Big Time Gamingā€™s Aussie developers are amongst todayā€™s most popular providers and who wouldā€™ve thought that when they were founded in Surry Hills back in 2011. To this date, BTG enjoys an untouchable status as other providers depend on their licence. Virtually everything this developer touches turns into gold and it doesnā€™t matter whether itā€™s a mechanism, feature, or theme ā€” if itā€™s BTG then itā€™ll work.Ā 

Even when they only existed for a few years, their impact on the industry was already massive thanks to their extremely popular Megaways mechanism. As one of New Zealandā€™s most popular casino guides, we made sure to go through everything this game studio has to offer to Kiwi players. Read on and find out why everybody in NZ loves BTG.

 

About Big Time Gaming

In 2011, Aussie based Nik Robinson (the man with the ideas), Huw McIntosh (the tech guy), and Ian Schmidt (the creative brain) founded Big Time Gaming. McIntosh and Robinson had already worked together at New Tech Media and OpenBet and Schmidt joined later. It all started with the simple fruit pokie Lucky Streak. With that release, Big Time Gaming seemed to be one of the many mainstream providers that didn’t really know how to distinguish themselves. But boy did things change when Megaways hit the world.

Dragon Born was the first Megaways pokie, but the real breakthrough came in December 2016 with the launch of their second Megaways pokie: Bonanza. This new mechanism (which weā€™ll cover later on in detail) gave players a lot more paylines and became highly successful amongst both players and casinos. Soon, many Megaways pokies followed.Ā In subsequent years, the casino industry has gone through heaps of changes which is also thanks to Big Time Gaming revolutionising the game with their Megaways mechanism.

Ever since Big Time Gaming introduced the Megaways game engine to the world, they’ve become one of the most talked about pokie providers in the industry, not only because their games have been outstanding ever since, but also because other providers started their own megaways games as well ā€” with a Big Time Gaming licence that is. They’re now extremely popular with players in NZ and classics like Bonanza and Extra Chilli are considered some of the most exemplary casino games ever to have been launched.

In 2021, live dealer casino provider Evolution acquired Big Time Gaming for a mind blowing ā‚¬450 million (NZ$ 779.69m). Evolution had previously acquired NetEnt in July 2020 which at its turn owned Red Tiger Gaming, all together leading to one of the strongest iGaming concerns in the industry today. The Evolution Group is now formed by Big Time Gaming, NetEnt, Red Tiger Gaming, Ezugi, and Evolution.

Best Pokies by Big Time Gaming

We consider finding good online casinos in NZ and good pokies our main tasks which isnā€™t very difficult for a provider as popular as Big Time Gaming. Despite not having a huge portfolio, most of the games released by BTG have turned out to be highly successful. This Australia based pokie provider has been responsible for some of the best known games of which we believe the following titles are your best bet if you want real action:

Bonanza

Bonanza ā€“ also known as Bonanza Megaways ā€“ marked the big breakthrough of Big Time Gaming in 2016. Bonanza is played with six reels on which a maximum of seven symbols can show per reel. Its maximum potential gives you 117,649 ‘ways to win, which is still considered huge. After each winning spin, the winning symbols explode and a ā€œCascading Winā€ follows with new symbols falling into the empty spaces allowing players to win again. The bonus game is even more spectacular. Every ā€œcascading winā€ is accompanied by a multiplier giving you wins up to 12,000x your stake per bonus spin. There is also a version of Bonanza with a progressive jackpot: Bonanza MegaPays which was launched in 2021.

Extra Chilli

Extra Chilli, often referred to as Extra Chilli Megaways, is the unofficial successor to Bonanza Megaways. With this 2018 pokie, Big Time Gaming opted for a follow-up with a different theme and design. The gold mine with miner’s carts was replaced by a stall with hot chilli peppers making Extra Chilli an enhanced version of Bonanza which is also seen in the RTP increase from 96% in the original game to 96.19 percent in Extra Chilli. Opting for the ā€œBuy Bonus featureā€ the RTP even jumps to a very convenient 96.82%. Extra Chilliā€™s max win is also a lot higher: 20,000x the bet instead of 12,000x. The bonus game contains a progressive multiplier that can increase indefinitely. After every ā€œCascading Winā€ +1 is added to the multiplier. Last but not least: the ā€œFree Spins Gamble featureā€ was also new at the time giving the player the option to gamble for even higher wins.

Who Wants To Be A Millionaire

Who Wants To Be A Millionaire is based on the television game show of the same name and has a gameplay that is very similar to Bonanza and Extra Chilli. The action takes place on six reels with a maximum of seven symbols giving you a maximum of 117,649 ‘Megaways’. Different elements from the tv show are integrated in the game which is particularly noticed when you clear the free spins bonus. This is the moment the player takes a seat on the ā€œHot seatā€ which is where the questions are asked. In case you win, you earn yourself 50 free spins. The base game of Who Wants To Be A Millionaire already has a maximum win of 20,000x your stake. In the bonus game, the max win goes up to 70,000x.

Danger High Voltage

Danger High Voltage is not a Megaways pokie, but a ‘simple’ 4,096 ways to win game. Danger High Voltageā€™s base game is played with two different Wild symbols: the Wild Fire covers the entire reel and can land on four of the five reels. The Wild Electricity feature does the same thing, but also gives you a 6x win multiplier. When you unlock the bonus game, you get to choose between High Voltage and Gates of Hell. High Voltage in this case means 15 free spins with High Voltage Wilds that cover the entire reel with Wild symbols. They also add multipliers of a minimum of 11x and a maximum of 66x the winnings.

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Mechanisms by Big Time Gaming

Big Time Gaming is best known for the Megaways pokies, but they do more than that. Besides MegaWays, Big Time Gaming has also come up with MegaQuads and MegaClusters which are other mechanisms that have turned out slightly less successful, but still deserve lots of attention. We explain below how these mechanisms work, what to expect of them and which pokies you can play them on.

Megaways

The most famous mechanism of Big Time Gaming is clearly Megaways. The basis of these types of pokies is that the number of symbols on each reel is randomly determinedĀ  by a Random Number Generator (RNG) on every spin. Each reel contains a minimum of two and a maximum of seven symbols during a spin and comes with a different number of symbols. You can play on a pokie with six reels and a maximum of seven symbols per reel leading to a maximum of 117,649 ‘MegaWays’. Other features that you often see in combination with “Megaways” are “Cascading Wins” and the progressive multiplier.

MegaQuads

MegaQuads is yet another mechanism by Big Time Gaming. At first, MegaQuads looks a bit like the Quattro formula that you mightā€™ve seen in Stakelogic pokies. When a MegaQuads game is launched, four square 4×4 screens are visible on the screen. As MegaQuads works with the ā€œAll Ways Winā€ mechanism, you can go up to (4 to the power of 4 =) 256 ‘ways to win’ per screen. Because there are 4 screens, players get up to 1,024 paylines.

MegaClusters

MegaClusters is a combination between ‘Megaways’ and ‘Cluster Pays’. To explain this mechanism, we’ll take Cyberpokie MegaClusters as an example. This game starts with a 3-by-3 screen consisting of three reels, each containing three symbols. In case of a winning combination the winning symbols explode and are transformed into a cluster rather than disappearing from the reels. This continues as long as you keep winning.

Other Games By Big Time Gaming

Big Time Gamingā€™s story goes back to 2011 and they were initially seen as a small provider, but things rapidly changed when they came up with the Megaways mechanisms in 2015-2016. Now there are many Megaways titles available which is thanks to the licence system they work with. In addition, Big Time Gaming was also the first studio to come up with the ā€œBonus Buy featureā€. After Megaways, other mechanisms followed, such as MegaQuads and MegaClusters. From 2021, Big Time Gaming started launching pokies with a progressive jackpot: Megapays pokies. This explains why Big Time Gaming is considered a highly varied developer today as youā€™ll discover yourself once you browse through the categories BTG offers. Their portfolio include games of the following categories:Ā 

  • Online pokies.
  • Jackpot pokies.
  • Megaways.
  • Classic pokies.
  • Other mechanisms by BTG include:Ā 
    • 4096 Ways.
    • Bonus Buy.
    • Feature Drop.
    • MegaClusters.
    • MegaScatter.
    • MegaStacks
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Providers with a Big Time Gaming licence

Big Time Gaming isnā€™t the only provider anymore that produces Megaways pokies as other game studios have started developing their own Megaways games as well. In order to do so they need a special licence which is sold by BTG. Blueprint Gaming was one of the first providers to purchase a Megaways licence giving players popular online pokies such as Vikings Unleashed Megaways, Legacy of Ra Megaways, and Fishin’ Frenzy Megaways. Relax Gaming was also quick to act and Temple Tumble Megaways became one of the most popular online pokies by this studio. After that, the other big names in the industry began to see potential in Megaways which is why the biggest names purchased their own licences. Some examples are WMS (Raging Rhino Megaways), NetEnt (Twin Spin Megaways) and MicroGaming (Forgotten Island Megaways).

Big Time Gaming Bonuses, Promotions and RTP

Known for their high volatility, most titles by Big Time Gaming are well above the 96% average, some of which reaching to 96.7% and most around the 96.3% – 96.5% range. With most respected online casinos offering games by Big Time Gaming or games with a Megaways licence, there are also a lot of NZ casino bonuses for Big Time Gaming pokies. Depending on the casino website, Big Time Gaming bonuses come in different forms like free spins, cashbacks and even no deposit bonuses. CherryRed is the most important website in New Zealand when it comes to finding bonuses for Big Time Gaming casinos.

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Frequently Asked Questions

How Many Pokies Has Big Time Gaming Released?

Big Time Gaming was launched in 2011 and their catalogue counts 50+ casino games of which most titles are Megaways oriented but players will have some other mechanisms to enjoy as well. Regular pokies are fairly rare, so players should be prepared for special mechanisms.

Are Big Time Gaming Pokies Available in New Zealand?

Yes, games by Big Time Gaming are commonly available in New Zealand. Most offshore online casinos feature Big Time Gaming in their catalogue which is why you should be able to play their games if you make use of licenced casino websites. Kiwis are allowed to sign up at offshore online casinos and play real money Big Time Gaming pokies.

Can I Play Games By Big Time Gaming's For Free?

Yes, you can play games by Big Time Gaming’s for free as most titles are available in the free demo version. The demo variants are normally available in the Big Time Gaming pokie reviews by CherryRed, but should also be offered by your preferred online casino, and they are also available on Big Time Gamingā€™s own website.

What Kind of Casino Games Does Big Time Gaming Create?

Big Time Gaming’s range mainly focuses on Megaways games, but if you want to dive into a broader category, then they stick to online pokies. Some other popular categories by this provider include 4×4, Feature Drop, MegaPays, and MegaClusters.

Why Play Big Time Gaming Games?

If youā€™re into Megaways, you canā€™t really go better than Big Time Gaming as this is the bloody source weā€™re talking about. Despite the great successes that Big Time Gaming has achieved over the years, the team has not stood still. Big Time Gaming went ahead and released other mechanisms, such as the Megaclusters which has led to sky-high expectations for the future.

Furthermore, Aussie based Big Time Gaming is widely known as an honest and reliable online casino software developer that holds multiple online casino licences, including those of the United Kingdom Gambling Commission, the Alderney Gambling Control Commission and Gibraltar Regulatory Act. An Australian iGaming concern being this successful in an industry with so much competition is also something a lot of Kiwis will enjoy, giving them yet another solid reason to try out the pokies by this game studio.

Big Time Gaming has a relatively small portfolio of games compared to competitors and currently consists of 50 online pokies which is significantly lower than some of their most important competitors. In our opinion this makes it even more special that most of the Big Time Gaming pokies are well known amongst casinos and pokie enthusiasts in all corners of the world. The team in Surry Hills has also released a good number of well performing branded pokies over the years such as Monopoly Megaways, Millionaire Mystery Box and Who Wants to be a Millionaire. Games by Big Time Gaming are easily recognised by the high variance, the many paylines clearly thanks to the Megaways mechanism) and the large multipliers that give players even more chances of winning.

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