Win Both Ways Win Both Ways
A rule that counts a symbol combination whether you count from the first reel on the left or from the last reel on the right. It increases the number of ways to win on the same screen.
| English | Win Both Ways |
|---|---|
| Classification | Game Features |
| Also known as | Pays Both Ways, Win Both Ways |
| Win condition | Consecutive from the leftmost or rightmost reel |
| Combination covering only the middle | Not a win |
| Where it applies | Works with both paylines and ways |
| Main effect | Higher hit rate (RTP is designed to stay the same) |
Overview
Win Both Ways is a rule that counts a winning symbol combination whether you count from the first reel on the left going right, or from the last reel on the right going left. Most slots only count one direction, left to right, so a Win Both Ways game has more ways to win on the same screen. It is also written as “Pays Both Ways” or “Win Both Ways”.
Basic terms for how wins work are in Slot Basics. This article explains how the both-ways rule works in actual calculations and the variations between games.
One-Way vs. Both-Ways Comparison
Say you have 3 matching symbols on a single payline in a 5-reel line game.
| Symbol position (reel number) | One-way game | Both-ways game |
|---|---|---|
| Reels 1, 2, 3 | Win | Win |
| Reels 3, 4, 5 | No win | Win (counted from the right) |
| Reels 2, 3, 4 | No win | No win (neither end reel is included) |
| Reels 1, 2, 3 + reels 3, 4, 5 are different symbols | Only the left combination wins | Both combinations win |
The key point is that the condition “it must start from an end reel” applies on both sides. A combination that only covers the middle reels is not a win, even in a both-ways game. Whether a combination filling all five reels pays twice, once from each side, depends on the game, so check the paytable.
Variations of the Both-Ways Rule
All wins both ways
The Catfather, Master Chen’s Fortune, and Hockey League Wild Match from Pragmatic Play are 3×5, 9-payline games that count every line win from both the left and the right. With fewer paylines, they add chances to win by paying in both directions.
Big grid + both ways
Red Tiger‘s Mystery Reels Power Reels adds all-wins-both-ways to a 7×6 Power Reels grid. The official description says multiple symbol combinations on a single line can pay at the same time.
Different multipliers by direction
In Zeus vs Typhon, random 2x to 20x multipliers are attached to the left and right sides of the grid, and each applies only to wins that start from that side. If wins land on both sides in one spin, the two multipliers are multiplied together. In free spins, a multiplier always appears on both sides.
Is both ways more favorable?
Both-ways games can feel like they win more often, but the game’s RTP is designed to include all both-ways wins. So at the same RTP, the more often wins land, the smaller the average size of each win has to be. Both ways is less a rule that “pays more” and more a rule that “pays small wins more often,” which works to raise the hit rate.
Win Both Ways Games on AI Slot
| Games | Setup | RTP | Max win |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Catfather | 3×5, 9 paylines | 96.52% | 2,251x |
| Hockey League Wild Match | 3×5, 9 paylines | 96.52% | 5,300x |
| Master Chen’s Fortune | 3×5, 9 paylines | 96.48% | 3,600x |
| Mystery Reels Power Reels | 7×6 Power Reels | 95.67% | 5,250x |
| Zeus vs Typhon | Multipliers on both sides | 96.49% | 10,000x |
RTP and max win are based on AI Slot game information. You can try the both-ways calculation yourself in a free slots demo with no sign-up.
