Aztec Gems Megaways Slot Review
A golden temple frontage stands in a misty jungle valley, turquoise set flush into its sandstone pillars and a waterfall spilling down the cliff behind it. Aztec Gems Megaways is the most exclusive Megaways game you’re likely to spin: only three of its four reels pay at all, and every win it’s capable of is decided by the one that doesn’t. The gems are decoration; the fourth reel is the game.
Pragmatic Play have stripped the format back to almost nothing, and more of the game lives in that multiplier reel than in the three before it. It runs at 96.58% RTP with low volatility, on a 6×4 grid with up to 512 ways to win and stakes from 0.05 to 250.00. For a game named after gems, a lot rides on one reel.
Base Game & Features
The playfield is a 6×4 arrangement with a twist in how the reels divide the work. Reels one to three hold the gems and can each show up to eight symbols per spin, while reel four doesn’t hold paying symbols at all. It’s reserved for the win multiplier, covered below.
Because the symbol counts change every spin, the number of ways to win changes with them. Wins pay for left to right adjacent symbol combinations of any size, Megaways style, under licence from Big Time Gaming. With three variable reels in play, the maximum number of possible ways to win is 512. That’s a small number by the format’s standards, and it shapes everything about how the game feels.
The 512 ceiling only arrives when all three gem reels are full to eight symbols apiece. A spin where the reels land shorter still pays, just through fewer connections: two gems on each reel gives eight ways into a single symbol type, four on each gives 64. Every spin sets its own number before a single gem is judged.
Three-of-a-kind is all the paytable asks. There’s no four-of-a-kind tier and no five-symbol premium, because there are only three paying reels: every winning combination is exactly three symbols wide, and the payout depends on which symbols land and how many ways they connect. Two different symbol types can both connect on the same spin, and both pay.
The symbols are all gems and carved stones in saturated colours, and the paytable is short. Every symbol pays for three of a kind, at the following multiples of your stake.
- Red gem (triangular): 2x for three
- Purple gem: 1.6x for three
- Green gem: 1x for three
- Red square gem: 0.8x for three
- Blue diamond gem: 0.6x for three
- Yellow triangle carved symbol: 0.4x for three
- Teal small diamond carved symbol: 0.2x for three
That’s the whole ladder. The top gem pays 2x your stake for three of a kind, and nothing in the base symbol set goes higher, which tells you where the game expects its money to come from: the fourth reel.
The paytable also tells you what session shape to expect. The bottom four symbols pay 0.8x or less for their best combination, so most winning spins return less than your stake unless the multiplier reel is feeling generous.
Low volatility keeps wins arriving, but their size is set here, at the small end. Even the top gem needs the multiplier to break meaningfully past its stake.
Aztec Gems Megaways Bonus Features & Multiplier Reel
The win multiplier is the feature, and there’s nothing else. At the end of each spin, one item is chosen at random on the fourth reel, and whatever it shows applies to all wins on that spin. Nothing carries over, nothing builds. Each spin gets one multiplier, and it either helps or it doesn’t.
The possible values run wide:
- 1x, 2x, 3x, 5x, 10x
- 15x, 20x, 25x
- 50x, 100x
A 1x result is a spin that pays exactly what the symbols say. Everything above that is upside, and the gaps between tiers are large: the jump from 25x to 50x doubles the value of any win riding on it, and the jump from 50x to 100x does the same again.
Because the multiplier applies to everything a spin pays, a modest combination and a healthy multiplier together make the only meaningful payouts this game produces. Which multiplier landed matters far more than which gems did.
The mechanics of a single spin are over in two beats. First the three gem reels settle and any adjacent combinations of three pay their base values. Then the fourth reel resolves, and the multiplier it lands on scales every one of those wins up together.
One spin can hold several winning combinations at once, since each symbol type can connect in multiple ways, and the multiplier hits all of them. The payout depends on the symbols, the number of connections and the single multiplier, and on nothing else.
There’s no free spins round, no scatter, no bonus symbol and no second mode. The reel layout shifts and the multiplier changes, and that’s the complete extent of what happens across a session. Low volatility keeps the small wins ticking over while the fourth reel decides whether any of them amounted to anything.
Our Honest Verdict
Overall Rating: 6.2/10
This is a game about waiting for one reel to say yes. You spin, the gems connect or they don’t, and a trickle of small wins keeps the jungle quiet while you wait on a multiplier worth having. That spartan core is exactly why somebody would pick it: nothing to learn, nothing to track, one number doing all the talking.
Its strength is that the multiplier reel makes every spin matter equally. There’s no build to protect and no bonus to chase, so a 100x can arrive on the first spin of a session rather than the four-hundredth. Its weakness is that the same reel has to carry the whole game, and it can’t. Once you’ve watched a few spins resolve, there’s nothing left to discover.
It’s a good fit for low-stakes players who want quick, undemanding sessions with frequent small returns. It’s not for anyone who wants a bonus round to look forward to. Keep the stakes small and the temple makes a pleasant enough place to sit for a while.
Aztec Gems Megaways FAQs
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What is the RTP of Aztec Gems Megaways?
The RTP is 96.58%, which sits comfortably above the industry average. -
Is Aztec Gems Megaways high volatility?
No, it’s a low volatility game. Wins tend to be smaller and more frequent, which suits longer sessions on a modest bankroll. -
How many paylines does Aztec Gems Megaways have?
It uses Megaways rather than fixed paylines. Wins pay for left to right adjacent symbol combinations of any size, with up to 512 possible ways to win. -
What is the grid size of Aztec Gems Megaways?
It’s a 6×4 grid, but the two halves do different jobs. Reels one to three can each show up to eight symbols, while reel four holds only the win multiplier. -
What is the minimum and maximum bet on Aztec Gems Megaways?
Stakes run from 0.05 to 250.00 per spin, giving plenty of room for both cautious players and high rollers. -
When is Aztec Gems Megaways released?
Aztec Gems Megaways’ release date is 16 January 2025. -
Who makes Aztec Gems Megaways?
Pragmatic Play, with the Megaways mechanic used under licence from Big Time Gaming. -
Does the win multiplier apply to every win on a spin?
Yes. One multiplier is drawn at random on reel four at the end of each spin, and it scales every winning combination on that spin together, not just the largest one. Values range from 1x up to 100x, and nothing carries over between spins.
