Megabucks Casino Machine
IGT’s Megabucks is a dollar coin slot machine that requires 3 coins or $3.00 to hit the jackpot. The jackpot is reset to a predetermined amount after every mega win. While the present reset amount is $10-million, there is chatter that this will be increasing to $11-million. Megabucks, created by International Game Technology (IGT), may well be the most famous slot machine in the world today. This progressive slot machine can be found throughout International Game Technology (IGT) casinos in Las Vegas and other locations in Nevada, with smaller versions of the same jackpot being offered in other jurisdictions.
Megabucks is a popular slot machine offered by IGT featuring one of the highest progressive jackpots among all slot games. First introduced to gamblers in 1994, Megabucks is now available in dozens of casinos in the United States. The highest concentration of Megabucks machines can be found in Las Vegas and Reno.
The Megabucks slot machine has become an enticing game for casino goers, and it has been drawing in wandering slots players for over a decade with its most distinct feature; a massive progressive jackpot which has been known to reach over $30,000,000.
It goes without saying that this game probably has one of the largest progressive jackpots that you’ll ever come across inside of a casino, and it makes the Wheel of Fortune progressive look like chump-change.
Megabucks Machine Variations
The most common Megabucks game features a simple 3-reel machine with 1 payline. Over the course of its lifespan, IGT has had plenty of time to come up with new variations of Megabucks and they definitely did not disappoint.
Today there is a total of 19 different Megabucks slot games which feature either 3-reels or 5-reels. IGT has combined the Megabucks with other company staples like Wolf Run, Double Diamond and 3x4x5x times pay. A complete list of all Megabucks slot game varieties can be found below.
– Megabucks Crystal Sevens
– Megabucks Red Hot Re-Spin
– Megabucks Double Diamond Deluxe
– Megabucks Triple Double Stars
– Megabucks Double 3x4x5x Times Pay
– Megabucks Pink Ice
– Megabucks Wild Sapphires
– Megabucks Mega Volt Respin
– Megabucks Fire Sapphires
– Megabucks Wolf Run
– Megabucks Hot Bells
– Megabucks Triple Ruby Riches
– Megabucks Double Diamond
– Megabucks Free Spins
– Megabucks Red, White & Blue
– Megabucks Double Gold
– Megabucks 2x3x4x5x Gold
– Megabucks Megablast
– Megabucks Platinum Pays
Where to Play Megabucks
If you like Megabucks, you might be disappointed, as it’s only offered in Nevada and California. It can be played at most casinos in Las Vegas, Reno and Lake Tahoe as well as a few select Native American casinos in California. If you want to play in California, you’ll have to visit Red Hawk Casino, Thunder Valley Casino Resort or Gold Country Casino.
Unfortunately, there are no machines in Atlantic City at this time.
When you are at a casino with Megabucks, you’ll find that they’re often located in high-traffic areas, most likely because of their flashy progressive sign displaying the massive jackpot.
Megabucks Progressive
Since Megabucks was introduced in the 1990’s, just over 30 different people have experienced a life changing win while playing. To win the progressive jackpot, you need to get the Megabucks icon on each reel. Every time someone hits the progressive, the jackpot automatically resets back to $10,000,000 (in Nevada) or $3,000,000 (in California).
The money used to bankroll the progressive jackpot is collected by IGT on a state-by-state basis. For example, there are separate progressive jackpots for Nevada and California. As you might imagine, the California jackpot is always much lower than the one in Nevada.
The biggest win ever recorded on a Megabucks progressive machine happened on January 26th, 2000 at a little-known Nevada casino called Desert Inn. The player in question won a jaw-dropping $34,955,490.
According to Wizard of Odds, the probability of winning a Megabucks progressive is 1 in 49,836,032. If you are lucky enough to win a Megabucks jackpot, however, don’t expect to walk out of the casino with tens of millions of dollars in the bank. All progressive wins for Megabucks are issued to the player by IGT in 25 installments, which are paid out once per year.
Taking this into account, the lowest amount you could win from hitting a Megabucks progressive (in Nevada) would equate to about $400,000 per year ($10,000,000 / 25 payments).
Odds and RTP
If you’re interested in playing slots with high RTP percentages, you’ll be disappointed to learn that Megabucks might be one of the worst machines you can play. Though the game is wildly popular in Las Vegas, it has a house edge of roughly 11.39% which means that the average RTP is only 88.61%. Compare that to some other popular slot games that boast 98% or 99% RTP and you’ll probably think twice before pumping money into a Megabucks machine.
Needless to say, the lure of winning a life-changing jackpot of $10,000,000+ – regardless of the odds – keeps players coming back time and time again.
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Megabucks are slots with progressive jackpots, combined into a single network that covers casinos in several American states. The owner and operator of this network is International Game Technology, better known by its abbreviated name IGT.
Megabucks slot is considered as an alternative to state lotteries and enjoys incredible popularity among Americans. Actually, there is an opinion that IGT specifically released it to create a lottery competition. Since the beginning of the eighties in the twentieth century, when the slot was launched for the first time, this slot made dozens of players millionaires.
Thanks to the skillfully organized advertising company, every Megabucks jackpot, when it reaches a considerable size, causes a real excitement among the gambling public. And every hit of the progressive jackpot is widely covered in the media, attracting even more casino visitors to the slot. No other slot in the world is overgrown with so many incredible myths, rumors, and legends. But with all this, there are a lot of gambling experts and just experienced players who consider Megabucks a hideous slot that absolutely does not deserve so much attention. So, who is right: fans or opponents of this slot?
Where to Play the Megabucks Slot
- Secure
- Fast Withdrawals
Rank | Casino/Hotel | Details | Booking |
---|---|---|---|
New York New York | $80-160Avg. Room Rates | View Deals | |
2 | Arizona Charlie's Boulder | $30-60Avg. Room Rates | View Deals |
3 | Circus Circus | $30-60Avg. Room Rates | View Deals |
4 | Four Queens | $50-100Avg. Room Rates | View Deals |
How to Play Megabucks
The classic version of the Megabucks slot from IGT is a 3-reel slot machine with the only one payline. In order to qualify for a progressive jackpot, the player must definitely bet three dollars. There are a lot of stories (both true and fictitious) about casino customers, who had the jackpot combination, but they did not receive any jackpot because of a bet less than three dollars.
The progressive jackpot is not completely nullified when a lucky winner gets it but starts to grow from a certain amount. In recent years, this fixed amount is $10,000,000. There are persistent rumors that soon this initial sum of the jackpot should increase by one million.
Megabucks Slot Odds
Strange as it may seem, there is no official information about the probability of winning the Megabucks jackpot. Some casinos say that the player has one chance out of 50 million, while others claim that this is one chance of 17 million. Whatever it was, when the sum of the jackpot is large enough, fans of this slot are ready to fly thousands of kilometers to try their luck.
What do Lady Luck’s favorites have from this slot? Do they get all that huge amount of money that is advertised? When you win a jackpot, events can unfold as follows. First of all, the lucky guy will receive a check for $1,400,000. Then the winner is given two or three months to decide how he wants to get his winnings. There are two options: the amount is divided into annual payments, which will be transferred to the player within twenty-five years, or he can get the winnings immediately at a time, but at a rate of 60% of the jackpot.
That is, having won ten million, the winner can receive in the second variant only six million, but at once and with one payment. After receiving the win, he still has to pay taxes. Unsurprisingly, almost all holders of Megabucks jackpots prefer to receive their winnings in the form of annual payments.
However, in this case, they also have to pay taxes, the Internal Revenue Service of the United States (IRS) very strictly follows this. Subtract from the total amount of the jackpot another 40%, because such winnings are taxed at the maximum rate. So, the next time you hear that someone has won ten million in Megabucks and immediately took all the money, you know that the lucky guy got a little over three and a half million at his disposal.
The Curse of the Megabucks Jackpot
As already mentioned above, there are a lot of urban legends about the Megabucks slot and its jackpot, mostly of a gloomy nature. For the most part, they describe the tragic fate of players who managed to win a huge jackpot. It is believed that almost all the lucky people either perish or suffer numerous woes. The cause of their numerous misfortunes is the so-called Curse of the Megabucks slot.
Of course, in these stories, there is much more fiction than the truth. However, there is no smoke without fire — some winners, really, seriously suffered after they won the jackpot. In particular, the further life of the waitress Cynthia J. Brennan, who won $34.9 million in 2000, was sad. A month and a half after the win, Cynthia and her sister were hit by a drunk driver. The sister died on the spot, and Cynthia was forever paralyzed. The guy who drove the car in a state of intoxication was imprisoned for twenty-eight years.
But the rumors about the curse of Megabucks spread even before the year 2000. Simply, this accident was widely covered in the press and made people remember about other similar events, which at that time did not become so resonant. In 2003, many media published a story about a 25-year-old player who became the owner of the Megabucks jackpot and either died from a drug overdose in a casino hotel or was killed in a street shootout. IGT companies had to work hard to convince the public of the falsity of these statements.
There are also a lot of rumors about underage players and employees of different casinos who won the Megabucks jackpot but could not get it due to existing rules. But none of these rumors received documentary evidence.
Many experts in the field of gambling suggest that ITG recently made relevant changes to the Megabucks system, which makes the jackpot play less often, but with larger amounts. Although officially the company claims that nothing of the sort has happened, this opinion remains very popular.
Where Could You Play Megabucks?
Most fans of slot machines and large jackpots are not afraid of the curse of Megabucks and are willing to play in this slot. You can find this slot in almost all real casinos on the Las Vegas Strip, as well as in other establishments in Nevada, California, New Jersey, Mississippi, and some Indian reservations. Each state has its own separate network of Megabucks slots, but the biggest progressive jackpots are expected in Nevada. In other states, jackpots are much smaller.
Why do Experts Consider Megabucks a Bad Slot?
Experts do not believe in the curse of the Megabucks slot, but this does not stop them from considering this gambling machine not worthy of attention. The fact is that this slot is very unprofitable for the player. Firstly, it has an extremely high percentage of the casino advantage, which reaches 10-15% (for comparison, many slots in the Las Vegas casino are limited to 2-3%). Secondly, the procedure for paying a jackpot is extremely inconvenient. The winner either loses 40% of the amount or gets it in parts for 25 years. But the progressive jackpots of most other slots are paid immediately and in full.
All this suggests that Megabucks is a mediocre slot, which gained its popularity only thanks to record payments and a masterly organized PR campaign.