Progressive Jackpot

A progressive jackpot is a prize that grows every time the game is played without being won. A small slice of each qualifying bet is siphoned into the jackpot, which can swell across a network of linked machines or sites into a sum reaching seven or even eight figures. When the jackpot is finally hit, it resets to a predetermined seed value and begins climbing again. The mechanism is worth understanding. If 1% of every stake feeds a networked jackpot, then on 10 million of total play the pool gathers around 100,000 on top of its seed, which is why widely linked games can build enormous headline figures. Famous networked examples include Mega Moolah and Mega Fortune, whose record payouts have run into many millions and stem precisely from pooling contributions across thousands of players. There is an important condition attached to most progressives: full eligibility typically requires the maximum qualifying bet, or in some games activation of a specific side wager. Spin for less than the required stake and a winning jackpot combination may pay only a reduced amount, or nothing from the progressive at all. The contribution to the jackpot also means the base-game Return to Player on a progressive is often slightly lower than on a comparable non-progressive slot. The common misconception is that a jackpot becomes 'due' once it has grown large or has not paid for a while. It does not; each spin is governed by an independent random draw, and a long-unhit jackpot is no more likely to land on the next spin than on any other. Chasing a swollen jackpot by raising stakes beyond a sensible bankroll is the classic trap to avoid.