Megaways on Olympus: how the changing reels work

Megaways has become a word people use without fully knowing what it covers. Some think it means many paylines. Others think it's a bonus feature. Neither is correct, and the misunderstanding leads people to choose games on the wrong basis.

The short of it: Megaways is a licensed engine where the number of symbols on each reel changes from spin to spin. That's it. The rest — cascades, increasing multipliers, free spins — are things developers layer on top, and which are often mistaken for the mechanic itself. Here's how it fits together, and where it is found on Olympus.

01What Megaways actually means

In a classic slot each reel has a fixed number of symbol positions — typically three. Five reels with three symbols give 243 ways to combine if the game pays from the left without fixed lines. In a Megaways engine the number is variable: each reel can land, for example, with two symbols in one spin and seven in the next.

The consequence is that the number of win ways changes constantly. Some spins give a few hundred ways, others give tens of thousands. That's why the number in the game's corner jumps up and down as the reels settle — it's not a bonus, it's just the calculation for that particular spin.

The mechanic has two consequences worth understanding. It increases variance, because the really big spins require multiple reels to land high at the same time. And it makes it hard to read what a spin is worth before it lands — which is largely the point from an entertainment perspective.

02The one true Megaways name in our catalog

Among the 50 Olympus titles there is exactly one game where Megaways appears explicitly on the feature list: Greek Goddess: Siege of Olympus Megaways from the studio Playzia, released 19. marts 2026. The provider's record reports 96,06 procent in RTP, high volatility and a cap of 5.000 times the stake.

The feature list is instructive, because it shows the whole package around the engine: in addition to Megaways it lists Dynamic Reels and Reelset Changing — i.e. the reel set itself changes — as well as Avalanche and Cascading, Free Spins with multiplier, random multipliers, Buy Feature and wilds. It's the full modern recipe.

That there is only one name with the label is a point in itself. Megaways requires a license from the rights holder, and that costs. Many studios therefore choose to build something that behaves similarly, without being able to call it by name.

03Multiway, Reelset Changing and the close relatives

The most common substitution is called Multiway. In our catalog three titles carry the Multiway label with over 1.024 ways: Chronicles of Olympus Assembl'em from Alchemy Gaming with 96 procent and a cap of 11.000 times, Olympus Trueways from BGAMING with 96,84 procent and 5.000 times, and Olympus 7's Dream Drop from Relax Gaming with 94 procent and 13.000 times.

Olympus Trueways is the closest the catalogue gets to a Megaways experience without the name. The feature list includes splitting symbols and stacks on top of Multiway, and splitting symbols are precisely the trick that makes the number of ways explode on individual spins. Olympus 7's Dream Drop goes the other way and combines Multiway with low volatility and a nudge feature — same core idea, completely different temperament.

Then there's Reelset Changing, where the game switches between predefined reel sets. It appears in Glory of Olympus Xmas from GameTimeTec with 96,18 percent, in Olympus Storm Connectify Pays Power Combo from Guld Coin Studios with 96,33 percent and in Olympus Glory Gods & Kings Link from EGT Digital with 96,5 percent. The effect looks similar from the outside, but the possibilities are limited to the sets the developer has defined.

04Why changing reels and cascades go hand in hand

It is no coincidence that almost every game with variable reels also has cascades. The two mechanics reinforce each other. When winning symbols disappear and new ones fall down, the reel layout changes anyway — so it costs the developer nothing to let the number of positions vary as well.

Cascades also make it possible to build a multiplier that rises through the sequence. It is the model that carries the whole large branch of the Olympus genre: Rise of Olympus Extreme from Play'n GO with Cluster Pays, symbol removal and 96,2 procent, or the original Gates of Olympus with cascades, Pay Anywhere and 95,51 procent.

The combination creates a very specific rhythm. Many spins do nothing. Then a sequence starts where the counter crawls and where the win in three seconds can go from negligible to significant. Precisely for that reason this type of game feels more extreme than the numbers alone suggest.

05What it does to variance and your bankroll

Variable reel sets almost always push variance up. Greek Goddess: Siege of Olympus Megaways is likewise listed as high volatility, as are Olympus Trueways and Chronicles of Olympus Assembl'em. The only exception in the family is Olympus 7's Dream Drop, which is stamped low volatility — and which in turn has the catalogue's fourth-lowest RTP at 94 percent.

Practically, that means you need to lower your stake if you want playtime. A high-variance game with a cap at 5.000 times your stake allocates a large part of its payout percentage to events that don't occur in a typical session. If you expect to get your money back evenly along the way, you'll be disappointed — not because the game is cheating, but because it's built that way.

Finally a practical note: Buy Feature is available in several of the titles, including in the Megaways title itself. Buying into the bonus removes the waiting time, but does not remove variance — it concentrates it. Set a limit first. If you're unsure about your spending, you can self-exclude via ROFUS, and there is help available at stopspillet.dk.