Graphics) | 98% | Pragmatic Play always does a great job regarding mobile compatibility, and you won’t have issues playing this slot on your phone or tablet. |
FAQs
Where can I play 5 Lions Megaways?
You can play 5 Lions Megaways on the social casinos we recommend or any other reputable site that offers Pragmatic Play slots.
What is the maximum win on 5 Lions Megaways?
5 Lions Megaways has a 5,000x maximum payout you can trigger during the base game or free spins mode thanks to the up to 40x wild multipliers.
Can I get free spins on 5 Lions Megaways?
You can trigger a free spins mode on 5 Lions Megaways. You can start this round with up to 25 free spins and get more free spins during the bonus round by landing at least three scatters.
What other games like 5 Lions Megaways are available?
5 Lions, 5 Lions Dance, and 5 Lions Gold are other titles with gameplay and design like 5 Lions Megaways. Alternatively, you can try Gates of Olympus, Mammoth Gold Megaways, or Chilli Heat Megaways if you want the Megaways feature.
How is the RTP on 5 Lions Megaways?
With an RTP of 96.5%, 5 Lions Megaways has an above-average RTP for slots in the industry. You should also note that it's a highly volatile slot, so you can get massive payouts when you get lucky.
Author: Bogdan Lunkan
Updated:
Bogdan Lunkan has been playing sweepstakes casino games before it was cool! He has achieved top VIP status on a number of sweepstakes casinos and regularly bets the max when playing his favorite slots. Bogdan takes you inside the mind of a high-stakes player, and following his tips, you too can redeem lots of sweeps coins.
Bogdan Lunkan has been playing sweepstakes casino games before it was cool! He has achieved top VIP status on a number of sweepstakes casinos and regularly bets the max when playing his favorite slots. Bogdan takes you inside the mind of a high-stakes player, and following his tips, you too can redeem lots of sweeps coins.
