Slot tournaments are, without a doubt, one of the best promos to come out in recent years. They combine the already challenging nature of slots with multiplayer gameplay. For online casinos, it’s a great way to showcase new games while players get to test their skills. When talking about payout structures and rewards, there are a few things you need to consider.
Start with the Entry Fee
Although it’s pretty disconnected from the payout itself, the entry fee is actually an integral part of it. Gambling sites like to experiment with this one, as some have no fees whatsoever, while others impose stricter requirements. This mainly for two reasons:
- Ensuring the tournament is fruitful for the casino by hedging any potential wins with up-front revenue
- Setting up a barrier so that only skilled/experienced players will enter the competition
So, whether you’re playing 32Red tournament slots, or those on another platform, try looking at the prize and overall value through the prism of the entry fee. If it’s too high, then the potential risk just isn’t worth it.
Find a Suitable Payout Structure
Overall, slot tournament payout structures are constructed in one of the following ways:
- Flat prize distribution. Instead of prioritizing the winner or the top-three players, this format allows for more winning contestants. So, for instance, the top 10 or 15 players might get a smaller prize. This format is popular because it provides more realistic incentives for you to join.
- Top-heavy focus. As the point of slots tournaments is to win (and have fun, of course), many sites will try to entice high-rollers by promising bigger rewards. It’s worth mentioning that they’re often much, much less likely to come to fruition, while there are also cases of tournament prizes coming with wagering requirements and other restrictions.
What you should go with depends on your preferences and experience level. High-rollers can find top-heavy structures enticing, but we wouldn’t recommend them to beginners. For starters, find a slot tournament with no entry fees and a balance payout structure. Then, you can move onto more ‘extreme’ examples.
Winning Isn’t Everything
Although it sounds obvious, you shouldn’t be disappointed if you don’t win. After all, the statistical probability is already low, so you might as well focus on the entertainment factor. But not everyone is fun-oriented, unfortunately. That’s why gambling sites have recently started equipping their promos with consolation prizes.
Depending on the payout structure, the first rewards to go are cash prizes. Then, those right behind them will be awarded free spins, live casino tokens, or perhaps some other type of perk. Even if you’re not technically profiting from that particular tournament, you can still make the time worthwhile.
Plus, don’t forget about the winnings from the spins themselves. The gameplay will be treated as normal, which means you still have a chance to accumulate winnings from bonus spins, wild symbols, and other features. Again, it’s not as ideal as winning the grand prize, but it’s a much more realistic direction to think in.
Going Beyond Cash
It’s undeniable that we all prefer prizes in cold, hard cash, but frankly, it’s not as fun as more creative prizes. Plus, they’re a better way for gambling sites to use slot tournaments as a marketing tool. Offering uncommon things, such as vacations, cars or gadgets is bound to turn more heads. Of course, the bigger prizes, the lower the chances of you winning it.
When analyzing the payout structure, try to quantify the prize in terms of value. Then, check out the eligible games and decide if playing is really worth it.