Many times when I examine various aspects of slot volatility, it’s around the game’s design. Things like number of symbols or hit frequency is simply the mathematical design of the game and how it plays out in practice.
But if you’re looking for games that are more volatile, there’s a simple, tell-tale sign that slot developers will sometimes put out there to give you an indication, and that’s to use an Asian theme. Some of them will also work in other aspects of Asian good luck, such as the heavy use of the number 8.
Over time, Asian themes have been a clearer signal that the game you’re looking at is a volatile game. The audience that an Asian theme draws enjoys that style of game, and over time the Asian theme has been married to the more volatile games as a result.
If you think about examples of games with an Asian theme:
- Fu Dao Le
- 88 Fortunes/5 Treasures/Dancing Drums
- Fu Dai Lian Lian
- Many Mighty Cash variations (as well as many other Gimmie Games games like 8 Petals)
- Rising Fortunes
- Tree of Wealth
- Eastern Dragon (or just about any other AGS game, really)
They all have Asian themes with high potential for big payouts, but also a level of difficulty. Many also have 88 cent bets and so forth.
So if you’re looking for something pretty certain as to whether a game will be volatile, look for the Asian theming and 8s hallmarks, and it’s a pretty good likelihood it’ll be on the volatile side.
