Nudge Nudge
A feature that pushes a stopped reel up or down one position to reveal a different symbol. It comes from the nudge button on British fruit machines, and today it mostly triggers automatically based on conditions.
| English | Nudge |
|---|---|
| Classification | Game Features |
| Meaning | A feature that gently pushes a reel one position |
| Origin | British fruit machine |
| Related feature | Hold |
| Names by provider | Powernudge (Pragmatic Play), xNudge (Nolimit City), UltraNudge (Yggdrasil) |
| Online variants | Win chain, wild multiplier, mystery reveal, all-reel continuous |
Overview
Nudge is a feature that gently pushes a stopped reel up or down one position so a different symbol shows. In English, “nudge” means to push lightly. It started as a button on British fruit machines that let players move a reel one step themselves. In most online slots today, it has become a feature that triggers automatically when conditions are met.
A short definition of nudge is in Bonus Features, and Pragmatic Play’s version of nudge is covered separately in Powernudge. This article explains where nudge came from and how providers adapt it today.
A feature from fruit machines
On British fruit machines, if you got a nudge chance after a spin, you could move the reels you chose one position at a time. A similar feature, Hold, kept some reels in place before the next spin and was often used alongside it. However, having these features doesn’t change a machine’s payout rate, so any “strategy” built around nudges or holds can’t raise the actual return rate.
| Category | Nudge on fruit machines | Nudge in online slots |
|---|---|---|
| Who moves it | The player picks a reel and presses a button | The game does it automatically based on conditions |
| When | When a nudge chance appears after the spin ends | When a win lands or a special symbol is partly on screen |
| Effect | Fixes a near-miss combination | Chain wins, multiplier increases, symbol reveals, and more |
Online slot nudge variations
Win-chain nudge
Temple of Nudges by NetEnt is a 5×3, 243-ways game. When a win lands, it is calculated and then the whole reel set shifts down one position, and any new win is calculated again. The nudges continue as long as wins keep coming. Pragmatic Play’s Sweet Powernudge also pushes down only the reels with winning symbols to reveal new ones.
Wild nudge with multipliers
Nolimit City calls its own version xNudge. In Deadwood xNudge, when a 4-tall wild lands only partly on screen, it nudges automatically until it is fully visible, and the wild multiplier goes up by 1 with each nudge. If several wilds are on the same line, their multipliers are added together. The 2018 game Hot Nudge works the same way, with 4-tall wilds on reels 2 to 4. Nolimit City’s other x-series mechanics are in xMechanics.
Mystery symbol nudge
In John Hunter and Galileo’s Secrets, mystery symbols that are only partly visible during the bonus are nudged until they are fully shown.
All-reel continuous nudge
Yggdrasil’s UltraNudge is described as a mechanic where reels keep nudging as long as wins land on all reels. Jokrz Wild UltraNudge is the flagship game.
Nudge games on AI Slot
| Games | Providers | Release | RTP | Max win |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hot Nudge | Nolimit City | 2018.07 | 96.29% | 2,413x |
| Temple of Nudges | NetEnt | 2019.03 | 96.03% | 600x |
| Deadwood xNudge | Nolimit City | 2020.05 | 96.03% | 13,950x |
| Jokrz Wild UltraNudge | Yggdrasil | 2022.05 | 96.1% | 23,500x |
| Sweet Powernudge | Pragmatic Play | 2022.12 | 96.08% | 5,000x |
| John Hunter and Galileo’s Secrets | Pragmatic Play | 2025.02 | 96.5% | 5,000x |
RTP and max win are based on AI Slot’s game info. The effect of a “near-miss” screen turning into a win through a nudge is there for fun, and like any other feature, the result is decided within the RNG and the game’s probability design.
